In commodities, is trading still the ultimate pathway?
I've been in my physical commodity for 5 - 7 years now. Have basically rotated between different scheduling jobs, risk desks, and some decent bit of commercial/trading exposure.
My company's trading strategy is mainly a relationships and logistics business, with market risk and pricing baked in. Relationships are definitely the secret sauce tho.
The feedback I've been given is that I've always been very proficient at all the technical stuff, but a bit quiet and reserved to be a physical trader. That strengths/weaknesses assessment is true, but I still am 100% convinced I could succeed as a trader despite this. But it can be hard to battle perceptions and my company already has a bunch of much older traders anyways.
I have an opportunity for a logistics & risk management role, but it's not trading. This position does have a great pay package and so on, but again, it's not trading, and strays me even further from that pathway.
Should I still have a trading or bust attitude?
Maybe it's my own ego, but I just feel like I should be in a trading role at this point. There's no secret that everything else is still a support role. And trading is just a way better and more fun role if it's going well and you're on a good desk.
The only really hard obstacle is that people who have a solid trading role never really leave. Even at integrated companies, it can be common where people more-or-less stay in that role 10+ years
How is the comp structured for the logistics/risk role?
Is there an opportunity to get into hedging/non-phys trading that may require less commercial/relationship building?
If relationships are the name of the game at this shop, seems like you're SOL staying and aiming for a trading seat if the narrative is that you won't be successful doing so.
yeah, I'm more so thinking if I should really try to lateral for another commercial job elsewhere. And yeah, I could get into the hedging piece of it, but again, that's not necessarily a 'growing' segment of our business.
I would grade myself as a B at relationship building - I'm very good talking 1 on 1, and comfortable cold calling till I'm blue in the face, but I'm not really ever someone that will be working the room at a big industry mixer.
The comp is a good base salary (more so than trading), and a discretionary bonus. Total comp is around $180-200K which isn't mind blowing, but pretty solid for this type of job and my stage of career
My ideal situation would be to one day have a commercial job where I'm running and optimizing an asset base.
I’ve been in the space as a non trader for a decade plus. Have come to terms with the fact that I’ll never be a trader and I’d prefer it that way because my skill set/personality/interests are different.
What does the ultimate pathway mean for you? If it’s money, then I would say the vast majority of the best paid roles in the industry are still traders. (Though you could definitely still get into 7 figures as an exceptional analyst and there’s a couple firms out there that really reward good schedulers for example). If it’s something that gels with your interests- it might not necessarily be the case. If you’re very introverted or dislike taking risks or can’t find conviction with imperfect information- then probably not the best fit. If you want a relaxed, predictable schedule, trading is probably not it. At the end of the day, the majority of people in the industry are not traders. A lot of them do just fine money wise and have something to do that they are good at and enjoy.
My pathway would be to have a well paying and enjoyable job. I say enjoyable because my current job/path still has way too much menial crap; spending time solving dumb problems. The traders are mostly exempt from the administrative stuff, and I just feel like the good parts are just generally better. Also, traders just have way higher social standing in my industry and it's a bit of a boys club.
I think you are absolutely correct about "finding conviction with imperfect information" to be the biggest stumbling block for me. I find that a lot of the traders I work with are often basically just guessing where the market will go, or chasing deals that don't make any kind of economic sense. I think that making it seem like you always have a forward plan on how to make money, and selling that internally, is a very large part of the role (even if there is often bullshit mixed in there!)
It sounds like your current company doesn't see you in a trading role and won't promote you into one even if one became available. This role sounds like a definite step away from the trading desk. If you are dead set on trading, I would lateral to another company in a commercial role. Ideally one where the traders are a bit more like you. This business takes all sorts and it sounds like you've only seen it done one way. There are many personalities that are successful, the thing that unifies them is the ability to make money for the company. That said, I would still accept this promotion and gain experience in a new role while I searched for other opportunities that may fit better with my long-term goals.
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