A Day in the Life of Mike Hawkins, Analyst in New York

How has your career evolved since you joined Slate?

The Analyst Rotation Program is what drew me to Slate – it was an incredible opportunity to immerse myself in Slate’s business while building relationships across the firm. I started my rotation in asset management for Slate Grocery REIT, then transitioned to the North American equity investments team with a focus on value-add acquisitions, before landing in my permanent position on the credit team. I think the experience I gained underwriting and investing on both the debt and equity side of the business, coupled with the soft skills I learned during different rotations has made me a more well-rounded professional.

This year, you relocated from Chicago to New York with Slate. What has the adjustment been like and how have you grown because of it?

Being from the East Coast, my move has brought me closer to friends and family, which has been helpful as I adjust to the fast-moving pace of life in New York. Professionally, it has been invaluable to work in-person with our credit team, which has a large presence in Slate’s New York office. I worked in-person with my teams throughout my first two rotations in Chicago and was able to see the importance of face-to-face collaboration; to be able to continue to do so in my final rotation with the credit team has been paramount to my personal growth.

What skills do you believe are most important in your day-to-day role?

While having strong technical skills is important, I believe that success in my role – and all roles at the firm – ultimately comes down to working hard and having a positive attitude. A key takeaway I learned from the Analyst Rotation Program was that if you can quickly adapt to different settings and assignments with an entrepreneurial growth mindset, mastering the technical skills needed for the day-to-day will follow.

How do you spend your 6pm-8pm after your 8am-6pm?

Depending on the season, you will usually find me playing in a weeknight men’s league lacrosse game in Chelsea, or basketball at my apartment’s rooftop court in Tribeca. While I do enjoy cooking dinner, I also like to try out all the new restaurants New York has to offer. My recent favorite is a Vietnamese spot called Pho Maiden Lane in Tribeca; their pho is the best I’ve had in the city so far. After dinner, I typically clean up my inbox to prepare for the next day and wind down with a good book or TV show – these days, I’m reading Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros, and I just started watching Presumed Innocent on Apple TV.