Exiting Investment Banking to Corp Fin / Corp Strat / Corp Dev
Burner account. Thinking about exiting my lower bulge IB Associate coverage role to a corporate job (finance, development, strategy, or any mix thereof). I’ve spent 2+ years here, top bucket, did my MBA at top 15 program. Open to most industries, but want to stay in NYC. Have a few questions below, but happy to answer any questions y’all might have.
Does anyone have tips on how to initiate the process? I’ve noticed a lot of the HH inbounds I get are for buyside or lateral moves. Is it as simple as just resume dropping and networking with whomever I happen to know at the company?
What are interviews like for candidates in my situation? Imagine it might be more technical / deal experience related for CD, but not sure about CF/CS roles.
Pay expectations? Realize this will be all over the map but was looking at page 8 of this: 2018 compensation report Seems like 175 + 20% is in the park?
Does it make sense to time up around bonus? Would rather not walk away from $100-150 if possible, but realize this job market is much thinner than if working on a lateral move where that accrued bonus may be included in comp.
Does title matter? I’ve seem Sr. Associate through Sr. Manager roles that seem like I have the right experience. Obviously will be company to company, but just not sure what I should be looking for or if it even matters.
With respect to CF / CD / CS, it seems like a lot of places have some crossover between groups. Is there a good way to tell what it’ll be like before going through networking / interview work?
How long do you think an exit will take? I’ve seen others from my group lateral in what seems like a couple of weeks, buyside opportunities may take a bit longer. I don’t have a good feel for these roles, however. I’d rather not stick around for VP...
Tagging a few that I think might be able to help: @EarLoeb" @BankerC159" @Pmc2ghy" @MMBanker14" @Esuric" @td12" @Sil"
Feel free to add others - know there are more of you out there.
Thanks!
I'm copying Sil for his perspectives, as he has also been a treasure trove of information when it comes to corp dev/corp strat exits.
In my 1.5 years at the firm I've had two very close friends exit to corp strat/corp dev. They are both are the senior analyst level and have been quite happy with their move. Ultimately, you will end up taking a bit of a haircut in comp (they are both NYC so their package was ~$100k base + 15-25% bonus + stock if I had it correct, but you can expect somewhere closer to $100k all in at a non-nyc/low COL area).
My understanding is that corp dev/corp strat folks are thought of as high profile/potential performers within the organization, and are seen as a bit of a building ground to accelerate your career within another operating division within the same company or a comparable role with a higher comp/title at another one.
Ultimately I think corporate development would be an excellent option for you if you are looking for a lifestyle improvement along with a very reputable compensation. the overall experience (2 years of banking + 2 years corp dev) could position you to either a top MBA or a manager/senior manager role a few years down the line, where I think folks are pulling somewhere between $170-200+ K with a 40-50 hour workweek. Certainly a very comfortable and engaging path for certain :)