Left IB Job - Travel or Recruit ?
Hi all,
Long story short I was put on a PIP due to office politics and decided to take the severance instead as I didn’t want to lose more time at my firm. I am AS2 in M&A and my goal is to work in Growth but could be open to VC/ tech PE too.
Been looking to move for the past few months but it hasn’t yielded results yet (there was no opportunities in the summer, although I have been quite selective with what I looked for so far, and haven’t really explored other IB gigs yet).
Should I go travel for 2-3-4 months before resuming my search ? It’s been a dream of mine and now would be the perfect time to do that. Moreover, it could give a bit of a story around why I left my firm, but am a bit scared of losing momentum / having too big a gap on my CV.
Any thoughts? Is it possible to move to the buyside after a few months of sabbatical ? How about getting back to IB ? (Would assume it should be fine especially if I downgrade shops, although the one thing I’m worried about is getting too senior in banking and not being able to switch to the buyside). In general I don’t think leaving without nothing is great career wise but thinking that after 4 yrs at the same firm it would seem less like a “got fired move”.
Honestly unless you have significant parental support or a large amount of savings and can financially and mentally afford a year or more gap, I don't think you can afford to go travel for 4 months. That's just too long out of the job market in a climate where people are really struggling to land any roles right now.
It's a very tough job market out there for IB/PE and have seen many people take at least 6 months of searching to land something, even up to 12 months if they are not willing to take non-IB/PE jobs. Seems like you know that as you've already had no luck after months of looking.
Also it's quite rare to upgrade (move to buyside) when you are currently unemployed. Most people I see with a gap in their resume end up downgrading quite a bit (much smaller shop, or roles like FP&A). There is a real bias in this part of finance against people who don't currently have jobs - and even those boutique IB jobs have a LOT of applicants right now with such a limited market.
Would your answer change if it was 2 months instead of 4?
Generally, if I applied for a job now right after leaving my firm, would I be in a much better position than if I applied end of Jan / early Feb for the same job?
I am also conscious that recruiting will like slow down significantly between November - end of Jan (especially in Europe), so could be a chance to tick some marks on my dream list & get a mental reboot.
I do have a bit of a financial cushion (>$200k) which would give me 2-3 yrs of expenses if needed although obviously not trying to lose it all.
I haven’t pushed for IB yet as I’ve been focused on buyside recruiting (although I received many calls for boutiques, market for Associate seemed hot this fall) - for some reason, I’ve always thought I could fall back to banking pretty easily if I chose to downgrade firms or lateral to a competitor. Would that really change a lot after 3 months out of the job?
Only did IB for ~2.5 years so take my perspective with a grain of salt, but always had the similar itch to travel and felt like it would work out fine even if you took a year off. Have seen a number of more senior guys at my shop who took longer breaks and were completely fine and some joked that you can ALWAYS get back into IB if you really want.
Luckily was able to secure an exit with a ~month gap to travel! Still have dreams of something fully remote down the line to live out the digital nomad dream, even if short term
Two month in my personal view is fine - as AS3 you should have a good cushion of savings (and it sounds like you do). Especially if it scratches the travel itch you have.
That said moderate your expectations on recruitment - you shared that you'd been choosy, but in the current market I'd be surprised if you didn't need to both go to a smaller bank and take a seniority cut. My advice is to take it. You were let go and that's not a strong negotiating position. As you mention, the recruitment season should pick up in January so hit the ground running then. I think there is minimal chance of moving to the buyside (where roles are typically more competitive and pitched to more junior candidates).
Also, another user has asked the question on it, but I'd drop the "office politics" unless you have a very specific situation and can explain it in interviews (if someone told me just that in an interview without further specificity, I'd assume they had been an underperformer (which doesn't mean "no offer" if it comes with humility and recognised areas for improvement), and also assume they weren't trustworthy. Again I don't know the details so maybe it all stacks up when you explain it.
Good luck, happy travels.
I would recruit now and negotiate a 2025 start rather than waiting until February to start recruiting. That type of thing can very easily turn into a year gap, and once you get past 6 or 8 months people will really question the gap (even with a lot of experience).
2 months is probably fine especially if it's the holiday break, but I also don't think you can fall back on a similar IB job very easily so I would be prepared to heavily downgrade firms and comp. Your mileage/market will vary, but I still think firms are holding off on meaningful backfills, and any roles that do post will be pretty competitive.
