I love how you specify Deloitte/PwC. You'd be better served just putting (not KPMG) since you really aren't any better off in life with the former over EY for example.

The GE gives you some prestige, though, and won't typecast you as much. But you will be doing LOTS of accounting work at GE probably.

The Big 4 (again any are fine, except maybe KPMG) will give you decent prestige but you'll have to be careful to not paint yourself into the accountant corner.

Overall I'd say GE just because I went the Big 4 route and (about a year of experience now) and I want to get into consulting and it's not easy.

 

I'd definitely lean towards GE FMP over Audit. If it's Consulting then the decision is a lot harder, particularly if it's Deloitte you're talking about. Personally I'd probably go with Consulting, since I get bored easily and even GE FMP's 6-month rotation system can't quite match up to the variety of stuff you'll see as a management consultant.

 

Solid point - I was only thinking about the external transfer. Internal is every bit as bad. They invest a lot of money in you and do not want you to go elsewhere. Not to mention they schedule you months out and then try to guilt you into staying another busy season. A girl recently left my office who after being promised for 6 months that she could interview to transfer; it never happened. I'll reiterate: GE.

 

Opinions on GE FMP seem to be changing on WSO. I remember when someone called it something that got the thread deleted.

To answer your question OP, I would take GE FMP over Big 4 Audit.

"He that hath a beard is more than a youth, and he that hath no beard is less than a man." ― William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing
 

The people that knock it are usually the ones that see "Finance" in the title and think that'll get them into banking or teach them banking-related skillsets. It's just plain ignorance. Really the only ways to move from corpfin -> WS related (even coming from GE's FMP) is getting your MBA (easiest way), trying to make the move later in your career, when at the Director-level (very difficult, no guarantee you'll make dir), or networking into a job at GE Cap (hella difficult I'm sure).

"You stop being an asshole when it sucks to be you." -IlliniProgrammer "Your grammar made me wish I'd been aborted." -happypantsmcgee
 

That is very true. I remember this one kid in the FMP who got outed, and everyone was making fun of his laziness. The moral of the story is do not tell anyone who you are; even if you think that they are your (real life) friends.

"He that hath a beard is more than a youth, and he that hath no beard is less than a man." ― William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing
 

GE FMP by a lot.

As someone who transferred to S&O from Audit, it's a brutal, beyond bureaucratic process that you do not want to deal with. So many people in my start class had ambitions of doing so, and four years later, I am/was the only one that did.

GE FMP will give you the same big name in a more diverse role that will also not tag you with the dreaded auditor/accountant label, which assuming you want to go to b-school or real consulting (not "Advisory"), will be huge. I really don't think it's that close, unless you like accounting (which is fine, just doesn't seem like that's your long term goal).

 
BackOfficeLove:
For the rest of those roles(with the exception of treasury) you would ironically be reporting to former B4 audit grunts. Lol. Those positions are all typical audit exit roles. Don't get me wrong, PwC/Deloitte audit sucks, but it actually may be better than half the roles in that FMP program.

Please don't post garbage if you have no idea what you're talking about. You clearly don't have any firsthand knowledge of FMP or GE considering you're just quoting the website. FMP is not designed to give someone exit opps outside of GE. It's there to train the future leaders of the company, mostly as a pipeline into the Corporate Audit Staff. The reason why some of those rotations don't look 'sexy' is because corporate finance itself isn't a sexy thing. Again, they don't care about about developing your skillset for banking. If you think accounting or audit rotations are beneath you, you're not a good fit for leading a company in corporate finance. And you probably wouldn't be reporting to former B4 people. GE focuses on developing talent internally. That's the reason why FMP exists. If you look at the executives for the various GE businesses, a huge amount came from FMP then CAS. FMP then CAS is the fast track to management in GE, not B4 audit. If the OP wants to be at GE, then they should do FMP.

 
Best Response

https://www.ge.com/about-us/leadership/corporate-executives

Yep you're right. Definitely should do Big 4 if you want to move up in GE:

Jeffrey S. Bornstein Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, GE

Bornstein joined GE in 1989 with the GE Power Systems’ Financial Management Program

Matthew G. Cribbins Vice President Audit Staff

Cribbins is a 1998 graduate of GE Capital's Financial Management Program, where he rotated through multiple finance assignments in GE Capital and GE Company.

Puneet Mahajan Vice President Chief Risk Officer, GE

Puneet joined GE's FMP program in India in 1998.

John G. Rice Vice Chairman and President & CEO GE Global Growth & Operations

Rice began his General Electric career in 1978 as a member of the Financial Management Program, moving to the GE Corporate Audit Staff in 1981.

Trevor A. Schauenberg Vice President Corporate Investor Communications

Schauenberg was a member of GE's Corporate Audit Staff for six years, becoming executive audit manager for GE Capital in 1997. He joined GE in the company's Finance Management Program in 1991.

Keith S. Sherin Vice Chairman, GE Chairman and CEO GE Capital

Mr. Sherin first joined GE in 1981 through the GE Financial Management Program in Medium Steam Turbine.

