Any Equities Research Analayst, Financial Analysts, Financial Modelers here?

I'm thinking of switching my career from technology to Finance and am purusing for a job as a financialy analyst. was wondering if any of you are in this particular industry, and if so, could you shed some light as to what areas of excel is most important for the job? and what resoruces would you recommend to practice?

thanks in advance,
rue