Boss asked me to get coffee...
Such an intern cliché... So i'm interning for the summer at a small boutique and my boss's boss (md) and an associate were headed to a meeting with a client and he asked me to bring them all coffee to the conference room.
Normally his secretary would do this but she's seemed to be overly busy lately (or out of the office). There are two other interns in the office but where my desk is situated is right by the entrance to the conference room.
Being a good little monkey I brought them coffee and that was that. Later in the day "alpha-me" was thinking... "man, what if i had told him I'M NOT YOUR SECRETARY, I DON'T GET YOU COFFEE". Haha... yeah right.
*The question is - the trend with the secretary doesnt seem like it's going to change and I will likely be asked again. IF he continues to ask me to get coffee for their meetings (this could be several times per week), what should I do?
a) Suck it up and do it
b) bring it up w/ HR
c) bring it up with the associate
d) bring it up with the MD (short temper, this would probably PISS HIM OFF that I even brought it up)
*Why am i even bothering to bring this up? I THOUGHT THE TREND OF INTERNS GETTING COFFEE FOR SUPERIORS WAS OVER... us Millennials are too special to get coffee for superiors and can't be bothered ;-)
haha in all seriousness, i was given a pretty hefty / important project to work on (for an intern), i'm not their f*cking secretary, annnd they know they can get the coffee themselves but I could see the MD using this as a way to display his power / haze me. F*ck that, be an adult.
Are you fucking kidding me? Get the coffee and shut the hell up.
sounds like you got lots of coffees (or the equivalent) for your superiors, what a good little banker you are.
Point is I'd rather put my effort into my work than get coffee. Since we're a small shop I've been put on some big projects, getting my REAL work done, and have been getting good feedback.
I've never gotten coffee for a superior in my life but if they asked me to I would. Your job is to make your superiors' jobs and lives at work easier.
I'd rather put effort into my work than get coffee too but that doesn't mean that if my MANAGING DIRECTOR asked me to I wouldn't. I'm glad your internship seems to be going well for you. I can guarantee if you bring this up at all with anyone it will not continue to go well.
Serious question, why do you think you're 1. better than getting coffee and 2. better than the secretary?
I think this is where it went from believable-naive-kid story to obvious troll post.
If a 5 to 10 minute trip to get Coffee for your MD is going to be such a heavy burden that you can't get your "important intern projects" done then you probably aren't as productive / good at your job as you think you are...
Go get a job at Starbucks
Honestly, how much time out of your month does it take to get coffee. You are an intern right? So presumably your value add is not so great (even the best of interns). You will get your chance to shine but only if you survive to get hired full time. Even then, you will probably do a lot of remedial stuff like photo copying, powerpoint... Work is small fraction of tasks that is using your full potential and large part below your skills & experience (all the way up the chain).
SECfinance: can't say it better. In fact, to whomever posted it in the first place, be thankful you have a job and know that you are a commodity - like a banana. You don't want your job? I'll take it - or a million others. The day you think you're "too good" for ANYTHING is the day you start a life of failure....not to mention just seeming like a douchebag.... - in fact, knowing damn well my analysts would be working a LOT longer than I have - sometimes I'd get THEM coffee (certainly dinner if you're not at a firm that does that for you, as I often wasn't being at smaller/client-cost conscious firms. I'd love to spit in your next cup of coffee......un-f-ing-believable how you feel you're "entitled" to this job..... - fire this guy on the spot and he'll learn some humility for christ sakes!
d
I've seen people who've gotten through bad situations BC they were on a lot of people's good side by making good coffee and bringing it at the right time on a consistent basis. If you're not the most experienced or needed person doing something, you ought not to be complaining but to think of why, and where possible, how to turn it to your advantage.
Suck it up, son. At least until (or if) you get hired; then review your position on the matter.
Laxatives might help ;)
Funny days. A guy has to get the coffee and shut the hell up.
If it's a girl the MD could be fired for sexism.
That's true.
5/10
This is obviously just a joke.
The way I see it, you have one of two choices: 1. Get him coffee 2. Don't get him coffee
Now I'm assuming you want to continue in IBD, and for that matter, the rest of the summer. So I think the solution to this one is pretty self evident. Either you get him coffee and continue to be unappreciated (in which scenario you still keep your job), or you don't get him coffee and you're on the street trying to find another job.