Brian Worrell Vice President GE Corporate Financial Planning & Analysis

Mr. Worrell has worked on five continents and multiple businesses during his tenure with GE. He began in 1992 as a member of the Financial Management Program in Louisville, Kentucky and Peterborough, England, after which he joined the Corporate Audit Staff.

But yeah, Big 4 Audit is definitely the fast track to leadership at GE. You definitely will leapfrog graduates of FMP. Just hold out in Big 4 Audit another decade dude, you'll progress faster than internal candidates at GE for sure.

Stop posting, you clown.

 

RE: giant BO Rotation program - that's correct, but the way you put it (to me) makes it sound like a bad thing. It's not if you want to stick with GE.

Just to weigh in: I don't know why any of this shit matters. The FMP is a great way to get to the top. Big 4 is a great way to get to the top. FMP probably slightly beats it out because of networking opportunities within the company.

"You stop being an asshole when it sucks to be you." -IlliniProgrammer "Your grammar made me wish I'd been aborted." -happypantsmcgee
 

If i could do it over again, I would have chosen GE FMP hands down over big four. It really depends on what you want to do. Auditing to me was just not interesting and the majority of the people in it seemed miserable. Applying my accounting/finance skill set to business decisions is. There are many good companies out there with great rotational programs - and if you perform - they love to promote from within. Also, keep in mind that many of these companies have better retirement benefits than the big four firms. This was something I never considered in school. I know plenty of people who after doing these programs have gotten their MBA part-time (paid for) at great schools. Whatever you choose to do, make sure its because you want to do it and not just because its the easy route (i.e. big four recruiting at a school like uiuc)

 

i work for a big 4 firm and have several friends who went though F500 financial leadership programs. I'm no big 4 supporter, but I would recommend most people go the public accounting route over industry when starting after college (if they plan on a career in accoutning and/or corporate finance/fp&a). when you join a financial leadership program i'm sure you will get paid a little more and work a little less than a big 4 person, but the big 4 experience and brand on your resume will give you more options down the road when you decide to leave public and jump to industry. i would also argue you learn much more working in a client facing public accounting environment, than you would starting in a corporate accounting department. not to mention, most of the people in management positions in accounting/finance have a big 4 history and target people with similar backgrounds when hiring. in terms of mba placement, there might be some F500 programs that place better than the big 4, but for someone still in college there is absolutely no way you can be sure you will ever pursue an mba so don't let that impact your decision.

 

I'm a Big 4 auditor, and from what I see, Big 4 exit opportunities can be greatly overrated. I see a lot of 2-5 year Big 4 people mostly becoming nothing more than senior accountants or finance analysts in industry. If you stay longer, you can score a Director of Financial Reporting or Controller position, but just because Businessweek always puts the Big 4 at the top of the "Best Places to Launch a Career" list doesn't mean that other opportunities won't be better. I can't speak to GE's FMP, but at Big 4, you'll do a lot of mindless work, have awful hours for part of the year, and be paid very little for what you do.

This isn't to say a Big 4 career is worthless - I'm still there for a reason. It's the gold standard of accounting, and you'll certainly move up the ladder a lot faster than 95% of your peers. If you do a scan of executive profiles, you'll find Big 4 firms in the history of a very large portion of top executives. However, this perception that Big 4 = best career ever is slightly warped, and there are other options that are even better in terms of career progression and not as bad in terms of work/life balance. GE's FMP is one of the few that falls in that remaining 5%.

 

Quo rerum architecto nam. Iusto error assumenda est dolore dolorem. Modi et mollitia animi odit quo et deleniti.

At voluptatum fugit vel et a. Facere qui vel nobis ut. Deserunt temporibus sequi perferendis dolor minus error assumenda velit. Veniam doloremque temporibus perferendis voluptatem assumenda. Molestiae quis fugit dignissimos nobis et enim. Et blanditiis molestiae aut dolorem officia incidunt qui.

Molestiae delectus vitae autem est rerum. Nulla at dolor magnam sit. Sit eaque est et aliquam quam est accusantium. Magnam vel fuga odio aut quaerat officiis autem.

Esse asperiores labore ipsam blanditiis. Possimus hic praesentium et nesciunt blanditiis id optio. Provident aspernatur sint est consequatur nobis ut. Deleniti qui ab impedit eius dolores officia.

 

Qui consequatur fugiat vitae quo aut culpa quia enim. At sapiente in recusandae dolorum. Aut ullam est itaque quod. Quia ea eveniet distinctio quae. Eos sed quo cumque hic placeat repellendus. Et nobis necessitatibus aperiam non nam voluptas et et. Voluptas exercitationem qui cupiditate dolorum et.

Ut qui voluptas illo. Occaecati ducimus cupiditate modi. Quam libero beatae provident sunt.

 

Voluptas debitis dignissimos et minima minus debitis iusto. Sunt omnis natus ipsum id. Dolor delectus deserunt omnis dignissimos aut qui. Quis ex quasi modi odit et. Unde voluptatum eum est aliquam praesentium perspiciatis iste. Autem quis rerum sint.

Whats the matter? Scared of my little red fuzzy anus? Don't be shy,let me show you the way, give me your hand and I will take you to paradise

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. (++) 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (202) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (144) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”