Corporate finance career tracks
Hey, I am trying to learn more about internal corporate finance career tracks (as in doing finance work for a company that is also my employer). Is there any online/ print information information that you guys can direct me to as a potential career changer?
Undergrad in finance/ economics
mortgage industry for 6 years, 4.5 of those years in sales
looking at getting MBA in corporate finance. Also considering money management, accounting (potentially sub MS taxation or MS accountancy for MBA?)
So anyway, looking for information on corporate finance in the capacity of work for a fortune 500 or midcap company, possibly healthcare company as I would imagine that will be a hot field. I am also somewhat interested in corporate finance for small alternative energy company. The main focus is to learn about a career in corporate finance, doesn't necessarily have to be (aformentioned) industry specific.
Thanks so much guys. This is a great forum; I have read a ton of posts.
I recommend looking at companies like Proctor and Gamble and IBM. Check out their corporate finance careers, since these are the big players who have well established programs. Both companies use rotational-like programs, where junior level entrants will stay in one position for 12-24 months and then rotate to another business area (i.e. from a cost forecaster to brand management role to corporate treasury). This allows employees to broaden their experiences and bring something fresh to every position (while also adding value from what they've experienced in prior roles). Mid level managers will rotate positions typically once every 24-60 months. It varies for senior level managers.
Smaller companies obviously won't have a structure like this, but it's a great place to start researching.
Thank you for the info; I will keep that in mind for future employment. However, I don't see a ton of information on their websites. Perhaps they are not doing much recruiting for these roles currently. I do see that IBM has a posting for finance summer intern & even some Co-ops in finance that mentions roles in financial planning, accounting, pricing, business controls, internal audit, treasury, tax, business development (acquisitions/ divestures) and global financing. They say that these roles prefer masters degree in accounting/ finance. Slightly off topic question- does that terminology include an MBA with a concentration in one of those areas or they are really referring to the MS in accounting and the MS in finance.
Let me rephrase my original question a bit. What tend to be the more important/ less important skill sets in each of the corporate finance functions (financial planning, pricing, business controls, internal audit, treasury, tax, business development, revenue forecast, SEC reporting, and global financing)? Which ones are the most analytical skill demanding? How about communication skill demanding and leadership? I heard, from someone that used to work in finance, that the financial planning and analysis tends to be more entry level than the others-- is this true? What would be some career prgressions within these areas in terms of moving up in complexity/ responsibility/ income?
I am getting a MS in Finance and there are a lot of people in my class interested in corporate finance. Honestly, you would be better off with a MACC. MSF is too financial market and financial modeling focused to really help you within a corporate finance career path.
that is a really interesting post, AnthonyD1982. I would have never guessed that a masters in accountancy would be the right choice for corporate finance. Thank you for your insight. What do others think of this? Would the MS in accountancy be useful for a money management job? I was also considering money mgmt; I think I stated this in my original post.
Well let me maybe back track a little. Not saying a MSF would be useless. If you are looking to do Corp Fin or Money Management then maybe a MSF would be a good choice. I just know for the program I am in a large majority of the classes would not be directly attributed towards f500 corporate finance. I feel like a CPA or MS in Accounting would be a better fit. Thing is a MAC isn't really going to prepare you for money mgmt.
I just made a post over in the other forum about my interest in money management. We will see what people over there say. An undergraduate degree in economics and finance and the MS in accounting followed by CPA, doesn't seem like it would be that bad for money management (I am not saying that in actual practice a person with such a background would get hired but it just seems like this kind of a background could come in handy with some investment decisions). Even just a random liberal arts undergrad with CPA doesn't seem like it would be that bad because all of the companies (even governments) that the money is invested in, have some form of accounting statements & that relates to how sound the investment is. For example, if you were a CPA looking at good ol Enron, you could have made a killing by shorting the stock- if the fund doesnt let you- even better- bet your own house on it. The only investments that I can think of that do not fit into this category would be residential mortgages and some commercial paper (ie. the stuff that backs funding of hollywood movies).
