How important is it that you like your desk?

Assume you get a summer analyst offer for desk X at BB Y. Now you have always dreamed of working on desk X and BB Y is the best at it. Unfortunately, after spending some time at BB Y, you realise you don't like the team there and would probably hate having to work with them. But then again, you have no desire to work on any other desk and BB Y is creaming it on desk X, leads X in market share, has topped X for the last two years and has been a top 2 player in X for the last decade. BB Y is a top 3 BB (GS/MS/JPM).

If you had a choice between SA desk X at BB Y, or SA S&T rotational at BB Z (also a top 3 BB, but sucks at desk X), which would you choose and why? Would you give BB Y a chance and hope the team there grows on you and you adjust/like them eventually, or not take the chance and go elsewhere, giving up your dream of trading X in the process?

6 Comments
 
Grover ClevelandI'd probably stick it out on the original desk. People on your desk or you are probably going to move to a different bank/other opportunity in a couple of years anyway. I always thought that one of the benefits of the trading floor is that you are near so many people that your own group doesn't matter as much as in IBD.

Asking because someone might have been in the same situation in the past.

 

"Fit" is usually a two-way street - if you don't like them, chances are they don't or won't like you either, which might have implications for whether or not you get a return offer..

 
Best Response

I completely disagree with grover. In S&T, enjoying the people on your desk likely matters more in S&T than anywhere else because you literally sit next to them for 12-14 hours a day every day during the week. Loving the product is important, don't get me wrong, but enjoying the people is as important if not more important in my opinion. I would take the other offer, knowing that the bank might not be as strong in product X, because if it turns out you enjoy the desk for that product, even though they might not be technically as good at it, it will be absolutely worth it in the long run. Furthermore, if you decide afterwards that the other place is where you'd like to be, regardless of whether you enjoy the people or not, it will likely still be a possibility, whereas on the other side, if you do not take the chance you will not be able to compare different firms and desks. That's my opinion, feel free to pm me any time.

Jack: They’re all former investment bankers who were laid off from that economic crisis that Nancy Pelosi caused. They have zero real world skills, but God they work hard. -30 Rock
 

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