What do you mean by office politics?
In my experience, office politics comes into play at the senior level a lot. But rarely affects analysts and associates, as they are so junior and easily replaceable.
What exactly happened?
I'll offer an alternative view from other posters. If you're an AS2 and have been working over 3 years (if A2A) or over 1 year (if MBA), then hopefully you have some savings. If you have no dependents, this probably is a great opportunity to do some traveling. The investment banks aren't going anywhere and 4 months is a very explainable gap on the resume. You could just say you were taking care of aging family or something. if they don't accept that as an answer, you should ask yourself if that's a culture you want to join. The longer you are in your career, the harder and more rare it will be to have a 2-4 month break. Life is short, tomorrow isn't promised. You've worked hard - go enjoy yourself.
Similar situation feeling like a failure
You're not a failure. Not by any stretch of the imagination. It's a tough job market with lots of layoffs happening in finance. If you look at the career history of even the biggest leaders in business, they've all had set backs. Keep your head up. Things will work out.
Thank you
Yes you’re right but it’s just hard to see any light at the end of tunnel especially in this economy. I wake up everyday and berate myself over being jobless.
Anyone else in a similar situation, how are you guys managing? How do you go about recruiting?
I just turned 25 been working 2 years post grad and think to myself wtf am I doing in my prime career years sitting unemployed :(
Following.
Just go travel. "High finance" is a scam and it isn't worth it. If I had to do it all over again, I would have studied and pursued something else rather than following the "IB will set you up for life" BS on here. And no it has nothing to do with WLB or work culture or putting the hours in or anything. I'm literally just saying job security, flexibility, and ease of finding new roles is horrible in this industry.
Travel is a great idea. With the job market as difficult as it is, I think now is the perfect time TBH. Wait it out while living large in SE Asia or LatAm. Beats pounding pavement and sending out a million CVs to unresponsive firms anyway. When you come back you'll be rested and stronger. And you can always study CFA or something while in a tropical paradise. Hats off to you.
If it’s been a dream of yours for a while now and you feel like now is the perfect timing then go for it!
You have a big enough financial cushion and there is a risk to every move anyways.
Sounds like you're not realistically an IB lifer, and that's ok.
Go travel, but be absolutely prepared to take a substantial salary cut to take a non-IB job when you return.
Most IB recruiting restarts in Jan post bonuses
Travel and recruit at the same time.
It'll take you 4 months to land something anyway, most likely.
Beat strategy as you'll get rusty if you deconnect completely and you cannot afford it
Yeah getting rusty is one of my main worries.. but am now thinking 2 months, 3 max, rather than 4 months which is too much.
However not sure I’ll be able to interview while travelling as I wont be able to come back for in person interviews. It also kind of beats the point of travelling (ie to disconnect)
Ignore title, been in touch with all top shops in London (since you mentioned Europe.) And all know how bad the market is and have been very understanding of gaps. Everyone is saying Q1 is probably when we'll open so keep in touch.
I'd strongly recommend traveling, visit places like Thailand and Nepal. New places with insanely beautiful views. Great for introspection and re-energizing. Come back strong in Jan and hit recruiting refreshed.
stop being a pussy, I started traveling after working for 3 years, ended up working remote, its been a few years since then, still traveling and making 100k+
Do it.
I did it for 9 months post 3.5 years in IB. It was the best time of my life. You will never have the opportunity to travel for an extended period like this ever again in your life. Also, certain firms don't mind the gap as I am now realizing during my current recruitment process; these are also the firms that show their good culture too. However, I have to say the market is quiet sadly as I am back in front of the computer applying to jobs, but it is a decision I made and I have no regret doing and facing the current consequences.
Do it!
Would you mind sharing where you went or what you would recommend? Assuming this was largely solo? Thanks
It was solo, but on 3 occasions different friends have joined me along. It depends on how much time you have. If you have 3 months, do SE Asia (Thailand, Bali, Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines). Keep in mind the average age of the kids that do these trips are younger, 24, but don't prevent yourself from making friends based on age gaps. I think with the savings bankers have, it is actually insane value to go to these places. I did hostels to make friends as a solo traveler, but could have easily stayed at nice 4-5 Star resorts if I wanted. SE Asia is perfect for solo travelers. LatAm is good if you speak Spanish.
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