Question intended for those with direct experience/exposure, not speculation.
In working as an analyst, could trying to do too much be a negative when it comes time for ratings/bonuses? I would expect its obvious that MDs know each analyst would like to be top bucket, with the money being the #1 incentive, and thus keep that in mind when evaluating their work. Is there a certain point where one can suck up "too much" and actually be hindered by their additional efforts?
I don't mean sucking off your boss to an obnoxious point, but doing substantial extra work that isn't asked for and may not even be used. I would think a lot of the answer is dependent on how other analysts in your group view you, but if possible I'd like to hear answers independent of that (essentially looking at it only as a 1-1 MD to analyst relationship). No one likes a brown noser, most everyone in banking needs to be one at some point, so what's the fine line?
You boss isn't the person you have to worry about, it is your fellow analysts. I wouldn't care what the crappiest analysts think because you can chalk that up to jealousy, but realize that if you are alienating yourself from your peers only to suck up to an MD you will get burnt down the line. Besides, sucking up does not equal being skilled and competent. You have to be liked as well as good.
Theres no obnoxious point when it comes to sucking off your boss. however, it guarantees top bucket only if you smile while taking it on the face
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You'll learn quickly that doing "extra" work that is not assigned is a terrible waste of time, because if it's not assigned, it is HIGHLY unlikely to be used. This is especially true if you have an associate/VP between yourself and your MD. However, if you're doing work and you realize "the next step after adding this is to add something else," and the "something else" hasn't been assigned, that's where you look good by doing it... Don't go to your superior, "Look, I even went ahead and took care of this!", but if they say, "OK, we're going to need to do XYZ now," it looks good to say, "already took care of it, here's a look." Makes you look like you "get it," and superiors really like to see that.
But if your boss says, "Hey, I need to see Companies A-D spread," don't go spreading Companies A-I and saying, "Here are the comps, I even did a few extra!" That's just a waste of time, and will probably annoy your VP/MD because that is clearly not what he asked for.
This has bitten me in the ass personally - don't do it. At the end of the day, your staffers and MDs want you to do your assigned work as quickly and as accurately as possible. And do it with a good attitude.
Rather than doing additional work, it is more important that you do the requested work 100% accurately. If you have spare time, read over your presentations and double check all the numbers. A single error can screw up everything, so it is critical everything is 100% right. Quality > Quantity.
As for useless work, you'll have to go WAY out of your way to come up with additional useless crap to do, because all the obvious useless crap will have already been assigned to you by your associates and VPs.
The only downsides I see are usually from the social aspect and not having much of a life or being detested by your coworkers.
overachieving is the same as not being mediocre.. since most people are mediocre or worse, it is really that bad to do better than them? raise the bar. don't lower it
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