Hi All -
I work at a boutique and got railed on my bonus (such is life), so I have been exploring lateral options.
I applied to a MM (think Jeff/Gugg/HL) at which my dad happens to be an MD. To be clear, my dad does not know that I have applied (yet), and therefore has not been pushing for me as a candidate. As far as I have remembered (it’s been a few months since I applied), my application did not ask if I have any family members employed at the bank, but if it did, I answered it truthfully.
Now, I am sitting on an offer for a group that I really like and am second guessing whether it is too weird to join a bank that my dad works at. Any thoughts or concerns?
The bank is large and my dad is in a different group; I don’t think there would be any interaction between us. We have a common last name, so I think it would be easy to fly under the radar. Personally, there is a bit of concern (not sure if concern is the right word). My friends obviously know my dad works at the bank, and I don’t want everyone to think I’m a nepotism hire, but I think I could get over this, and this concern is secondary to other, more pressing issues.
Not sure what others think but if I was in your position there's no fucking way I would drop that opportunity. Take it, tell your dad and if you're really worried, just tell him not to interact with you in the office (could help improve work/life separation as well). Becoming VP and/or MD faster bc of any influence your dad may have over promoting would also help you lateral out to another firm at the same level and eventually your fears of being considered a nepo hire would be eradicated and you would enjoy the high finance life with large pay as well.
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No, I have heard back. I applied in May and started the interview process 2 weeks ago. Got an offer this week.
Who gives a fuck, life is too short to work somewhere you hate. Take the offer if you want it and don’t second guess it.
You should let your dad know about your offer and that you plan to take it, and let him see if that will cause any issues. He will have better insight on whether its a good idea or not. I don't know which bank you have the offer from but every company's compliance standards are different. As much as its easy for you to say, "my application did not ask if I have any family members employed at the bank, but if it did, I answered it truthfully. ", you want full CYA for you and your dad if it ever becomes a problem.
The culture is different nowadays, things that would not have been a terminable offense can now get people to grab their pitchforks. MDs may seem high on the totem pole but are still subject to whatever senior management wants to do. If they decide nepotism is the next movement one day, even if you didn't use your connections for it (which I respect), good luck fighting the fight.
All good points. I have until EoW to accept. I plan on first discussing with my dad, then disclosing to HR once again to ensure it is not an issue. Just wanted to get some outside opinions.
If you perform well, no one will care about the "nepotism hire" thing. On the other hand, if you don't perform well people will instantly jump to the conclusion that you're a nepotism hire. I would be more worried about how it will affect your dad's career rather than your own. If you don't perform well or you exit some day and fuck your team over, it might reflect poorly on your dad. People will also believe that your dad pulled strings to get you in, regardless of whether it's true or not.
For your dad's sake, I would decline the offer. It sucks that you got railed on your bonus, but it's a tough year so hopefully it was a one-off event. Not worth risking a reputation that your dad spent decades building because you got one bad bonus.
Great response and all valid points. One more thing that may be of note: it’s not really just one bad bonus being the impetus for a move. The bank in question would be a distinct “upgrade” over my current position in terms of deal size, prestige, etc.
It's not an easy decision by any means. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that lateralling to another bank is most likely not that difficult for someone with your background (maybe right now, but not if you give it 6-12 months). Meanwhile, making the move can damage your dad's reputation and it might not be optimal for you either. You will always have to consider how every move you make will not only affect yourself but also how it will affect your dad's reputation.
I think you should discuss it with your dad as he knows the firm best. Maybe there are several other cases in the firm where it has worked out great or maybe family hires is a total no-go. If you do decide to take the position, I would highly recommend flagging it to HR before so that it doesn't come back to bite you or your dad after you've started.
I'm sure when they did a background check before handling you that offer, they didn't find out who your dad was.
It's so interesting to see the general response on this thread vs the ones on the numerous "diversity" threads.
Imagine they had a quota for "nepotism hires" where the requirements were significantly lower than for all other applicants. In that case, I bet responses would be similar to the ones in diversity threads.
In this case, it's not even a nepotism hire as his father was not aware of his application and did not pull any strings to help him.
Responded to this comment below; realized that I responded to the comment above you vs. you. Interesting point re: background checks....
I know you could say I am biased, but I don’t think the situation is entirely analogous to diversity recruiting.
Can you argue that my family position gave me value? Of course. I got a great upbringing where I was taken care of, money wasn’t an issue, education was prioritized, and I had exposure to the world of IB.
That being said, I know you will have to take my word for it, but my dad does not know anything about my application and I don’t think my family position had anything to do with me getting a distinct advantage at this bank. Like I said, I have a very common last name (like “Johnson”); over a dozen that I count on LinkedIn at the bank share my last name. It’s not like I’m applying to Moelis with the last name Moelis. I also came from a top target and have a year of work experience in an M&A group, so I think I have the background to be qualified for the position.
I know that probably sounds like cope, but it’s just my $0.02.
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