Now that being said, I would like to tackle some of the other issues you brought up. 1) Bringing it up with HR: Unless you want HR to go to your MD and say "Hey, we realized you were asking "John the intern to get you coffee everyday, please refrain from doing that" and then a subsequent discussion with your MD who lets you know that you're a piece of shit and definitely won't get a recommendation or FT, I would recommend not pursuing this option.
2) Bringing it up with your Associate: I'm assuming you're new to this firm, and the associate has absolutely no reason to like you, yet. If you bring this up with him, I'm going to see the conversation go something like this: John, the intern: "Hey Connor, Victor [the MD], has been asking me to repeatedly get him coffee on a consistent basis. Not sure if I should bring this up with him or continue to get him coffee, what do you suggest?" Connor, the associate: "John, you're an intern. I think you should really just do as he asks, he's much senior to you."
Later that day...
Connor, the associate: "Hey Vic, you know that new intern we hired?" Victor, the MD: "Which one? We hired 3." Connor, the associate: "The one that gets us coffee everyday. Yeah, he asked me whether or not he should bring up the fact that you keep asking him to get him coffee everyday. LOL" Victor, the MD: "What a fucking idiot. Tell him I'll fire his ass if he doesn't" Connor, the associate: "Hahaha yeah what a kid."
Now granted, Victor might not be such a savage and say something like that, he most likely will be thinking it.
Note again: You are an INTERN, not even a FT analyst yet....
Now unless you have superior blowing skills and can turn your mouth into a vacuum, I would recommend continuing the coffee trend till the end of the summer, or, using your mouth for an alternative task.
Red pill vs. blue pill right there
Interesting, i am just not sure which one is the red in this situation...
remember when trolls on wso like blumie and blastoise were actually funny?
I miss Brady, all of his other user names, and his MAD SWAGGER jackets. Bring Brady back.
I can't believe that so any people actually took the bait.
eh, actually i can
Don't forget swagon, that guy was comedy gold.
I mean this in all honesty: IB is clearly not the career path for you
Throughout your two years as an analyst you will be asked to do everything from binding groups for other groups, bringing your MD's laptop to his house because he/she forgot it, getting coffee for someone, etc. If this bothers you so much, I would seriously just quit.
you're probably right... at least i'm learning this at 20 and not 35.
the thing is i like the work and the projects they've given me, and i'm getting good feedback, i'm just not very obedient.
Maybe I should go work in tech instead, you guys are too uptight
lol. Good luck in tech. May not be exact same dynamics, but you will still find yourself spending a lot of time doing tasks below your skill & experience level... That is what a job is. You are lucky if you can get a job where 30% of the time you are really engrossed in the something that pushes you to your limits and is interesting. Most of the time is the grunt work that needs to get done before you can get to the interesting stuff.
lol, I got coffee for the big boss a few times when i interned at an ad agency. wasn't a big deal + i was bored anyways. would have rather they had me get coffee AND invited me into the meeting to listen in
you and the other two interns should go on a "INTERNS DON'T FETCH COFFEE" strike and see what happens
I fully expect to see OP post a thread in several months titled something like "Didn't get return offer...what happened?" or "Got fired. How to spin?"
"Fired from BO role because I threw cup of coffee at my MD, how do I hide this from HR?"
Forget not being ready for IB, with that entitlement attitude you're not ready to work for anyone.. As an intern, or even a FT analyst (or any other entry level position), you are at the bottom of the totem pole. Your only job is to make everyone else's lives easier, even if that includes fetching coffee. I guarantee you that same MD had to make coffee runs for his superiors back in the day. Such is the circle of life
Fair point, and in another comment i've agreed to get the coffee, but somewhere the line has to be drawn of what I can be asked of me outside of my official internship or future job description, yes or no?
Coffee is a tame / small example, but this could have the potential to escalate.
What if Associate/MD see my obedience to fetch coffee, and then think, "hmm he's good at getting coffee, let's have him do more shit that our lazy secretary isn't doing"
Your MD might ask you again but the mentality you think the MD has is totally wrong. He isn't thinking "hey I can use this guy to grab my coffees for the summer and then tell him to f*** off", he is thinking "hey I can rely on this to get tasks done, whether its grabbing coffee or otherwise".
