Here's a bit of good news if you're looking to break into a front office S&T or M&A role: the word has gone out to recruiters to fill the slots banks are expecting to lose after bonuses clear. Things are especially good (in London, anyway) if you have an accounting background.
Andrew Breach, director of global banking and Asset Management at Page Execu|Searchtive in London, says banks’ demand for junior M&A staff has risen dramatically in recent months. “There’s a lot of hiring in M&A and investment banking coverage. I’d judge that there are around 50 openings for junior analysts and associates in London at the moment. The focus is on hiring ACAs from the Big Four accounting firms.”
Things aren't just looking up in the front office, either. Astbury Marsden estimates that 4,700 brand new back and mid-office jobs have been created just since December.
If you're a senior guy, odds are you're not too happy this bonus season. Lots of banks have made serious bonus cuts to certain divisions, and mass exoduses are expected at Barclays, Citi, and several other banks. Other banks like Credit Suisse have been letting the ax fall on their senior staff and they're just replacing them with juniors. The strategy hasn't been entirely successful thus far, but it has opened up more opportunities for n00bs to break in.
Overall, this is pretty fantastic news if you're a junior guy and you find yourself in the recruiting cycle at the moment. Which is nice, because the state of hiring has been pretty grim over the past five years or so. If there's one downside to this news, it's that pay is stagnant - nobody is paying out sizeable bounties to land talent:
The one thing that is likely to be absent in this year’s post-bonus hiring round are big upticks in pay. Headhunters say the days of handsome pay rises as an incentive to switch jobs are over – it’s all about moving to a new firm to escape cutbacks or increase prestige.
Good luck paying the rent with prestige. But I'm a glass half-full guy most of the time, so I'm gonna call this a win. Here's hoping it's smooth sailing for all of you with happy feet.
I know in my very small slice of the finance world that Dodd-Frank is going to create some of the need for those back/middle office jobs. I'd be interested to see if that is the case in the broader market. Have any directives come down from legal/compliance at major firms?
Volcker is the focus right now. Developing management work groups and plans for rolling out policies and trainings.
Most of Dodd-Frank initiatives were completed EOY 2012.
Ah, okay. We must be one of the last ones for D-F to be hitting. (Pub Fin)
Volcker is a part of Dodd-Frank.....
Even the lawmakers aren't finished with the Dodd-Frank initiatives.
Sigh, these kids and their rock music...
Nice find. I wonder why the emphasis on accounting background?
Chartered Accountants have always placed pretty well into IBD and ER in Western Europe... a lot more than a CPA would anyway
umm... no.
anybody have some names of good recruiters for front office positions at IBs in NYC?
Most recruiters that I have worked with in the past have only middle and back office positions...
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