Career help - any input appreciated!

Hi guys, just needed some perspective on my current situation and options. I graduated in 2011 and started at BB Capital Markets - but gained some quality experience in complex debt instruments, TRS structures etc in VBA . I have an option of either sticking here, or going to another BB Quant asset allocation group. This BB brand is great and work is quant too, but it's in the Personal Wealth Management Division, which kind of takes some juice out of it. I would still enjoy it more (or so I think) than my current job, where it's very transaction oriented (plus we don't do any corporate modeling - an essential skill to transfer to PE/HF)

I also have been interviewing with IBD groups in for a lateral transfer

  • Recovery Management - Valuation - All bad loans, derivatives and structured finance transactions go here. The team values the position.

  • Industrials Investment Banking - Don't think I have much of a chance here, but had a first round call yesterday.

  • Derivatives Solutions - Within the Capital Markets Group, so not quantitative as it sounds. More marketing

  • Banking Book portfolio management - They hedge the bank's total credit risk using equities, FI and derivatives. Sounds interesting but I'm not sure if it is doing portfolio reconciliation as most of my job.

Let me know if you guys have an opinion.

11 Comments
 

Pursue the IBD coverage role. Network and follow up with people in Industrials, I know that one of their summers chose Greenhill over the return offer and another one was interviewing at a number of other banks.

Recovery Management sounds like the next closest thing in terms of the skill-set it would afford, and the others are irrelevant to your goals (as you recognize).

I am permanently behind on PMs, it's not personal.
 

Thanks, I'm really interested in the job and the guys I interviewed were also very smart - a bunch of Phds / Masters in quantitative fields from top schools. The PWM guys are totally different in profile. The work is really interesting (MATLAB modeling + biotchwork + researching asset classes / portfolio optimization techniques) as well and I have a rather strong quantitative background (Econometrics, Probability theory, MATLAB/R, Financial Engineering etc). My only concern is that I would get the PWM label. Let's say if, like most of us I also want to end up on the buyside, I'm curious what's the best option right now.

Here's a few of potential paths I was contemplating:

  1. Quant Asset Allocation (2years)--> Masters in Financial Engineering --> FT Quant Job (IB or HF)
  2. Citi IBD --> B-School --> PE
  3. Recovery Management --> B School --> PE
  4. Stick around at Citi Real Estate Finance --> B school --> Other options

I'd like to add that I definitely have a bias towards quant finance over corp finance, but ultimately the goal is to make the $, have reasonable hours, the usual. Any thoughts are really appreciated.

 
Best Response

Ok, so the job you want is in the PWM division, but it's definitely not a sales role. I know two people who did a job similar to that who moved on to hedge funds after 2-3 years. One was a hard core quant and left at the VP level and the other was an analyst level guy. I don't think it hurts your resume by being in PWM. You list it as Goldman Sachs, Quantitative Strategies Group (or whatever it's called). You don't need to list PWM. If the job is interesting and you can learn a lot, then take it. It doesn't really lead to a long-short type of fund, but certainly other types of quant oriented funds seem like reasonable exits.

 
SirTradesaLotOk, so the job you want is in the PWM division, but it's definitely not a sales role. I know two people who did a job similar to that who moved on to hedge funds after 2-3 years. One was a hard core quant and left at the VP level and the other was an analyst level guy. I don't think it hurts your resume by being in PWM. You list it as Goldman Sachs, Quantitative Strategies Group (or whatever it's called). You don't need to list PWM. If the job is interesting and you can learn a lot, then take it. It doesn't really lead to a long-short type of fund, but certainly other types of quant oriented funds seem like reasonable exits.

Thanks, that's really helpful to know. I'm still waiting to hear back from IBD, but I feel it would be a toss up between IBD and GS, if I get it that is. The people at the GS division are all Phds from top schools so I'm sure I'll get to learn a lot.

 

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