[HELP] Overplayed Hand at Office Politics

Longtime lurker here. 

AN2 at a non-rotational bank at a not very sexy desk (think repo/financing/platform/e-sales). 

The job is great but not that intellectually challenging, and I found myself getting bored around a year in. I had strong reviews and good relationship with my boss, and decided to open up with him/her about my desire to do something a bit closer to traditional FICC sales. 

I had made a strong impression to the desk I wanted to join, and boss was nice enough to goes out on a limb and vouch for me. Things were looking up and I was preparing for the move. 

Then, Partner-level manager asked a Aso/VP on my team for their opinion on me. This is where things went south. They gave a completely conflicting account to my boss, describing me as lacking attention to detail, repeating the same mistakes, and not being a trustworthy teammate. I (and my boss) never really saw eye to eye with this person, but their comments were totally out of left field. 

Things deteriorated quickly.

Standing with new team was basically ruined. As you can imagine, my boss was put in a tough position for supporting me. All of a sudden, I was being criticized for 'lack of focus and commitment' and team attitude towards me changed 180 degrees. 

Seeing the writing on the walls, I started speaking with HHs and went to an interview. I tried to keep things on the DL but on a trading floor it's pretty easy to tell when someone starts acting differently.

Things only got worse from here. I will spare you the details but looks like now I will be moved to BO/MO role. Fuck. 

I know that BO/MO is better than being canned, and less hours/stress means more time I could put towards getting the CFA/studying markets/prepping for MBA.

I am trying to keep in mind that this is a blip on a 30+ year career, and I am lucky to have joined this biz straight out of undergrad (<25) so hopefully I have time build back but I would be lying if I said I was 100% ok. 

Any and all advice appreciated. 

Region
3 Comments
 

Et ab tempore eos id rerum minima. Numquam odit earum magni vel. Ipsam illum molestias ipsam. Iste dignissimos impedit molestiae iste sit nulla tempora saepe.

Distinctio sequi facilis eum est earum nihil aspernatur. Quia quas sit est vero nulla. Necessitatibus numquam enim quisquam. Sapiente sed corrupti possimus deserunt qui delectus sunt eos.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (67) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”