Anyway, let me know what you guys think about the corporate finance posts that I made earlier about some of the real specific nuances of corporate finance.
I have a question. CPA in Corporate Finance usually means becoming a controller/CFO right? I heard that for those roles, you usually have to start in public accounting (preferably Big 4) and then quit after 2-5 years after being headhunted. Therefore, I was wondering if its still possible to go the controller/CFO route by starting in a company right away instead of doing a whole lot of bitch work at an accounting firm, especially if you know you want to go the managerial accounting instead of the public accounting route.
So I guess a better way of putting it is which path looks better?
A: undergrad => Masters in Accounting => CPA (maybe CMA as well?) => public accounting (not just Big 4, but any public accounting) => corporate work (hopefully as controller/CFO or damn close)
B: undergrad => Masters in Accounting => CPA (maybe CMA as well?) => industry => working your way up to CFO/Controller
C: undergrad => Industry =>working way up to either CFO/Controller or other high level finance positions such as VP of finance, etc. => MBA => continuing up the ladder.
I am by no means an industry expert, I am not even in the field. However, here is some data that I have found in my research. Here is info for the 2008 graduates. After graduating, here is what accounting students did.. After BA: 35% public accounting 21% unknown 20% business/ industry 18% graduate school- I think that this means taht they go to graduate school. 3% govt 1% non-profit
2% unknown
After MA: 74% public accounting 7% unknown 11% business/ industry 2% graduate school- I think that this means taht they go to graduate school. 3% govt 1% non-profit 2% unknown
I hope that is at least a bit helpful to you :)
Anyone Know Some Good Sites For Corporate Finance/Accounting Stuff? (Originally Posted: 08/27/2010)
Hi,
I'm just wondering if anyone knows any good blogs about accounting and corporate finance issues or about business development in general? I know that this area probably isn't all your guys' specialty, but any suggestions would be great. Otherwise, are there good economics blogs (preferably one that is more liberal and one that is more conservative so I can see both sides of the issue)?
thanks
Accounting and corporate finance issues (in general)? Business development (in general)?
Uh, I would suggest you read the WSJ, FT, and Economist first. There is so much print media that's available ....
http://www.qfinance.com/blogs
Got loads of accounting / corporate finance stuff.
Corporate finance at BB (Originally Posted: 06/07/2013)
What do people think of this working as a full time analyst? What are the exit opportunities like?
also interested
What exactly is Corp. Finance at a BB?
Some people posted info here a few days ago:
http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/corporate-finance-ma-or-fig
Could possibly mean this too?
http://graduate.barclayscapital.com/business-areas/finance
Like a F500 program within a BB
Corporate Finance - 3.45 econ major from WUSTL (Originally Posted: 08/15/2011)
So I wasn't exactly sure where to put this but I figured this would be as good a place as any.
Basically i'm a 3.45 econ major from WUSTL going into his senior year. I'm worried about striking out from investment banking as i've only done a little bit of networking up to this point. I want to hedge my bets and focus on getting applications into some good corporate finance positions as well. I'm wondering if anyone has recommendations/a list of the best corporate finance positions for new graduates that might offer me a good chance of eventually getting into a top mba or lateraling into a good banking position later on. I know GE FMP is well regarded, but that's about all I know. Thanks for the help in advance.
use the search function. theres a compiled list of FLDP's out there
Ya, I should have done that first. I found the list. But I still wonder if anyone has opinions on which programs are better/more likely to lead to a top MBA or a lateral to IB.
Interested in working in Corporate Finance (Originally Posted: 02/20/2015)
Hi everyone,
I am starting my career and am in need of a bit of advice. I'm interested in working on the buy-side and becoming a financial analyst in investment or corporate finance. My long-term goal is to be promoted as a portfolio manager. I currently have my undergrad degree in Int'l Economics and plan on returning to school to achieve my MBA in Finance in 3-5 years (once I have a related job).
