3 offers: 1) startup AM 2) small-cap AM 3) large bank (national level, not a major player anywhere else). Which one to choose?
Hey fellow monkeys,
I was working at a fund as an Analyst until this past September (in London) and decided to switch to something else (reasons are several, it offered little vertical mobility prospects, etc).
Got three different offers now and I want to get your advice. Company profiles and positions:
1) infancy-stage start up AM (1million euros in AuM). Trader (not execution) position.
2) small-cap AM (1bn euros AuM). Trader (not execution) position.
3) trading desk at a bank (responsible for a quarter of the daily trading volume in a W.European country) as a trader.
On top of the main reasons why option 1 is appealing to me, the entrepreneurial side that comes with the infancy stage (AuM growth, being a core part of the development of the fund, ballsy-ish move, etc) of the fund makes option 1 even more appealing to me (i.e. it's very exciting). Downside is the obvious risk involved (but at my age, I can afford to take it more).
An old classmate of mine told me he would go for option 3 because he sees it as offering more job security and more networking opportunities. Option 3 was my bottom choice and he made me reconsider, it's now a toss between 2 and 3.
My mid-term goal is to become PM at a BB AM/HF (yes, they're different, especially traditional long-only AM like BlackRock, etc but for the sake of simplicity I'm grouping them together as one [there are also overlaps of course]).
Thoughts and/or advice on this? Anything you can throw my way is appreciated.
If this is truly you goal then your best bets are options 2 and 3. Even if you guys knock it out of the park with option 1, working at a startup fund is unlikely to give you enough credibility to get in the door at a large investment manager. Blue blood firms generally want blue blood employees.
It seems to me that you have some soul searching to do. You list all these things you love about the startup fund, but then say you want to work at a large investment manager. The two are inconsistent. Or maybe you're just kidding yourself that you can have the best of both worlds.
Personally, I would probably do option 2, though I would need more details. Trading desks at BB banks are getting squeezed and I don't see that changing anytime soon. Option 3 probably isn't as safe as you think it is. Without knowing who option 2 is, it's hard to say how good of an opportunity it is, but it seems more promising.
Option 1 I would just scratch off your list. A $1mn asset manager? Is this some dude working out of his basement? Unless this guy is an absolute stud, in which case he would probably have a lot more than $1mn AUM, it's unlikely this goes anywhere long term. You will build absolutely no credibility working there unless it really becomes big.
Hey models_and_bottles, thanks for your feedback:
I see the inconsistency to some extent in my statement about ending up as a PM at a BB AM like BLK vs the exciting prospect of going with Option 1, yet I'm not sure that one completely negates the other, but I think I'm splitting hairs here. However, seeing as my jobs so far have been in small firms (except for one BB bank), your point doubly makes sense. Going from the fund that I was at to a tiny, tiny fund with 1m in AuM could definetely be seen (future employers, etc etc) as a step backwards, unless we really make it and the odds of that happening are stacked against us.
Your point on Option 3 I completely agree with: also, moving to the sell side at this point (while the switch back is possible I suppose, does not make sense right now and I've been told and read many times over that moving from the buy side to the sell side can be considered career suicide IF attempting to make the switch back over, not sure to what degree that's accurate, but it seems to be the concensus view, at least from what I've been told and read.)
Mind if I send you a PM to share more details with you about Option 2 and 3 (and perhaps even 1...)?
Consider very seriously the promotion opportunities in option 3. I'm currently at a large bank (national level, not a major player anywhere else) in a western European country and promotions/pay increase are extremely difficult nowadays. Maybe you'll face the same problem if you choose this option.
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