Hi guys,
I am currently an associate at a BB (going into 5 years in IBD at my current firm) recruiting for a corporate development role with a F500 company. The company is in an attractive, growing sector which I have experience in. I am seeking advice on how to negotiate with the hiring manager to position for a more senior title.
Anchoring on my years of experience (4+), the hiring manager gave me an initial offer to come in as a Senior Manager and told me it would be hard to push for an Associate Director title given the existing team dynamics, where most of the Associate Directors had 9+ years of industry experience (non-IB). Unfortunately this also means the comp package they can offer me is c. 35% below what I am currently making. I thanked him for the offer and told him I will think about it, but in reality the title and the pay cut doesn't seem to justify the move.
I am thinking if I should come back to him and push hard for an Associate Director title (which he already said is unlikely) or if there is a middle ground solution, such as a guaranteed promotion or promotion based on certain milestones, so there is a clear path to promotion. I am ready to walk away if the current offer is already the best they could put on the table.
Appreciate any advice or thoughts from you guys on this.
Note: progression at this company - manager (1-4 yrs) > sr. manager (4-7 yrs) > associate director (7-10 yrs) > director (10+ yrs)
Hi whotookmybowtie, any of these discussions helpful:
Any pros willing to rescue this discussion? @jlai84" @Josh-Morris1" Andrew-Bailey
I hope those threads give you a bit more insight.
From my experience in different F500 firms it would be next to impossible to guarantee a promotion.
Yeah, they're not going to guarantee you a promotion.
The odd part of this (to me) is that you applied to this role, which I assume was listed as a Sr. Mgr. Also, if you'd done your research I assume that you should've known what the market was for the comp.
If either of the above assumptions is incorrect then you might have some to negotiate. If the comp is below market, you might have something to negotiate. Otherwise the best you can do is say "I appreciate the offer and would love to work for your organization. I know I can add a tremendous amount of value, but cant justify taking a nearly 40% pay cut, is there anything you can do"?
When I applied, I was told I could be either an Associate Director (in-line pay) or Senior Manager (c. 35% pay cut). The decision will be based on my potential contributions and the current team dynamics.
The feedback I have obtained so far is that I definitely have the relevant experience and skillset to do the job well. However, 4 years of experience is too junior for an Associate Director, as most Associate Directors currently in the team have 8-9 years of experience. I've argued that it's not just the number of years but also the quality of those years, and I've done enough deals in my 4 years to justify my junior promotion (the current team is made up of industry guys coming from non-transaction based backgrounds).
This is why I came up with the idea of asking for a guaranteed promotion after x months. By then I would have demonstrated my contributions and built up the number of years of experience.
Many thanks for the advice. I think my revised plan would be to ask if there's anything they can do to address the pay cut and also what the path to promotion would look like after I join.
you have anything else in the hopper? you could always walk and see if they come back.
that said, director w/ 4-5 years experience would be impressive if you can pull it off. keep in mind, most people move to corporate development with the expectation that they will have to take a comp reduction.
A few other corp dev roles as well, but this is the most advanced discussion with the best industry exposure and deal track record on the market. I suspect I will run into a similar seniority issue with other opportunities unless I field offers from smaller firms.
The issue as I see it is I am in a bit of a no-man's land - going off of how they have described the role to me, I can fill the shoes of an Associate Director in terms of experience, but I am 1-2 years off from what corporate are accustomed to. Worst case is if they expect me to come in and stick it out for another 3 years as a Sr. Mgr. until my years catch up with my title. That would undervalue my IBD deal experience and I am ready to walk if that is the case.
if you suspect you'll run into the same seniority issue at other firms, then why walk from this offer if it provides the best industry exposure and deal track record? sounds like same problem for an even less compelling experience.
this is speculation but the hiring manager could be looking to specifically add a body to crank out models (analyst/mgr/sr mgr). the further up in CD you go (director and above), your value prop isn't about building models but rather ability to persuade internal teams (sales, product, tech, etc teams), and company specific/industry expertise. at this point, you probably don't have that to leverage so the hiring manager may not want to pay up when he's only looking for somebody to model. depends on team dynamics...
All due respect, you're coming off as a bit entitled. I'm all for trying to negotiate a higher title and you're doing the right thing to try, but I don't think that your 4 years in IB are significantly more valuable than someone who has 10+ industry years in operational roles, but you seem to think so. I imagine as a Director, you're no longer responsible for cranking out financial models and acting in a transaction capacity, rather, you're responsible for ensuring that the acquired business is a strategic fit with the operations, culture, and strategy of the company. Do you feel as if you're in a better position to do this than someone who has been with the company for 10 years in a number of different roles? Most corporate development teams could just outsource the modeling/transaction part of the process to a bank, and have the internal team be entirely comprised of people with strong backgrounds in the relevant operational functions. If you think this is a good company and one that you would like to stay at long-term, then it would seem to be short-sighted to walk away from a Sr. Manager offer just because it's not Assoc. Director. If you're only trying to maximize comp, then stay in IB.
Hope you don't take this the wrong way, just trying to give a real perspective from someone who has spent time in both industries.
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