I currently do not have any finance-related work experience and am three years out of undergrad. What position should I be aiming for that aligns with my career goals? I currently am searching for jobs in the SF Bay area, but should I broaden my scope? I realize I'm a few years behind, but am not discouraged. Any info on the subject is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
what have you been doing for 3 years since you graduated
Corporate Finance - Coming from an accounting background (Originally Posted: 07/20/2009)
Hello,
I'm coming from an accounting background and have a friend's friend who's in Corp Fin at BB. We are having drinks and I was curious as to his actual role. From general previous posts I understand the position isn't as coveted, and thus the salary follows. However, is the potential to make quite a bit there, or is it just supporting to IBD role? Anyone have insights on day to day duties (seems to be tied directly to creation of F/S I presume)? I'll be asking him basic Q's, but just wanted to see if anyone had insight prior, thanks.
If he's a friend then why are you hesitant on asking him questions and feel more comfortable asking a bunch of randoms online!
read again "friend's friend." never met the the guy so erring to safeside in case he goes into interview mode, despite the bar setting.
Hey PeterGriffin.. attention to detail is key my friend!!!
Newbie on corporate finance (Originally Posted: 06/03/2010)
Hi, I've been researching about corporate finance and am confused. Some people say that corporate finance and investment banking are absolutely two different things. But, some say that corporate finance is just a function under the umbrealla of investment banking. Can someone please clairfy? In addition, I was reading some job placement info for the graduates of X school, and it said that some people pursued a career in corporate finance with (analyst, treasury) written next to it. What kind of jobs are they?
corporate finance and investment banking are two different things. Corporate finance involves working for the finance department of a F500 corporate (or other large company). Your getting confused because some banks call their investment banking division, Corporate Finance Division. If some one says they work at a bank and tell you they are in the corporate finance division, it is a safe bet that they are doing investment banking. If someone says they do corporate finance and they don't work for a bank/they just say they do corporate finance, I would assume they work in the finance division of a large corporation.
The analyst treasury thing most likely means they got into the treasury area of the bank which handles a lot of cash transactions---it is not investment banking.
Thank you so much for explaining.
Busting Through to Corporate Finance, Help! (Originally Posted: 09/13/2011)
Recent Finance grad from a non-target school with GPA of 2.5. Currently working as a freight forwarder at a 3rd party logistics company. Looking to get into the corporate finance world as an analyst.
I understand that I a lot of things are working against me here and I'm way underqualified to get into any field of finance at this moment. However, I'm looking for any kind path I could take to bust through to the corporate finance side. Thinking of taking CFA exams or Grad School.
Some good input would really be appreciated! Thanks.
Master's program is your only hope really,
There are many ways... but this is how I would beat the monkey
Strategy: Recreate yourself. You are no longer the same kid who earned a 2.5 in undergrad...
1) Do great work at your current position. Get a stellar recommendation letter from your boss. 2) Then take some serious finance/math/stat/econ courses part-time in a local university and get A's 3) Show commitment ie. CFA level1 is a good idea; Also prep and ace the GMAT/GRE 4) Get into a reputable MBA program
All this should take about 2-4 years IMO. Building a rep is no short term operation I think with solid work experience, it shouldn't be too difficult to get into a top 15 MBA. And from there, opportunities to enter corporate finance will become very much available.
@YHP2009: Thanks a lot your input helped a lot. Now I know what to put my focus on and the direction to take.
Corporate Finance - Came from non-target when it comes to IB (Originally Posted: 10/24/2011)
I came from non-target when it comes to Investment Banking but how does UF stack up when it comes to corporate finance? I would prefer to work in a major city in the south (JACKSONVILLE, Tampa, Orlando, Atlanta).
I'm transferring to UF from a CC (yeah I know haha, but it was for family/personal reasons). I'll be starting my junior year there in three months and haven't had any internships yet. I'm going to focus on networking at career events and with alumni in the south to get some kind of internship along the lines of corporate finance or a Financial Analyst position that will be somewhat decent when trying to get my MBA.
Has anyone gone down this route or have any input?
UF does very well in the Southeast.
I do CF in FL.
I know DB Jacksonville office recruits at UF
I have heard they have few FO positions there and pay is pretty bad. Can anyone confirm this?