Fact of the matter is you're an intern so you don't have much to offer. So the best you can do is to show your superior that whatever task you get, whether it's grabbing coffee or formatting a powerpoint presentation, that you are able to do it and with a good attitude. Because you know who I don't want working for me? Entitled kids who think they are too good for their job.
So I suggest you not only continue grabbing those coffees, but you be the best f***ing coffee grabber of all time. Because if your MD can trust you with something like that, he is more likely to trust you with other things.
If you want to succeed in any job in the future, you need to drop the "that's not in my job description" mentality. Those people definitely don't make it in high finance (or tech) and are the types that stay at the bottom tier for their entire careers.
You were hired as an IB Intern not a secretary in training. If they were dissatisfied with their secretary they would hire a new one, you're just being paranoid. You just need to adopt the mentality that you're going to add value to the team in any way that you can.
I understand the concern, but as others have said suck it up and just do it. I'm lucky enough to be the only intern on the top floor with the c-suite execs, as such I have gotten the chance to do some pretty expansive high-level financial analysis. I mention that to just to say, the overwhelmingly majority of compliments I receive from my boss and other execs are commending me on my 'excellent work ethic'... because I stock the conference room mini fridge lol (every morning without being told to do so). It's clearly not my favorite part of the job or something I expected to do when I signed on, but it makes their lives easier. And for that they view me as a hard-worker. I think it goes without saying, having good relationships/recommendations is invaluable in this business.
wow.
Sanders supporter no doubt.
+1 lol, and no not feeling the burn
All said and done, this guy has a good attitude towards being shat on by various members in the forum. Kudos to you on that. Maybe you should teach the OP in this fucking thread a thing or two: http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/how-much-do-poor-undergrad-grades…
*bern
3/10
The value of your time is such that more value is created by you fetching coffee for your boss than him fetching for himself.
I hope the overwhelming number of monkey shits you got illustrates how absurd your "I'm not your secretary" point is.
People who think they are too good to grab coffee are exactly the people who should be grabbing coffee.
Oh and while you're at it, why don't you grab him a coffee?
Compared to some of the nonsensical shit I have done, would gladly rather buy the team some coffee
How this post should have gone. OP: "Boss asked me to get coffee...So I did"
This post has to be a troll. I refuse to believe this is real.
Thinking intern work matters: $2
Thinking job descriptions matter: $10
Thinking you have freedom and respect as an IB rodent: priceless
Hey guys, his banana points are -1 right now. Let's throw more MS at him and see how negative we can go.
Stone-cold, my man
The wiser juniors ask whether they can order dinners for their seniors when there are later evening calls, make sure everyone has a print out of meeting decks etc. Stuff that the more senior people appreciate and notice.
The more self-entitled juniors don't. That gets noticed too.
Other things being equal, the latter are more usually fired.
But other things aren't equal. Those with the wisdom/emotional intelligence to be in the first camp are frequently better at a lot of other work tasks and generally better people to work with.
This is so much more true than I originally believed when I entered finance.
Get the coffee and ask if them if there's anything else they need when you're done.
You're an intern. It's your job.
These little tasks they assign you, it's also a means to measure your responsibility and getting things "done." I have had to do those 2-5 am rushes before, it wasn't pleasant but I got an Engineer 1 title out of it prior before looking at finance.
If you can't get coffee right or paper errands done right, what makes you think that they'll let you handle things that are important to the firm?
I get this is probably a joke post, but when I first started I had a very similar aversion to menial type tasks, etc. Here's a tip, be just as supportive to those above you as below you. If an admin looks overwhelmed and you have a few minutes to spare, help them out.
Or, get really aggressive and if you know the meeting is coming up have coffee there and ready for him. We call that initiative.
Your job is to make your boss's work & life more accurate, easier, and enjoyable. Anything else is bullshit.
