Has anyone ever thought about making a switch from finance into government? I'm thinking IB / PE into something like Treasury or OMB? Clearly this happens at the senior levels of government (Hank Paulson, Steve Mnuchin Antonio Weiss, etc.) which are through appointment, but has it happened in lower / middle levels and resulted in people having prestigious roles in the govt (rather than just having a boring job in the govt)?
Curious if anyone's done it or know what is required.
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I switched from government to finance, granted I was in engineering while in the gov. In my experience, and I imagine this transitions well to finance roles in the gov, it is a heavily burdened machine that operates slowly and when it wants to. You are forever relying on the output of someone who doesn't care to move quickly or efficiently. I would work with people that were there for job security and to build their pension.
If you were serious about a prestigious government position, look into an SES position. Just about any position you look into will be a pay cut when compared to position with a private company with comparable experience, but some have the drive to serve a greater good.
Federal Reserve Trading Desk-New York?
Lol You do not want to work in OMB. Treasury and the Fed would be great options though, although the Fed has a reputation for being more "wonkish" and dry. I would also look into Commerce and SEC. The IC also has finance-related roles.
Why not OMB? Whats the path for a banker / PE investor to make the move over to Treasury / Fed / SEC without just taking a boring govt. job?
OMB is not a very well-known gig in Washington as a whole, but if you're set on working in the White House (and telling people you do), it could be a good option for you. Treasury has many cool departments (Domestic Finance, International Affairs, Office of Technical Assistance, etc.). The Fed is mainly known for its research positions, and you'd probably want to be in the NY Fed. SES is ideal, but I think you'd be expected to be coming from the MD level or higher to be considered for something like that. More realistically, you'd be shooting for a GS-14 or 15 position as an Assistant Director or higher, and then working your way up from there. Positions that high involve serious leadership skills and policy knowledge, so I don't think they'd bore you. It might be worthwhile to consider some NGOs as well (I have in mind IMF, World Bank, etc.)
Could consider DFC (formerly OPIC). They have rebranded and expanded substantially under the Trump administration and have been hiring. I know they do debt financing, political risk insurance, and some venture / impact type stuff, among other initiatives. It should be easy to get a job there coming from IB for instance.
I work with DFC and it's not as simple as having an IB background. That usually helps but you generally need an advanced degree in addition to a relevant professional background.
And DFC's idea of "hiring for expansion" isn't like IB or PE where they hire classes. It's more random open spots here and there in various different departments. For example, they currently only have 7 open full-time positions of which only 2 are finance-related.
OP, if you're really looking to move into public service, you need to do a lot of research and constantly be on the lookout for the right openings - timing matters a lot.
Agree with this. I also work closely with DFC in my current role and have gone through their interview process in the past, though I declined their offer at that time for a few reasons. It is true that it is not an annual "class" of recruits and opportunities are more one-off in nature. That said, opportunities do exist and they are publicly available through USAjobs.gov. Unlike the private sector, you really can just apply online (I did!). Many people who work at DFC are coming out of either a) other DFIs b) policy programs like SAIS, so if you have an MBA (or a technical advanced degree), plus experience in the private sector (IB/PE/Corp Dev), your experience will be valuable and looked at favorably. That was my personal experience going through their process.
I don't know about DFC. IFC seems much more prominent, and I've seen their analysts exit to GS and similar firms. World Bank (of which IFC is a part) and IMF as a whole have good reputations because they're service-orientated in addition to involving finance work. USAID is also more high-profile for development work than DFC.
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