If you’re starting out in finance and hoping to climb the ranks, the lessons from five newly promoted managing directors at Goldman Sachs are well worth hearing. These aren’t the old-guard tales of decades building up to it — these are people who just made the leap to MD in 2025, and they shared what helped them get there.
The announcements came recently — Goldman promoted just 638 employees out of roughly 48,000 to MD this year. That means the group is elite. When you ask those newly minted MDs what worked for them, you get a mix of broad wisdom and specific habits.
One of the first tips comes from Michael Brill, head of capital formation within Goldman’s asset & wealth-management division. His mantra? “Put a smile on, work hard, do a good job, and doors will naturally open up.” While it sounds simple, the advice reflects something underlying: opportunities often arrive for those who show up, stay positive, and deliver. He emphasizes that as you gain seniority, you begin to take ownership not only of your work but of your team and your broader area of influence.
Then there’s Lizzie Dove, senior analyst in gaming, lodging and leisure, thinking back to her analyst days. She stressed being obsessive about details, treating everyone you meet like a client, and making sure you don’t leave tasks half-finished. When things get chaotic, she says, go back to your to-do list: decide what must be done, what can wait. That kind of clarity and discipline matters when you’re juggling big workloads.
Joe Hall offers a different angle. He joined Goldman mid-career after working in another industry. His advice centres around humility and context. He says: ask why you’re doing something, understand the bigger objective of your assignment, and don’t take for granted that you’re already an expert. Starting again at the bottom taught him how important reflection is, and how much value you get when you ask for the reasoning behind tasks.
For tech-focused types, Jim Schneider (senior semiconductor analyst) has a compelling path. He holds a PhD in electrical engineering and covers the semiconductor space — but he says one of the key differentiators was his ability to make “context switches.” That means combining technical depth with a broader view (finance, markets, communication). He reminds young professionals that your background doesn’t trap you; use it as a platform to learn broadly, take in humanities or cross-discipline skills, and grow through mistakes. He emphasises that some of his biggest lessons came from wrong calls, not only successes.
Finally, Bering Tsang, in healthcare M&A, shares a theme that came up across several of these MDs: making yourself “mentorable.” He states that from very early on you should work hard to be someone others want to invest time in — open to feedback, willing to learn, taking ownership, and managing your mistakes. He recalls his first public-company deal and says that feeling of responsibility — owning something fully — was a turning moment.
What ties all these together? A few common threads: hard work + positive attitude, attention to detail + prioritization, humility + asking questions, cross-functional learning + resilience, and being someone worth mentoring. None of these are flashy shortcuts; they’re fundamentals. But in an industry where hours are long, stakes are high, and competition is fierce, getting the fundamentals right early matters.
In practical terms: if you’re an analyst, associate or early-career banker, focus on the work you have today — do it so well that your managers trust you. Don’t skip the foundational steps thinking you’ll jump ahead. Be curious about why you’re doing things. Seek feedback. Make your work visible (in a good way), and treat every person you interact with — from support staff to your counterpart on another team — as someone you may work with again. Show you can handle problems before you seek promotions.
Also, consider your skillset: if you’re technical, build communication and business acuity. If you’re in a client-facing role, build domain knowledge and the ability to execute under pressure. And when you fail — and you will — reflect on what went wrong and articulate how you’ll do better next time.
It’s worth noting: while the title of managing director is prestigious, the MD-game isn’t just about hitting numbers. It’s about leadership, judgement, ownership. These five MDs made clear that earning that title meant carrying others forward, not just being carried. For younger professionals, that means your career isn’t just about what you do — it’s about how you think, how you grow, and how you help others grow too.
So if you’re working your way up and hoping to get noticed — the advice from these Goldman MDs is clear: show up, stay curious, be dependable, treat every task and person with care, and build habits that scale. Because when the big opportunity comes, you’ll need all of it.