I think the most amusing part is thinking your work matters as an intern. To all current and future interns- most of the work you will be doing is not difficult and you are not really adding much value to the project. That said, the most important thing you can do is have a good attitude and not bitch when asked to do menial tasks. Most job tasks can be taught to relatively intelligent people once they start full time, so when I provide feed back on bringing interns back for those roles their attitude and willingness to get their hands dirty is 99% of what I consider.
OP has negative bananas! Haha!
~
if I was your MD and you came at me with that "not your secretary" horseshit I would insert my foot so far up your ass that people would think we are Siamese twins.
get the fucking coffee and shut your dick holster.
lmao
I'll bite....
As an intern (or even starting analyst) you have no real skills despite what your professors told you. You are there purely to try and make your seniors life easier and not fuck anything up until you've been there long enough to actually be able to contribute and do stuff.
Make their lives easier and continue doing so, and the rewards and responsibility will eventually come.
Every time I see the title of this thread I imagine some fancy burly guy going, "boss asked ME to get coffee??" lol
It's admin....not secretary.
You should look up the Reebok Rules. Don't be a bitch. You're a fucking intern and you already think you're too good to grab coffee?
is -16 banana points a record? WallStreetOasis.com AndyLouis
haha i've seen lower, but that's pretty bad
Some people have -33 http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/userpoints/0?page=2972
But OP is at -23 now. He's gaining.
and of all those users on that page (some may have been spam/throwaways), this is the only one i recognize http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/user/229193
epics amounts of monkey shit on all of his posts
I don't know how this is even possible but OP has a long way until he reaches this guy http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/user/90438
As dumb as the topic of this thread is, it is actually enlightening for prospective IB monkeys to read through the responses as a lot of members have given some personal stories that really shed light on what it is like to be an IB intern/analyst. Thus, these types of threads are both entertaining and helpful.
Coffee is for closers
Tell him dis ain't Dominos and he can get his own fuggin coffee! No one gets ahead by submission to someone else!
Plus side is, if it took you 15 minutes to get the coffees, you made like 15 bucks.
In my opinion, If you want a FT offer you should happily get the coffee. At a Boutique firm the smaller things matter even more. Having too much entitlement as an intern could prove to be an uphill battle in this industry.
Oh no.
I would have hazed the fucking shit out of you in college. Get the coffee and shut up.
Stand your ground, young'n. Tell that SOB to get his own damn coffee. Maybe flex in his face afterward. He can't tell you to do things that weren't in your job description! HR will protect you. Pinky promise.
Never bring anything to HR... EVER... ever in your career! Dont even bring them your resignation letter.
Joke or not, the amount of entitlement in your posts is sickening. Many of the people on here including myself went to non-targets, and busted ass for THE OPPORTUNITY TO GET BOSS COFFEE!
There are 10,000 people that would cut off an arm to have the internship you have. You need to realize how competitive it is to get an internship in this industry period. You should be thankful for the opportunity to learn from people with more experience in this profession than you have been on this earth.
Just remember that this world has 7.4 billion people that don't care about you or your trust fund baby problems. Btw you make more as an intern on a prorated basis than the average adult in this country. Get some perspective.
Yay, a task from the boss. Something he does care about. "What's your favorite coffee and do I bring pastry or anything else with it?" Who cares if it's buying coffee or all of P&G (Folgers) Corp. There's a task to be done, and done 101% right. Everything a person does reflects on the person.
WSO got me... I logged in just to read this, and that's what I got.
please don't quit from wso because of how shit this was
the community is dying
we need you honeybunny
Who are you?
Props to WSO for getting me to log in just to read this story!
OP, let me try to convince you to look at this in a different way. When you do a menial task for a superior, you're not just doing the task: you're buying future goodwill at a very low cost.
Ask what kind of coffee he likes, get that kind, and bring back his exact change with the receipt. Show that you can complete even the most menial tasks with appropriate thoroughness. Years from now the director will have long since forgotten that he asked you to get him coffee a number of times, but he will remember you as someone who can accomplish tasks that need doing. Really, which is more likely half a decade from now: "Oh, yeah, ThrowingShade! I used to use him as my coffee boy! Hahahaha!" OR "He was an intern back in 2016 or so, right? I'm pretty sure he was a good worker who got the job done."
In asking you to get his coffee, your director has given you an opportunity. Take advantage of it and demonstrate that you can get the little things done.
