u/Finance_wizard_01 — reddlx

Hi everyone,

I’ve now been working in M&A / transaction services for about a year (mix of sell-side and buy-side, mostly mid-cap deals), and I’m trying to level up on the execution side beyond what you typically learn on the job.

I’m not really looking for general IB prep content or beginner resources, but more for places where people share advances practical insights that actually make a difference day to day.

Things I’m particularly interested in:

Advanced Excel workflows or small automations that save time on live deals
PowerPoint efficiency tips for teasers / CIMs (especially formatting, structuring, and speed)
How people actually build smart buyer lists beyond the usual Capital IQ / PitchBook screens
Ways to make an IM more compelling from a storytelling perspective, not just a data dump
Best practices for organizing a clean data room and handling Q&A efficiently under pressure

Also, I feel like I’m hitting a ceiling with internal templates. If anyone knows:

Good slide libraries or inspiration sources used in real deals
Tools or plugins that top analysts use to move faster or improve output quality

Would really appreciate any niche communities (Slack groups, Discords, forums, blogs, even paid resources) where this kind of stuff is discussed seriously.

Thanks