Level of Lateral Difficulty

Keeping in mind that anything is possible. Would it be easier/a better decision to lateral as an analyst or as an associate to a BB/EB from a small boutique. Or is it easier to move on to an A2A at another firm. Advice or personal experience would be appreciated.

14 Comments
 

I think it really depends on the group, how desperate they are, and your resume and story. I lateraled from a terrible bank to the the top group on the street within a given group and found the process to be significantly easier than processes at lower tier banks (and my resume is nothing impressive. Just happened to attend the same non-target as the vp reviewing resumes). I think lateral recruiting is mainly luck given the process is so unstructured compared to SA and FT recruiting.

There’s no harm in trying to lateral as an analyst and if you fail, go A2A at your current bank.

 

I think it’s possible either way. Your best bet would be sticking to the same industry group. I lateraled from a LMM boutique bank into a top BB as an associate. I’ve seen an analyst from my prior bank lateral into a top BB as well. Much tougher if you are trying to switch industry group. Banks are looking for plug and play types. Obviously, relevant deal experience is always helpful.

 
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