Reneging on SEO?
Looking for advice for a friend of mine called Barack.
Barack applied to banks directly but also applied to SEO. Barack received a direct offer from Firm X and SEO told Barack they will provide him SEO support with that direct offer. Now Barack is also interested in Firm Y, but Firm Y won't be interviewing till after Firm X's offer explodes, and Firm Y does not work with SEO. If Barack were to receive an offer from Firm Y, it would not be till at least 3-4 weeks after Firm X's offer expires, and he feels asking for a 3-4 week extension on Firm X's offer is unreasonable. Normally, Barack would interview with Firm Y anyway and renege on Firm X if Y gave him an offer. Unfortunately, now that Firm X's offer has been interwined with SEO, Barack is wary about the consequences of reneging on Firm X + SEO after signing. What do you guys think the consequences may be, keeping in mind that SEO has a lot other partner banks?
This is for IBD. Firm X is a BB (not GS/MS). Firm Y is an elite boutique (Lazard/BX/GHL).
Try to not be associated with SEO...Better if people see you got the job through traditional recruiting in my mind and in the mind of others I work with.
He did get the offer through traditional recruiting but before he got the offer directly, the same firm decided they'd preference him through SEO so now that he's received the direct offer, it'll be combined with SEO support should he accept it.
Right, but when he starts his internship people will know he came through SEO. They won't know he got it on his own.
Does that make sense?
Why is that such a problem? Surely if his work delivers to a high standard, they won't care.
Anyway back on topic re: reneging, do you think it's possible that SEO partner banks would blacklist him from FT recruiting?
First and foremost congrats on the offer. It's always good to know you have a job. With that being said if I was in your shoes, what I would be looking at is the consequences of reneging on SEO. SEO is a tremendous resorce that may come in handy in the future. Being on their sh!!t list might not be the best thing. While I seriously doubt there is a formal "blacklist" that circulates Wallstreet every recruitig season, burning bridges is not to be taken lightly.
With that said, interview with the other firm. The worst that comes out of this is you get told no and STILL have a job to start this summer. Who knows, you may not like the culture at the firms anyway.
As for the SEO "stigma", the people that care about that will be looking at you as a "questionable minority" anyway. I don't the difference between," SEO got me the job" and my room mates uncle is an MD at Firm X and he got me the job. "
I think the better question isn't reneging on SEO, but reneging on a BB to go to an elite boutique. Since high finance is a small world, I don't think it's worth reneging from BB to an elite. If it was a MM to a BB/elite, that's a different story.
Excuse my ignorance, but what is SEO?
SEO info:
http://www.seo-usa.org/Home
SEO is a sorry excuse of a system which gets too many substandard kids into banking for being a "minority"..
SEO is program that helps bright minorities land internships in the financial services industry. It was founded after the Civil Rights movement by people in the industry who realized that firms like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley had consistently and systematically discriminated against high achieving minorities. In fact, Goldman Sachs was barred from recruiting on the campus of Stanford Business School for a year after a recruiter from GS explicitly told an applicant that they generally don't hire blacks. Furthermore, partner organizations realize that many positions in banking, particularly Investment Banking, are hard to come by without connections---the type of connections that minority students often lack. SEO is open to Asians, Native Americans, Hispanics, and African Americans
Many college seniors and juniors on this board who were dinged, rejected, or otherwise are insecure about themselves typically resort to bashing SEO to vent. Those who have worked in the industry typically don't care because they realize that an internship doesn't make a career and underachievers, if there present, will wash out whether they came from SEO, Frats, Relationship Hires, or whatever.
Clap clap.
Do you work for SEO?
white people stop being jealous.
I'm assuming this is directed at me? For the record I am Chinese..
I'm just sick of dealing with people who come in through SEO and have no idea what they're doing.. call it the product of bad experiences.
Well blueofspirit, i just wanted to make sure BobbyLight has a more informed answer about what SEO is.
It so funny to see this topic come up year after year. When I was applying to banks and stumbled on WSO, I got a completely warped understanding of the program. When I did my SA stint, I knew 2 guys and 1 girl in SEO in my SA class, and the 2 guys were awesome. They worked hard and got along with people and earned their full time offers, the girl was so-so like some other people in the class. One of those guys is my roommate now, and I now realize that all the clowns that charade as bankers on this board really talk out of there ass and either are venting or talking about shit they have no idea about. GS M&A group? Piper Jaffray? Bank X vs Bank Y yet have no offers from any bank? etc....
In any case, FTPiper, what you said is completely retarded. Im actually Jewish, AND the person who founded SEO is white, and the people who finance it are largely white.
BlueofSpirit, even if you are Chinese, that doesnt give you the right to act so pompous and arrogant even if you have the privilege of anonymity.
BobbyLight, please be sure to know that a majority of people on these boards are college kids so take these boards for what they are.....
Toothache32, fair enough, the post seemed a bit "official" so apologies for jumping at it.
I'm not saying good people don't come through SEO - all I said was that proportionally it lets more idiots through the door than regular recruiting (which also does, but I digress..) - and I stand by my point. I don't think I mentioned my nationality for any other reason than a rebuttal at FTPiper..
SEO don't like asians
Blueofspirit, its cool dude. I was just really irked that some kid asked a legit question (albeit in a weird way) and got his thread jacked by a whole different discussion. Moreover, I understand where your coming from as well. In fact, to a certain degree i can see your point. But it was just the way you said the first post that threw me off, especially because it seemed like you were another college kid who got dinged and then wants to blame SEO (even though SEO only has a few SAs at my BB yearly).
But beyond that, ive just seen a lot of people talking about stuff that they know nothing about. One poster came on here a little while back talking about he had an offer from Firm X and Firm Y, even though I work at Firm Y and knew that wasn't possible when said person posted that. Its just stupid.
I don't know how easy it is to get an offer with SEO, but, from what I know about it, they're pretty much make sure that you have a job this summer. Can he be confident that he can get another offer from somewhere else that doesn't expire, that he can take if he gets rejected from the elite boutique? then he can just turn down this offer.
Again, I don't know how risky this is, because I don't know how easy it is to get an offer through SEO.
Cool story bros. Any thoughts on the original topic?
He cancelled his other BB interviews when he got the Firm X offer as he'd take Firm X over the other upcoming BB interviews he had.As for SEO, I don't think it's as easy to get into as people make it out to be. I didn't get into SEO but got a few offers through direct recruiting. Met Barack at the SEO AC. In my experience, a number of people who get SEO offers also had direct offers anyway.
Toothache32 - so we agree. :)
Totally agree with the second para. It's frustrating but oh well..
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