My dad is a client while I am an SA: How will this affect me?
I was hired as an SA at a BB through traditional means (no direct help from family, connections etc)
My father is a CEO/CFO of a company that this BB does a lot of work for. We are talking 5-6 deals in the last 7 years. Over the years transaction volume has been easily 15B, maybe 20B. This BB handled everything from their IPO, follow-on, to bonds, M&A. Moreover, they are CURRENTLY exclusive advisor working on a large mandate for my dad's company.
As it turns out...I also have been coincidentally placed into the coverage group that covers my dad's company. My dad has client meetings with all the MDs in my group semi-regularly. He told me that 2 of that coverage team's largest deals in the past 10 years were with my dad's company.
I have a few very large concerns...I was really hoping WSO could help me through them. Nobody at the BB knows about my connections so far. Please help me shed some light on this...I am very new as to how this works.
If I am staffed on the deal for my dad's company, is that allowed compliance-wise? Should I let someone on my team know if they staff me on work for my dad's company? How should I let them know?
If it suddenly comes out that I am his son, how will that affect me? Will the other interns treat me differently? What about the senior team members? How will it affect the work I get? Is the overall effect positive or negative?
The group I am in has a pretty bad return rate (~60%). I would hate to pull this card, but if I really really wanted to secure a return, would the MDs knowledge of my relation to my dad seal the deal? Hypothetically, how far would the MDs go to keep this client relationship positive? Would they go so far as to ensure I get a return offer?
Look, I'm just going to throw this out there but there is a very good chance they already know and that it wasn't a coincidence at all that you were placed in that particular group. BB analyst classes have quite a few developmental cases where children of their clients have roles within the IB group.
Please don't take this the wrong way, I'm not saying you got in solely through connections or anything like that, but chances are if you have the same last name then they are going to know. With that many deals over the years it is very likely the senior bankers know their clients' families, etc it's just the way it works. IB is a relationship business, of course #3 would weigh extremely heavily in your favor.
This is a compliance headache. But it's not your fault. Shit like this just happens. Best thing you can do is avoid this becoming an issue.
It will be your fault if you don't hit this straight on and let it become a problem.
If you have training for 1 - 2 weeks before starting on the floor, still try to hit this on the head on day #1 or earlier. You may be pre-staffed on deals and you'll cause less disturbance/won't get pre-staffed on your dad's deals the earlier you tell them.
How you take this up the chain depends on the personalities and timing. If you can raise this before you hit the floor, either (i) go through HR or (ii) if you interviewed with an MD in the group, got his/her card etc and can contact him/her directly, contact that MD.
If you don't raise this until you hit the floor, go through the staffer or a VP. However, at that stage, you're a lot less likely to see discretion exercised, a lot more likely to end up being known as the client's kid.
However, in short, get this on the table pretty quick.
As someone mentioned above, they may well know already. However, DO NOT ASSUME that.
No, they don't know. Its a massive compliance issue. If you have a banker liaison, you need to alert it now. its best for everyone involved if you are in a different team. It will reflect well on you by raising asap.
And I say the above point as a MD who has clear compliance responsibilities for the firm and has a lot of training dealing with this specific situation.
" (no direct help from family, connections etc)
My father is a CEO/CFO of a company that this BB does a lot of work for. We are talking 5-6 deals in the last 7 years. Over the years transaction volume has been easily 15B, maybe 20B."
I hope you don't think this is true. Sheltered and stupid is a bad combination.
Listen man, I don't think I'm the stupid one here at all, and it's pretty presumptuous of you to say that. By no direct help I mean it. No phone calls were made, my dad was so busy he didn't even have a clue about my plans this summer until after I called him post super day. I received offers from 3 BB/EBs, and I chose this bank because any kid would have made the same choice if given.
Now, did being his son help indirectly? Sure. I am 100% ready to admit that. I benefited from an infinite amount of things that allowed me to secure this job in the end. But a handout is not one of them.
I couldn't tell you. What I can tell you is that in any one BB coverage group there is roughly 5 MM a year paid to people whose job it is to know stuff like this (referring to MD/ Director / VP).
Vincent gave a good answer as well.
Some student that hasn't started in S&T yet is handing a 1st Year Associate tons of interesting advice regarding the structure and practices of IBD client management. My favorite one is apparently that there are bankers making "roughly 5mm a year" (lol) to know who's client's kid is graduating college soon.
Meanwhile a certified M&A MD (see that pretty gold star?) is flat out telling everyone they are pretty much wrong and doing his best to school everyone on this process. But nobody is listening, except probably the OP.
If that isn't WSO at its finest, I don't know what is.