Man you are so not belong to the industry, wonder why they hire you in the first place. Whether your work is valuable is not judging from you, it's rather from the seniors. Things that YOU think of high value could probably deem as useless from the company perspective.
Has anyone really been far as decided to use even go want to do look more like?
This is WSO meme material. There are so many people who are so not belong to the industry on here.
Yes, and most of them don't make it pass analyst, if these people including yourself make it perm. Attitude matters and looking at your responses you are not even willing to fit in, it's better to start your own investment company ASAP and so you could be your own boss.
This is a fucking joke. I'd fire your as immediately if you complained about this. Your job is to add value, wherever you can. In this situation, it’s assisting the secretary and getting the team coffee. I have my analysts set up conference rooms for meetings, get people coffee, etc. I also get them coffee, and at times bring them breakfast/lunch/dinner. Suck it the fuck up and become a contributing member of your team.
You = Intern
Intern = No Authority
No Authority = You don't have a choice
Complaining = "Not Alpha At All"
Complaining makes you a beta, and disobeying your boss gets you fired . . . you're an intern . . . If you think getting a cup of coffee for your "bosses boss" is some kind of "haze", then good luck. Get up, ask if he wants cream, and get the dam coffee.
Lol, you're in IB (as an intern) so it's probably best to just get the coffee. But use the internship to figure out whether you actually enjoy the work and if you would be willing to get coffees for another year or two as an analyst. If not, there are many other opportunities within the finance industry where you'd never be asked to get coffee for a superior... consider those opportunities instead of IB if you decide that coffee runs aren't for you.
In general, getting coffees for your superiors is just part of the IB game as an intern/analyst... Since the very beginning of the IB industry, each generation of IB "superiors" has served coffee to the previous generation of IB "superiors". So if you decide to stay within IB, I'd recommend you just get those coffees and avoid making an issue out of it... you should also read Robert Greene's 'The 48 Laws of Power', which will teach you a lot of good things about how to wrestle with the apprentice/master dynamic in a Machiavellian way... an ability that I'd argue is essential for climbing the IB ladder.
If a stupid intern complaining about having to get coffee for an MD is enough to get all of you pissed and spending your precious time ranting, I wonder how much YOUR time is worth.
The point was made after the first post, you're all wasting time and just repeting the same shit. Besides, this was probably a troll post anyways, so well done OP.
I remember in my first consulting internship the team was drafting requirements for a project. All I was asked to do was spell check. The team had been working for almost 9 hours straight. The partner of my division brought us all coffee including me. Then I brought them all coffee an hour later.
It was already 1 am by the time we finished. The partner came up to me (remember I was checking spellings in the draft) and said "Good fucking job today".
I was in the fourth week of a six week internship and received an offer two days later for returning FT after my degree finished.
So do not think of the coffee as a menial task. Its more like "I cannot do much for your company, but you work hard! let me get you a coffee, that is the least I can do". Honestly, if you don't feel this way naturally I don't know how you will work in any job that involves working in teams.
Lowkey this was kind of an inspiring story. It's the little things that matter.
Ya know, one time when I was in the Army I brought the team some Chinese takeout during an all Friday night duty.
I was in charge of that team at the time.
Get over it, and if you're a good boss you'll bring people nice things out of your own free will when it looks like they need a pick me up.
I think you should give him coffee because he is the boss of you and you should not refuse.
I'm sorry, OP, but as the summer has begun, I see more and more complaining and bitching posts in WSO. If you feel like your boss "disrespected" you, then quit. Don't bring it to HR - a guy in HR will look like he's genuinely concerned and take your email to DealBreaker - then your life in finance is officially bye bye.
If getting a coffee for your boss bothers you, finance is not your field because your feeling is too important for you. You should rather go work at Hillary's campaign. But I bet you she may ask you to get her a burrito from Chipotle.
What am I hearing ? Let me catch my intern telling me he is not my secretary ! Imma RKO him through a DCF model !
thats a lot of monkey shit Throwing Shade
Damn this page looks like King Kong himself took a dump.
You'll learn soon enough buddy. You're just a misguided chimp. But yea, just shut up and get the damned coffee and don't think twice about it
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