What should long term goals be in Canada?

Incoming FT analyst in Canada. All my friends in the US that are incoming analysts are starting to look at PE recruiting but we obviously dont have the same buyside environment up here. Are there just more career bankers in Canada? I really liked my group so am thinking currently the plan is to try and A2A, then re-evaluate as I get closer to VP. Obviously a lot can change in that time but everyone in the US seems to be already planning their post-banking analyst life and it doesnt feel like I need to be doing that this early in Canada. Am I wrong? If so, where are analysts going after their stint and when do I need to start figuring that out?

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If you’re at a global you can do on-cycle, they all have exit the same as their US offices

Edit: Not sure why I’m getting monkey shit, check on LinkedIn for yourself if you don’t believe me

 

Depends on your gender. If you are a woman, just do the bare minimum in Canadian IB and you are guaranteed a promotion till VP with some special mentorship by MDs along the way 

Can heavily attest to this. If you're a woman in (Canada) IB, your main goal should be just to enjoy life and not focus too much on your job. You're getting promoted anyway, so should focus on going out, shopping, social media, traveling, etc.

 

It’s easy in the sense that the company will want to support you because they’d rather help you move up in your career than lose talent. My mentor said that the way you have to approach it is that you have to look at it methodologically rather than simply saying I want to go to the US. Frame it as you wanting to pursue a business initiative within your group that so happens to be in New York City. I don’t think you can do it after a year. I think you need to stay in your group for two years and have someone in your group support you.

 

Well think about it, would a bank in NYC prefer to hire a seasoned banker who got grinded at one of these niche Toronto groups, or some MBA associate who picked their nose through b-school? One of the Canadian banks has a pipeline to Evercore NYC (sent 3ppl there last year that were lateraling A2A iirc), and a lot of the niche groups in the US (think M&M, P&U) realize that you get better deal experience in Canada than the US anyways

 

The advice I give Canadians is if you are not currently in banking do an MBA in the US and re-recruit there because they have a pipeline platform. If you made it to big five you can either try later if your group is strong and has alumni in that bank you want to join. The other option is doing the L1 transfer through the bank which is the easiest because you don’t want to be on TN long term/at all if you want to be in the US permanently. L1 is duel intent so the company can start the green card process for you.

 

I'll digress from the woman hating and tell you It depends on what YOUR endgame is.

Big boy PE / banking? Move to the US, sooner rather than later. Emphasis on sooner. Much harder as you move up, especially if you're coming from a Canadian bank. 

If you want to stay here, exit options are much more opaque and limited. Pensions, Atlas/Birch Hill/Onex types, industry with almost all having fewer seats than down south to state the obvious. 

Career banking is not a bad option if you find the right firm / group. There's obviously not the same level of intensity as a big US hub and that is reflected in pay. So my play was to find a firm/group where you trade the pay cut for much lower intensity. Honestly if you find the right fit, it's pretty chill man. 

 

Don’t the juniors deserve to hear the truth that in Canada, especially, at Big 5 banks, your progression will be challenging if you don’t have the right gender / skin color. I have been involved in recruitment and can attest that HR has enforced gender quotas in A&A hiring and promotions and it has only worsened in the past few years. Most MDs / Group Heads are hypocrites and don’t want to discuss this topic as their bonuses are tied to meeting these gender targets. So, by hook or by crook, they will influence the progression of A&As to meet these goal posts and secure their bonuses. 

 

You can’t fight against leadership because the majority of Canadians lack balls. We saw it during Covid when they were shut down for 2 years. Majority of them accept, sit down, and shut the fuck up and watch their government destroy their country. It’s not getting better and a few anecdotes who have balls won’t fix it. The director in this chat said that the capital markets teams have a 50% unrealistic vision of women in capital markets. You cannot be loyal to Canada you need to be loyal to yourself and leave. It will never get better. There are hundreds of unemployed kids on this thread who sit around and wait to for postings just to apply and get sad to get passed over by a girl or nepo baby. You need to leave. I left and it was the best decision for me.

 

Ou tell me more. Im trying to break in to IB from corporate development and am losing hope here in Canada. What was it like moving to a city where you didn't know anyone and wasn't "home"? Why was it the best decision of your life? 

NonTargetTears
 

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