What Headhunters REALLY Think of Bankers

mod (Andy) note: "Blast from the past - Best of Eddie" - This one is originally from January 2011. If there's an old post from Eddie you'd like to see up again shoot me a message.

You get calls from headhunters all the time, often kissing your ass. But what do they really think of investment bankers? If you believe London headhunter Fred Bayer, not much at all. Bayer breaks investment banking candidates into four categories, and only one of the categories is the least bit complimentary. It's a funny article (at least I thought so) for which Bayer took an immediate skewering in the comments.

His four categories of investment banking candidates are The Best and Rare Ones (of which he says there are only two in all of London - and he's already placed them), The Ones Whose "Jobs We Could Do", The Nice but Rubbish Ones, and The Nauseatingly Arrogant Ones. It makes you wonder if all, or most, or even some headhunters secretly hold his dim view of bankers while pimping them as the greatest thing since sliced bread to the various firms on the Street.

Even though he got crushed in the Comments, at least one person (probably another headhunter) agreed with him, and pointed out a flaw we've seen over and over here at WSO, so if there's one thing you take away from this post, let it be this. Don't be this guy:


he forgot to mention the ones who forge their cv's and memorize the main questions , but when you get them in a unexpected question, they just ga-ga-ga, ..heeee-,, oh , very annoying

Thought you guys might get a kick out the article. Just goes to show you, you never know what someone is thinking even when they're telling you how great you are.

Have a great weekend, guys.

 

who cares, they are headhunters. glorified HR staff. just like HR staff the only power they get is from talking shit about the candidates they are forced to suck-up too. let them have their cute little article.

 
LLcoolJ:
who cares, they are headhunters. glorified HR staff. just like HR staff the only power they get is from talking shit about the candidates they are forced to suck-up too. let them have their cute little article.

So I suppose that Hollywood talent agents are just glorified HR staff as well? Afer all, they suck up to clients and might be considered "glorified HR staff." If they are so weak why does every investment banker look forward/need their calls in order to get over to the buyside.

I really don't have an opinon, I'm just stating some simple truths and asking a few questions.

"Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, for knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA."
 
Gekko21:
LLcoolJ:
who cares, they are headhunters. glorified HR staff. just like HR staff the only power they get is from talking shit about the candidates they are forced to suck-up too. let them have their cute little article.

So I suppose that Hollywood talent agents are just glorified HR staff as well? Afer all, they suck up to clients and might be considered "glorified HR staff." If they are so weak why does every investment banker look forward/need their calls in order to get over to the buyside.

I really don't have an opinon, I'm just stating some simple truths and asking a few questions.

ari gold is a fictional character. the entire entertainment industry is a huge joke.

 
Gekko21:

If they are so weak why does every investment banker look forward/need their calls in order to get over to the buyside.

I really don't have an opinon, I'm just stating some simple truths and asking a few questions.

Who needs who more? Without headhunters people would still get jobs at the buyside, without the 'talent' headhunters would have nothing.

 
LLcoolJ:
who cares, they are headhunters. glorified HR staff. just like HR staff the only power they get is from talking shit about the candidates they are forced to suck-up too. let them have their cute little article.

Please tell me this is a joke. You have clearly never talked to a true recruiting insider...

 

I feel like anyone that comes in contact with a large amount of people comes away with a poor view of them. Look at anyone who works in public service or customer relations. This guy is really no different. Just like flight attendants complain about their passengers being rude, obnoxious etc. so do people like this.

I don't really have an opinion on his comments in particular...just a thought.

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
 
Edmundo Braverman:
GoodBread:
This is really about middle office jobs. I doubt anyone who could do well at a FO job would ever choose to be a headhunter.

Bro, I think you missed it completely. This isn't about investment bankers becoming headhunters. It's about what headhunters really think about the investment bankers they help place at new firms.

No, I know. But this guy is mostly hating on middle-office people who do product control. Not that headhunters don't hate some of the douchebags they place, but if this guy were placing people into PM roles at hedge funds, he would probably secretly wish he were the guy getting placed.

 

love it. has anyone here actually have a head-hunter? if we were so useless, why would anyone pay us a third of what you earn for just setting up a couple of interviews and sending some emails ... I don't want to prove anything, just quite surprised that no one here has a normal hh, who has been with you throught the years and is one of your important sources of market info

 
NataliaR:
love it. has anyone here actually have a head-hunter? if we were so useless, why would anyone pay us a third of what you earn for just setting up a couple of interviews and sending some emails ... I don't want to prove anything, just quite surprised that no one here has a normal hh, who has been with you throught the years and is one of your important sources of market info

It sounds like someone went to a non target..

Veritas
 
Best Response
NataliaR:
love it. has anyone here actually have a head-hunter? if we were so useless, why would anyone pay us a third of what you earn for just setting up a couple of interviews and sending some emails ... I don't want to prove anything, just quite surprised that no one here has a normal hh, who has been with you throught the years and is one of your important sources of market info
I've actually got great relationships with a couple headhunters that I began when I was in banking. They showed me some great opportunities then, and still continue to call me with new stuff even now. They're also great friends to have so I can keep the pulse of market comp and make sure I'm getting paid well. Really nothing negative from me to say from headhunters, in fact, they've been really helpful overall.

To all the monkeys - don't treat your headhunter as a "transactional" relationship. Take some time to get to know them and forge a friendship that lasts after they've placed you - it's worth it to be top of mind when the next great gig comes across their desk. It's a pretty good feeling to get to the point where you don't have to proactively network like crazy (though you still should) and people are calling you with job opportunities.