Still can't understand what exactly his unit does. I know they have "capital markets" and "corporate finance". Met some of the guys there. Think pay is 50-55k. It's suppose to be an "extension" -type operation from NYC and Houston. Rapidly expanding. More MO-type roles such as equity derivatives, commodities, analytics.. Recruit from about 7-8 schools solely in the southeast/Texas
Corporate Finance - Commercial banking did not fit (Originally Posted: 08/31/2009)
This is copied from my post in the other road forum. I'm just posting it here because no one ever reads that forum anymore. But anyways, if you have any info about corporate finance, especially regarding the stuff I posted in that other thread, please let me know. Thanks:
Alright, so basically, commercial banking did not fit my needs, so I was wondering if anyone can tell me about corporate finance. Once again, I'm mostly considered about:
-How hard it is to break in as a non-target (THIS IS MY NUMBER ONE CONCERN)
-Can you make a good living (to me that's 150k after working for 10+ years)? What is the typical career path?
-What is the typical day like? Is there a good amount of quantitative work involved (I like math/working with numbers, so this is a plus not a minus)?
-Is there a lot of sales involved (I hate sales and suck at it)?
thanks, and sorry for all the threads, but google hasn't been helping me as much for these careers vs investment banking.
Do you even know what corporate finance is? It sounds like you haven't even started college by the questions you are asking.
lol ouch. I'm about to be a sophomore which is why I'm pretty ignorant about this stuff.
But, correct me if I'm wrong, Corp Finance is about raising capital for a corporation and managing the risks/assets/liabilities/etc. If you have a better description of what it is, I'd love to hear it since I'm pretty ignorant about CF as a whole, but knowing the definition won't really help me with my questions, since my questions ask more about what working in CF is like rather than general questions about CF.
You're on the right track. Corporate finance is a pretty broad term, but people often use it to refer to Investment Banking specifically (which involves raising capital for companies via debt or equity, as well as advising companies on deals such as M&A, restructurings, etc.)
Other careers in finance include Sales and Trading (S&T), Asset Management, Hedge Funds, Private Equity, etc. I suggest you get a book on finance careers or just read these forums a lot and you'll get a better idea.
As far as your questions go: 1) It is hard to break in from a non-target but not impossible if you start early, get good grades, build a strong resume, and most importantly network. 2) You can make a VERY good living (WELL over $150K in 10 years as long as you don't work in back office) 3) Typical day - there is none, and it depends which job in finance. 4) There is sales involved if you are a salesman (as in sales and trading).
I can't speak for the sales and trading/research aspects of investment banking but i just finished as a summer analyst in IBD (corporate finance) at a BB and will be returning next year after I graduate at the same firm (I got a ft offer and am going back..)
My answers to your questions... (for only IBD)- 1. It's definitely a lot harder from a non-target school than a target school but it's not impossible. I go to a non-target school and I ended up at a BB so it's definitely not impossible... definitely network a lot, talk to alumni from your school, get good grades, etc.
Agree with banker88
My typical day as a summer analyst in IBD.. get into work around 9 or 9:15, leave the office around 12 or 1am (on a good day). Towards the end of the summer, I was in the office until 2 or 3am every day and ended up having to pull 2 all-nighters. The hours and type of work you do in IBD are really unpredictable, it all depends on the dealflow. Generally at the lower levels in IBD, it's mostly all quantitative (you crunch and update a lot of numbers)
Practically no sales as an analyst in IBD, you work behind the scenes
wait, so even corporate finance is i-banking? I thought it was basically climbing the ladder within a corporation. I knew the two were related, but what am I confusing CF with? Can you tell me about the career I'm confusing CF with that, because that's what I intended this post to be about.
Sorry, the way I used corporate finance is in an investment banking way (sell-side). The summer analyst position I did was at a BB, in their investment banking division. Some people will refer to it as corporate finance (you help your clients (ie corporations) raise capital, etc) as opposed to the research/sales & trading divisions of ibanking.
I thought you were talking about corporate finance from the ibanking standpoint, not from a corporation standpoint.
