F500 - What's your take?

EDIT

I'm still pretty gung ho on NYC finance, but I'm wondering what happens when/if I want to slow down the pace a bit later in life. What happens if I go to F500 and a recession like the 2008 blowout hits? How bad were the layoffs there?

People always talk about the tradeoff for quality of life, stability, and security of F500 but to what extent is this the case during downturns? Are certain groups hit harder - CorpFin, CorpDev, etc...? Is there anyone here who's been in F500 during the last decade's turmoil who can shed some light on this?

3 Comments
 

Depends on industry. I'm at a F100, and we've had a few layoffs but basically just shedding dead weight - no real cuts. Raises are down, like 2%-3%, but bonuses are still 20%-30%. Work week is still 40-50 hrs. In terms of who gets cut, I'd say they start trimming low hanging fruit first - admin staff, etc. Some places will do early retirement incentives to prod people out the door. If they really have to start shaving professional staff, a lot of places will start in IT because much of that can be outsourced these days (even though a lot of companies come to regret that). Corp Fin usually has fewer staff, and would probably be more immune than other areas (marketing, IT, etc.). Again, depends on industry, but that's my general take on corporate life in the context of your question.

 
Best Response
djfiiiDepends on industry. I'm at a F100, and we've had a few layoffs but basically just shedding dead weight - no real cuts. Raises are down, like 2%-3%, but bonuses are still 20%-30%. Work week is still 40-50 hrs. In terms of who gets cut, I'd say they start trimming low hanging fruit first - admin staff, etc. Some places will do early retirement incentives to prod people out the door. If they really have to start shaving professional staff, a lot of places will start in IT because much of that can be outsourced these days (even though a lot of companies come to regret that). Corp Fin usually has fewer staff, and would probably be more immune than other areas (marketing, IT, etc.). Again, depends on industry, but that's my general take on corporate life in the context of your question.
Thanks for the info!
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