- Capt K - "Prestige is like a powerful magnet that warps even your beliefs about what you enjoy. If you want to make ambitious people waste their time on errands, bait the hook with prestige." - Paul Graham
 

Oh no, someone called out investment banking, let's rally the troops. It is a simple job that pays a lot and people think you are important. Why people cannot come to grips with this is beyond me. Headhunters are responsible for matching people with jobs. If they rec crappy candidates they lose their job. They must be both good at sales and good at judging people. Calling them morons is simply a reaction because your feelings are hurt.

 

I wasn't trying to attack the fundamental point of the article. Just saying that condescension would be mighty out of place if he were placing PMs or prop traders. Not that condescension ever has a place, but if I were to move to a headhunting firm to place some poor BO schmucks, I'd feel the same way precisely because I work in the BO and know how much it sucks. And the headhunters making the same amount as decently successful PMs on the buyside could probably fit in a very small room. Who cares about the tax bracket? Considering the top rate is for people making more than 400k give or take, tax brackets are completely irrelevant at the upper end of the market.

It's less about the money than what the guy does. If I had to choose between being a headhunter or product control, I'd probably pick product control but it's not that clear cut. PM, trader, research analyst..? That's a whole different story.

 

if you think jersey shore or kim kardashian isn't a joke then good luck to you my friends. i hope you find a nice job researching what The Situation's favorite Ed Hardy T-shirt is, because if he doesn't get the right one he might throw a tantrum and that would really piss off your boss.

 
LLcoolJ:
if you think jersey shore or kim kardashian isn't a joke then good luck to you my friends. i hope you find a nice job researching what The Situation's favorite Ed Hardy T-shirt is, because if he doesn't get the right one he might throw a tantrum and that would really piss off your boss.
I watched a couple of episodes of jersey shore one evening. The ones where Snooki declares herself a princess of Poughkeepsie, and another one where they had to work retail and one of the girls was indignant - indignant! that she, a Bartender, had to work retail. Oh. Em. Fucking. Gee. I don't think a single person there has a college degree, not even associates from BFE community college! But you know what, the show is not meant for the intellectuals, it is meant to give hope to the mediocre out there and to draw them in, hypnotize them, and get them to spend the money they don't have. When low middle class person sees a family of elite wasps buying a summer home in saint tropeze, or flying their private jet to zermatt for a weekend, they are not spurred to buy. They realize the divide, and as a matter of fact may even be averse to buying whatever the boojie people are buying, since they now associate having that item with the lifestyle they could never have. On the other hand when Snookie buys herself $200 worth of MAC make-up (or whatever she is using), some girl at home , earning $800 a month, now has a way to justify buying $100 of it on her already maxed out credit card. And a couple of guys at a community college now have the justification to spend their student loan money on a spring break trip to south beach and strippers, because that's what situation did, and he isn't smart enough to go to college. Except that jersey shore cast's expenses are comped by someone else.

Are you fucking kidding me, a joke? It's brilliant, I say, brilliant!!! Can you imagine the advertising revenue the channel is raking in?

More is good, all is better
 
Argonaut:
I watched a couple of episodes of jersey shore one evening. The ones where Snooki declares herself a princess of Poughkeepsie, and another one where they had to work retail and one of the girls was indignant - indignant! that she, a Bartender, had to work retail. Oh. Em. Fucking. Gee. I don't think a single person there has a college degree, not even associates from BFE community college! But you know what, the show is not meant for the intellectuals, it is meant to give hope to the mediocre out there and to draw them in, hypnotize them, and get them to spend the money they don't have. When low middle class person sees a family of elite wasps buying a summer home in saint tropeze, or flying their private jet to zermatt for a weekend, they are not spurred to buy. They realize the divide, and as a matter of fact may even be averse to buying whatever the boojie people are buying, since they now associate having that item with the lifestyle they could never have. On the other hand when Snookie buys herself $200 worth of MAC make-up (or whatever she is using), some girl at home , earning $800 a month, now has a way to justify buying $100 of it on her already maxed out credit card. And a couple of guys at a community college now have the justification to spend their student loan money on a spring break trip to south beach and strippers, because that's what situation did, and he isn't smart enough to go to college. Except that jersey shore cast's expenses are comped by someone else.

Are you fucking kidding me, a joke? It's brilliant, I say, brilliant!!! Can you imagine the advertising revenue the channel is raking in?

Don't know why I felt compelled to reply to this, but Vinny went to SUNY and Sammi went to William Paterson University. They know what they're doing. And they know they have to dumb down for the cameras.

P.S. Vinny bangs hotter girls than I'd ever imagine http://www.examiner.com/article/vinny-guadagnino-lands-the-best-girlfri…

 
LLcoolJ:
if you think jersey shore or kim kardashian isn't a joke then good luck to you my friends. i hope you find a nice job researching what The Situation's favorite Ed Hardy T-shirt is, because if he doesn't get the right one he might throw a tantrum and that would really piss off your boss.

Good thing you picked an example that accurately portrays the entire entertainment industry.

If you think that Lehman Brothers or Bear Stearns isn't a joke then good luck to you, big guy.

 

So I talked to my Mom's college friend who became a headhunter in a barely relevant southern city and she makes about 120k (after doing it for 12 years) and works roughly 40 hours a week.

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
 

Vel consequatur a quia aut dolores repudiandae placeat enim. Alias sit aut tempora dolor quia natus consectetur.

Quas dolores atque non aut. Reprehenderit soluta laboriosam omnis cumque. Sit dolores minima ut ea accusantium non quis.

alpha currency trader wanna-be

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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
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...”