One thing diversity accomplishes
First things first I'll mention that I'm not from the US or in the US so I don't really care about how you americans handle your laws and your selection criteria and what not. I honestly don't care. But as someone who lives in a third world country (although living a well-off and first-world lifestyle) I cringe when people say that diversity programs help oppressed minorities find a place in finance. Let me tell you how diversity really works.
As I said before, I am from a third world country. As you can imagine, a handful of families basically dominate this country. I personally know, am friends with, and even work for some of the people from these families so I'm not crying for a revolution here. I actually think that in the case of my country our oligarchy is quite competent and I'd even make the case that we'd be worse off if one day they disappeared because if they did there would be no counter-balance for the cartels. In my country it is an open secret that cartels know that certain cities are off-limits because they are controlled by the oligarchy. Similarly, the oligarchy knows that other cities are off limits for them as those cities are where the cartels operate. The cartel does not send crime to the oligarchy's cities, and the oligarchs make sure that law enforcement never gets too 'funded' in cartel cities so the cartels can do what they do. It is an arrangement that works.
Now, as much as I respect the current balance of power and support the oligarchs, there is one thing that does bother me a little. If you search for the children of oligarchs on LinkedIn you will find this:
U.S. target school -> top BB summer analyst -> top BB analyst -> top BB associate -> back to our country -> VP or C-suite at a bank/insurance/family office owned by the oligarch's family. Yes, you heard that right. Our oligarchs use your banks to train their successors. And these people have money, but not enough to bribe Goldman Sachs. You better believe they are getting in consistently through diversity. You see, despite being 'international' it is also well known that when oligarch women are 2-3 months away from giving birth they are sent to the U.S. so that the children is born american. Dual nationality. And then those kids are the perfect diversity candidate. They don't need to apply for the visa lottery, they speak spanish as their first language and actually live in a third world country, and they are groomed since birth to be good at finance because their destiny is to inherit the country's entire financial system.
So no, diversity does not help the poor for the most part. Mine is just one country, odds are diversity programs are filled with the children of oligarchs from all over the world. They get sent there so that they have to survive a few years in an environment where daddy's money won't save them. Daddy, in that case, can't have their VP skinned alive for yelling at them for fucking up a DCF. They have to suck it up. Then they come back here ready for the throne. As I said, I partly support this. We need competent oligarchs and god knows you people fuck them good in their analyst stints. But let's just be honest with ourselves and admit that diversity programs are for the oligarchy, not some actual poor kid born in a cartel gang who pulled himself up by his bootstraps, crossed the border, and magically landed a GS summer analyst position by telling the interviewer how he had previous finance experience laundering money for Escobar. If you find me one such kid working now at JPM I'll eat my own balls.
Comments (22)
I have personally seen the kid of a Spanish Diplomat go through diversity recruiting thats supposed to be for underprivileged
I've seen rich target school girls from Connecticut get diversity recruiting for being a woman
Simply put, if you want diversity just ask directly on the application portal: "Are you from the ghetto?". Because no one gives two fucks if you're black when your know better Hamptons than Compton.
No see, that's where you are wrong, because that's what a sensible person would do. But since they hired only midwit Beckys for their HR dept who cannot discern between a Tyrone from Compton and a Tyroneus III from the Hamptons, since arr rook same, it'll be on skin color alone-
Poorly implemented diversity recruiting is classist, and people pointing that out aren't racist
Kids are still being US born by foreign rich sponsors ? Why not Singapore or Sweden. UNbelievable.
Because the US is by far the best country and every other country is shit. - sincerely, a non-US international who had to bust his ass off to crawl out of one of ur aforementioned alternative countries.
lol even with the gun violence and abortion bans and radical right wing ? where r u from
Damn brother. Hit the nail dead square on the head.
