Should I jump ship with my MD to a lower tier bank?
I'm a VP and my MD is leaving for a leadership role at a lower tier bank and asking me to come with him. Looking for some advice on what to do. Appreciate any input.
Reasons to say yes:
- I enjoy working with this MD and we have a great relationship
- There's been some restructuring in our group and future is a bit uncertain
- I'm not sure whether I'll stay in banking past VP/Director. My plan was to ride through VP, collect a few years of high six figure comp, then reassess. I would much rather do that with my MD than figuring out how to work with other MDs at my current shop.
- While I could take this as an opportunity to exit banking sooner, I genuinely like being a VP. Feels like all the hard work leading up to it is paying off in terms of comp and WLB.
Reasons to say no:
- New bank would be a downgrade. Not a massive one, think Dartmouth/Cornell = current bank vs. UVA/NYU = new bank (no offense), but still a downgrade. If I decide to pivot to corp dev in a few years, how much does this matter?
- I'm highly ranked and have good relationships within my group, so I feel confident that my current bank would want to keep me. Could I argue for a retention bonus or is that too short sighted?
- This is speculation, but my MD probably has about 5 years left in the game. Great for him as he gets a leadership title, guaranteed comp, and can then retire into the sunset. How much of a risk is that? Probably doesn't matter if I plan to leave banking regardless, but in the off chance I decide to stay, I'd have to feel confident about making MD at the new bank given lateraling at that level would be tough.
I would also consider comp changes. Does this new bank pay more or less? In any case, if your MD is retiring in 5 years and you want to stay in banking for >5 years I would be cautious of jumping ship. If your MD is the only guy that likes you at the new bank, and then he retires, you could get laid off, and getting laid off from a less prestigious bank isn’t ideal.
Congrats on Cornell!
it’s my experience that individuals matter a lot more than individuals and having an MD who’s being hired laterally at a senior level bring their guy over means you are in a very good spot with the move
It’s also my experience that people in the industry respect comp and respect people that are respected so you should make sure you get paid well for coming along which shouldn’t be an issue but I think this enhances your options rather than diminishes them
I'd say do it. If your MD believes in you enough to pull you over thats already a good sign. If he's going to be taking a leadership position at another firm I'd imagine thats at least a few good years of job security. Does this guy have a history of firm hopping?
Ask Jamie Dimon
congrats on cornell bub, take the offer tho
Agree with the comments above supporting the move. I would take it a step further. You can relay your concerns in advance before making the move and try to get some verbal commitment (or possibly even in writing for things like comp) ahead of time.
Tricky. Is he going into a leadership role such as group head? If so, no brainer to follow. If he’s just going to be another regular MD I would ask myself if you think he can continue his flow for 1-2 years so you don’t get dragged down. Otherwise it’s a risk probably not worth taking
second this - although if OP is saying the MD only has ~5 years left, must be more senior than a regular md? Why does a group head even need a vp?
Big enough dick to port clients across? Clients don’t mind pissing off current bank and changing M&A adviser?
Only other thing similar to this, is how much junior resource will you have? Will this MD pull enough weight at this new shop to make sure you got guys under you? If group head yes otherwise …
Worst thing is if you spend a year with no live deals just hitting the street with pitches that you do yourself cuz u got no analysts
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