Transfer out of a Bulge Bracket - need some solid advice

I currently work for a top bulge bracket firm (GS) within their Finance Division, i.e. Risk, Accounting, Financial Management, etc... Needless to say, the glory and meat of the industry is not in these sort of groups, but nevertheless, coming out of a non-target it seemed like a decent opportunity. Today, I find the work routine, unchallenging, and completely uninteresting. Back office is back office, regardless of the fancy titles each of these teams may have.

An opportunity has recently arisen to move in a Big Four's Transaction Advisory Group, particularly within M&A Advisory or Structured Finance. I'm not well read about these particular consulting groups, but the work seems somewhat dynamic and interesting. Any more information would be helpful as well.

The question is, Do I leave GS in the this finance function to move to a Big Four consulting group? I think the work seems much more interesting and challenging, but is the move worth it in the long run? It seems as though while the work offers good exposure and interesting projects, it's a big decision to leave the comfort a a bulge bracket and go into an accounting firm. What do you think?

Salary will be matched, but bonus will not (obviously). I would be taking about a 10 to 15 thousand pay cut when factoring in bonuses. What's the general opinion in the industry about these Big 4 advisory groups? I would appreciate any advice or comments. Cheers.

5 Comments
 

yes leave GS on Monday first thing... you get pigeon holed into back office treasury everyday longer you stay... you are just back office...

Go asao to a tier 3 bank or big 4 and get the front office skillset and move afterwards to a tier 1 investment bank

They need people with a skill set, not back office support.

Waiting for the mba route doesn't help in your case because you are clearly impatient and feel miserable now...

Life is too short and not worth to feel miserable in a job!

 

Without a doubt, go to the Big Four's Transaction Advisory Group and develop that front office skill set! Seriously, you shouldn't even be thinking about this.

 

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