SA - am I locked into a group in this situation?
Finished OCR and I'm thinking about taking the offer with an EB for the summer. However, the interview process with the EB makes me wonder if I will be "stuck" with a group that I did not particularly want to be in.
So here is the situation: Let's say the EB runs a generalist program for SA, and then for FT whether it's a few months into the job or immediately at the beginning they match you to an industry group. When I interviewed with the EB, almost all of my interviewers were in the same group (by chance). The ones in that group followed up with me after making me the offer and told me they really liked me and thought I would be a great fit in their group. I really liked them as well; the problem is that that group is one of the less standard ones (FIG/NR/RE), and isn't considered one of the strongest groups at the bank.
I'm pretty sure they would staff me with something in their group next summer. How should I approach this situation if I don't want to be in that group?
Go into the summer and crush it no matter what kind of assignment or deal you get. Make sure to leave a good impression and get a return offer. After getting the return offer voice your concern to see if they will give you a guarantee.
Something a little more aggressive you can do is shop around your offer and get another offer from a comparable bank and go back to the bank you summered at and tell them you would like to accept the return offer but only if you get placed into your preferable group and that otherwise you will go with X bank.
How would people think if I'm being staffed on something with this group, and then actively talking to other groups I'm more interested in? Would this leave a bad impression? I'm concerned that on the other hand if I do not network aggressively with other groups, I will just be staffed with this group and not be able to secure a spot with any other group.
The advice he's giving, I believe, is not to talk to other groups within your bank at all. And I agree with that.
It's to work your ass off, get a return offer, get offers for the groups you want to be in with OTHER banks (keyword:other) , and then coming back and saying:
"After this summer, I realized that S isn't something that I'm that passionate about. Because of my experiences with y and z, I am led to believe I would really enjoy working in X. Just to gauge interest in whether my talents were suited for X, I have been interviewing at other firms like A and B to see what they thought of my candidacy. From this process, I am confidant I am well suited for X, seeing as they have extended offers to work for them. However, I love it here. The people are great, and I would much rather enjoy staying, but I would want my position to be in X. What is the next step I should take?"
I would phrase the suggestion not as aggressively as some other posters have. I wouldn't want to step on any toes...especially if this was for FT. But, there is something to be said about being proactive and taking chances. I just think you can also afford to be more conservative regarding how you frame your plan.
Not at all, a lot can change over the summer. Would advise against trying to leverage another firm's offer for a specific group early though, they don't really do that at Evercore.
Is that a very negative thing to do? What would be the best way to indicate that I'm more interested in other groups then?
Just do a good job and indicate your interest in being staffed on projects with other groups to the SA staffer. Way better than trying to leverage another firm's offer with them - that's just a show of bad faith especially if you don't indicate interest in other groups first.
Your number one priority has to be getting a return offer. Once you have that, it will give you leverage at your firm and with other firms. You won't just be staffed on one thing at a time, so networking/speaking with other groups won't be weird. Just try to make it clear to staffers that you're interested in having a broad experience/meeting as many people at the firm as possible.
Definitely network with the groups you are interested in throughout the summer. Just chat with them and make a good impression but you don't need to actively seek out work from them.
No it's not viewed as negative. At the end of the day you want what is best for you. I had friends who during SA recruiting specifically asked for their offers to be group specific at BBs and pretty mich said that if they don't get their preferred group they'll just go with another bank and it worked. But the way it is communicated also matters. "I really like healthcare and think I'd be a great fit with JP HC. Is there a way you can make this offer group specific to HC.?Otherwise I'd have to go with X bank where I know I'll get more exposure to HC deals."
Sometimes you just have to be aggressive and play hardball to get what you want.
Great advice if you're summering at a BB as group specific offers are commonplace at BBs. However, absolutely NOT at EBs. Especially not at Evercore when you are generalist for the first few months.
Know someone who tried to play hardball to get a group specific offer with Lazard (which does placement right before FT training starts) and it did not end well for her.
Accusamus delectus quis possimus voluptates. Aspernatur molestiae eligendi saepe iure et. Enim quia mollitia blanditiis ex eos voluptatem nemo. Ut sed sit atque nostrum consequatur et et.
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 Unlock with your social account...