BB Operations vs. Start Up

Hey Guys,

Posted this a few weeks ago, hoping for a few more opinions before I make my decision.

I've been a longtime reader for over a year now, but I decided to finally make an account because I have some general career questions for you all.

My background: good GPA, finance major, coming from a non-target with a strong alumni base in the field of finance here in NYC. Graduated May 2012, currently working in Project Management (Operations) at a BB in NYC (GS/JPM/MS).

My situation: Graduated May 2012, currently working in Project Management (Operations) at a BB in NYC (GS/JPM/MS).

My question for you all:

Through a connection, I've been offered a position at what seems to be a pretty legitimate start up that is still in development (unknown to public). It is EXTREMELY well funded and was started by people who were very successful in the past. They sold another company for a lot of money, and it is something that you all are very familiar with. It also has some very well-known investors. The position would be on the business development team, but I would be starting in client development. My job would be to solve client problems and train them on how to use the product at on-site meetings. I would hope to translate this position into a sales job a few years down the road. I would literally be the first junior level employee they hired on the business development team so I see this as an advantage. I would actually be helping my potential boss build my team, which is cool.

I am not very happy in my job, as it is way too boring and mundane. The projects that we work on are important, but I don't want to grow in this role. I don't want to have my bosses job and I see this as a bad sign. Nobody really wants to stay in Ops as you all know. The only reason I would stay in this job is to try and move into Sales or Wealth Management. I know both of these things are unlikely and would be difficult.

Switching jobs would be a no brainer for me, but the new job requires me to take a LARGE paycut. I would be getting paid between 45-50 k, which is significantly down from my salary now. I do not have enough stake in the company to actually become wealthy in the event that it was sold. I was actually granted a small amount of "Profit Interest Units", which are more like a dividend if the company is profitable. I should have made this more explicit, but I will not be making a shitload of money by any means if the company is sold because I do not have a large stake at all. The startup has close to 500 employees already (close to 100 in the states and around 500 IT/tech employees overseas). So please note that I am not even close to being one of the original few employees or anything, I am just the first junior level employee that they have hired on the business development team. I am starting in a support role and hoping that it will translate into something that generates revenue as long as I work my ass off, which I will.

I am looking at this as more of a career growth option, with financial reward being less important because I know that I am not going to strike it rich by joining this company. I am asking if you knew anything about junior level employees who join startups. I am looking to build a comfortable career at this company and hopefully translate the widespread knowledge that I have acquired into something better down the road, and I am wondering if you all have any knowledge about the potential salary growth for someone in the position I am in. Basically, do you see the financial loss/risk I will take to be more beneficial than the job I have now? Like I said, I have no interest in working in Ops, but some people have told me: "It's great to have a big name company on your resume, take the experience and move elsewhere in a few years". Unfortunately, they don't know how difficult this is, and I personally don't even know if "finance" is the correct career path for me.

I don't like my job now and would only stay to move into FO sales or wealth management. I feel like I would learn a lot more at the startup because I could see how the business was grown, launched, and developed thereafter. I would be able to touch more aspects of the business because it is new. I also see being the first junior level employee on the team as a large advantage and this would motivate me to work extremely hard. My biggest concern is the paycut and living on this amount in NYC. Granted my rent is not nearly as expensive as others.

So:

1) Do you think the risk is worth it? Could it be a big pay off, both financially and intellectually, years down the road to make this decision. Like I said, I have no intention on staying in Ops and would eventually try to leave.

2) How hard is it to move to sales at a BB. I know trading and IB are extremely hard, but they are much more analytical. Ideally, I'd love to do sales one way or another if I enjoyed the product. That's why I want to move to sales at this new startup.

3) If I were to gain sales experience at this startup after 4 or 5 years could I translate that back into BB sales or PWM. Basically, would it be easier to get a job this way than through networking out of operations. Does successful sales experience translate across different industries when looking for a new job?

I appreciate any feedback and I figured I'd ask because many of you are very experienced professionals with a lot of knowledge about start-ups, and finance.

Thanks a lot to anyone who answers. You have all kept me entertained and informed for the past year and a half and now I'm asking for a little advice/guidance.

ps: the stereotype about square toed shoes in operations is too true.