Good bro. Id much rather work and be connected with an oligarch's loaded son rather than a bunch of ghetto kids or the broke son of a cartel grunt
This is why poorly implemented diversity is profitable to companies. Black or white or yellow or whatever Hamptons kid is more profitable because of value of networks so hey, building a campaign to tick off esg metrics makes everybody happy. Except the poors and unconnected of any background, but who listens to them?
There's confirmation bias in your thesis. Yes, what you say happens, but there are some kids from legit underpriveled situations that get a shot. SEO does a great job at this generally (lots of kids from black colleges, women's colleges, etc.). It's not a foolproof, but there many counterexamples. Not going to engage in the debate on whether or not this should exist to begin with, that's a different conversation I don't want to engage in. I'm addressing your one specific point.
I'm not saying that it does not happen. I think I can summarize my argument in 3 points:
The funny thing about that last point is that here it is really easy to tell the wealthy kids from poor kids. A wealthy (mexican or insert any country) dresses a certain way, speaks a certain way and even looks a certain way. If HR really did want diversity, they could learn those cultural cues (every country has a wealthy culture) and immediately ding them. It is not that hard. An easy tell is how well they speak english. Hard work kids probably learned english way after childhood. The wealthy kids have private english tutors since they are 3. In my country I can literally tell you how wealthy a person is by how well they speak english. But I digress.
My parents immigrated from a country in South Asia that recently opened up after a tough civil war and a rather dramatic change in the Ruling apparatus. They came from relatively humble backgrounds and did well here, well enough to provide me with a strong structure to pursue professional opportunities.
It's funny since I can speak the language, I've been able to hang out with the children of Oligarchs from the homeland, and they're advantages are absolutely mindblowing. Average man can't make $20 in a week and goes off to dubai to slave in shitty conditions (the job provided by a manpower agency owned by oligarchs) whereas these powerful families and their kids are here in DC dropping $2k for tables/bottles at nice clubs, and working in pretty good positions (IB, Consulting, Real Estate). Connections are made with US based elites, and the rest is how you outline it. Increasing economic productivity is almost entirely gobbled up by them, and there are over 30 USD billionaires unofficially (though only one verified through forbes).
I'd say our oligarchy is significantly less farsighted than the ones in your latin american home country. Issues with India, the largest trading partner, and China might come back to bite them in the ass, but I know they will be fine regardless. All are UK/US/AUS/CAN dual citizens, and the ones that aren't, have safety valve Malta/Cyprus/Mauritius passports to zip around the world in.
I really do think we're headed towards global oligarch-ial entrenchment at this point. I'm not complaining about it though. One of the big shot's kids is a distant cousin and the doors he's opened up for me are mindblowing. Only thing that worries me is the increasing inequality in the west. Multi-generational whites/american's are not used to this, and with the very real chance of their standards of living cratering, It's only going to inflame extremist positions that will topple this rather good system we have at the moment. Not sure how the western elites are going to solve it, and I don't think they even know how to begin.
Can confirm that all of this happens in London as much if not more so. We have a long tradition of taking the sons of the post-colonial elite into our top private schools (Eton, Harrow etc.) and getting them into top City jobs.
At the same time looking at stop and search statistics as a broad brush indicator of institutional racism I think the average black or Pakistani kid is probably fucked well before the interview stage.
Voluptatibus qui alias cum ipsa aut porro ducimus. Corporis quo et recusandae quisquam distinctio ea aliquam. Rerum aut exercitationem inventore labore unde. Sequi nemo sint illum et excepturi. Dolorem ullam vel sed nesciunt. Voluptatem in et deserunt aut.
Fuga qui et exercitationem qui. Similique quae eum facere voluptas natus qui neque. Ut ratione animi molestias sapiente asperiores.
Iusto et delectus eaque amet non. Cumque quidem delectus nostrum qui eum explicabo.
Corporis omnis nulla voluptatibus aut sequi. Distinctio totam nesciunt corrupti neque accusamus sed exercitationem qui.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Want to Unlock by signing in with your social account?