Career FLDP Advice for Analyst Starting Next Month
Hi guys,
I am a recent graduate from a non-target school with a finance and technology background and finished magna cum laude. I have been reading through the forums for and they have been very helpful. I am starting as an 1st year analyst in a F25 in a month and received a high level reporting rotation. I would on the team responsible for creating IR materials and SEC filings for one of the largest business units at the company.
I have also started studying for Level 1 of the and I hope to pass in June. I am not trying to stay in corporate finance long term for many reasons and am wondering what you guys recommend for career progression. Would a graduate of a FLDP and CFA charter holder (best case scenario in two years) afford me decent exit opportunities into research or startups? Is it recommended to stay for the duration of the program?
Thanks
Why not give your FLDP company a real chance?
Would love to hear some advice too. I am in the same situation.
Best Advice for a F100 FLDP? (Originally Posted: 05/29/2013)
I am a new graduate about to start a F100ish A&D FLDP in July. What would your best advice be for someone like me wanting to move into corporate strategy/corporate development long term?
I have seen on here that a lot of the more senior people in strat/dev came from MBB, would it be a feasible/easier route to go FLDP->MBB->MBA->Strategy or try to work my way up through the ranks after the FLDP?
I am also interested in any advice or thoughts on lateraling to a strategy/development group in another industry, especially Disney/Google/Microsoft.
My company does have a rotation in both strategy and development that I will definitely be trying to network into while still in the program and I am currently studying for GMAT.
harvardgrad08 networked into his CorpDev group. Just talked to the guys in dev while he was doing his rotations.
You probably won't be able to lateral into MBB after an FLDP program. I'm going to say your best bet is do the FLDP, kill it for another couple of years, go get your MBA, and then look for CorpStrat or MBB-type job.
Ditto to what D M said. Its nearly impossible to lateral into MBB. Most of their talent is from OCR, since they liek to develop their talent within, rather than take on a lot of experiences/lateral hires. Pretty sure BCG took roughly 15 people total nationwide last year as lateral hires.
Your best bet is to work your ranks, but can take a long time. Fasted might be to get your MBA, go MBB, and use that to expedite your options into CorpStrat/CorpDev
Thanks for the feedback
I read here on WSO that learning to write macros would be a great way to get noticed once I start the FLDP.
Any other tips to get noticed relative quickly besides networking/working hard?
A purple suit and a pimp cane
That'll go perfect with the top hat I just bought for the occasion
FYI, you may be able to lateral to an MBB office outside of the US - out here recruiting seems to be a little more fluid, since the market for talent is a little more... disorderly.
Advice – First FLDP rotation in corporate treasury (Originally Posted: 05/26/2014)
I just graduated with a degree in finance and a minor in accounting. I start my first rotation of a finance development program at a top Fortune 500 oil & gas company in Corporate Treasury – Credit and Receivables Management.
I would love to know any advice from members experienced in this department or function of corporate finance.
Thanks in advance!
Marked as I am interested in fldps in this industry.
Do your job well. Just make sure you are humble and treat everybody with respect. Avoid office politics and don't knock up a random chick.
Solid advice for any job, but I am looking more for department-specific tips or advice related to credit and receivables management.
Any suggestions as to the projects or tasks I might be working on, types of analysis, skills useful in this job area... things like that.
Fancy name for managing accounts receivables. You'll be looking at large amounts of data, organizing into different buckets and helping management with other analysis. If its O&G, I'm assuming you won't have a huge customer base and most of your payment terms will already be established, so I don't think you'll do too much underwriting. This is actually a good rotation because it will teach you how important it is to manage receivables (cash flow) and how to analyze those accounts. I doubt they'll have you dealing with the customers themselves, unless you're at a specific plant that handles its own AR.
I believe that "Credit and Receivables Management" department is the credit control division. The clients will be either gas stations or other corporations. Your job will probably involve credit analysis of those clients. You may also have to communicate with the sales team to solve any issues related to customer accounts. Congrats for the job!
@"Seeker" and @"CorpFinanceGuy" thank you for the additional information. I am looking forward to getting to understand the cash cycle of the company and think that this is going to be a good basic foundation for my future rotations. I appreciate the comments
Bumping this. I am also in a very similar position.
Last year I graduated a 3yr FLDP that is mentioned on this forum from time to time as a respected program. A few pieces of advice:
-The bar really is higher for you. As an FLDP most managers expect a lot more from you, and they expect you to be an out-going type-A person. If you're more quiet, more analytical, and mostly speak when you have something to say (like yours truly) you might not get the high marks you think you deserve. Don't let this get you down.
-Try to determine as quickly as possible if you like the company and the industry. If you do, structure your rotations so that you learn as much as possible about the company and industry, and so that you get the most exposure to leadership and the core of the business. If you don't like the company or industry, as was my case, then a great strategy is to keep your rotations general. Start thinking of what kind of company you want to go to next, and what experiences they would be looking for.
-If you want high ratings (VERY important if you intend to stay with the company for a while) then keep your ear to the ground about who the managers are who give high ratings. This might be the most important piece of advice. A rotation that is a great experience but your manager has high standards and gives you a "meets" rating wont get you nearly as far as a rotation where the manager gives out "far exceeds" to any FLDP who graces their doorstep. I'm talking higher raises, being selected for trips, having the FLDP leadership move mountains for you to get you rotations/jobs you want. On the flip side, if you don't intend to stay, then look for the best resume role.
-Keep an eye on what you want to do after the program, whether it's jump ship, get an MBA, or land some amazing off-program role. Use your time on the program to ready yourself for that, whether its structuring rotations to make yourself attractive to other companies, studying for the GMAT, or networking your way into that target off-program role. The big point is to not turn into one of those FLDPs who wakes up 10 years later and is still an SFA. I've seen tons of examples of FLDPs who go through the program, get their first promo ahead of their peers, and then kind of fizzle out or get pigeon-holed. I think this happens because they relied on the program too much to steer their career, and once the program ended they didn't know what to do. Keep your eyes open and always have half a mind 2ish years in advance.
Let me know of any questions!
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