Don't really know much about what you're interested in then, sorry..
op,
if you go into GS's website, click careers, click divisions, click "finance" you will see how it differentiates from strict IBD (they break levels down).. that's a good starting point and variates from firm to firm, smaller ones coupling departments together. my understanding is that they are more in house as opposed to client facing, hours are better than strict IBD, but still viewed as critical part of the firm.
well I'm not looking at the i-banking corporate finance. I'm more wondering about climbing the corporate ladder at a company (I thought that's what Corporate Finance was called)
Dude seriously get a vault guide, read through forums, read investment bank websites, and then come back.
Corporate finance means climbing the corporate ladder? You can work your way up in the company from any division. You can be a managing director in investment banking, operations, finance, etc.
You guys, I think he is asking about working in finance at a corporation (P&G, GE, Microsoft, Intel, etc.), not about corp fin advisory. Is this right accountingmonkey?
Pay no attention to bankonbanker's initial post. He is referring to the corporate finance function of an investment banking - essentially, what we on WSO generally refer to as "banking." I think you are referring to working in a finance dept of a fortune 500 company (home depot, GE). To answer 2 of your questions - 1) It isn't very hard to break into as a non target. In fact, its significantly easier than banking. 2) You can make good money. CFO's make millions all in. 10 years out (if not 5), you're pulling 6 figures. Although MBAs are often unnecessary for your career progression, i know that people coming out of MBA's pull $100K base. In corp fi, you can expect to make solid money on 50 hours a week. There is also the chance of rising very high within the company and really making some bank. If you want to know about the job at a junior level, go the career page of any large company and look for LDP or FLDP (leadership development program and financial leadership development program and). You generally do a 2-3 year rotation within different functions of corp fi, and eventually pick (or get placed in one) long term. The basic functions are financial planning and analysis (making capital budgeting decisions), treasury, capital raising and just tracking projects.
Thank you sir. This is exactly the type of thing I was looking for! Sorry everyone for all the confusion. Again, I'm new to all this, so I apologize for misleading you. I have a couple more (hopefully) quick questions for you guys:
If an MBA isn't required, then what advanced certification do you need for this line of work to move up? Does a CFA or CPA help?
What are the other senior positions besides CFO? I don't want to sound like I'm all about the money, but what is the typical career progression/compensation levels (trust me, I've done a search but can't find anything good)
Do you think a finance or accounting degree provides a better background for this stuff?
Haha @ all the fools trying to answer a TOTALLY different question.
OP, I know a couple of people working in the Corp. Fin. department (although the name varies from firm to firm) of 2 F500 companies. One of them comes from a total non-target while the other comes from a semi...so I guess it is easier to break into.
In terms of comp, both make about the same as me for base, but their bonus is minimal. Upward mobility is present so I'd think making 100K plus is reasonable in 10 years.
Someone already mentioned it, but the Corp Fin department is pretty diverse in terms of work, however, from what I know, there is a lot of quant involved. IMO, internal M&A (again, this name varies from firm to firm) is the most interesting, plus it gives a great skill set; probably harder to break into though.
No sales involved.
Again, all of this is from second-hand knowledge.
http://www.careers-in-finance.com/cf.htm
Might be a good resource. Can't speak to the reliability or usefulness however.
Yeah I saw that while googling stuff. Didn't seem that accurate after comparing what it said about other positions. Plus, it never mentioned how hard it is to break in and whatnot.
CFA doesn’t help – corp fi work (except for treasury and perhaps the M&A side) will not count for the experience requirement. Most corp fi people don’t have the designation and don’t really value it.
CPA is more useful for, especially for the financial reporting end of it. I don’t think it is required, but it would help. Finance and accounting are good majors. Finance is probably better, but accounting is nice because you get the acct credits needed for the CPA.
For better info, you should reach out to alumni that work in corp fi. Also research about the ldp’s to find out what they want.
Well, about finance vs accounting, here's the thing. I know that accounting is good to have because I can get some of the upper division credits, but I was thinking about sitting for a masters program anyway (mostly to complete the 150 hrs requirement if I want to sit for the CPA). That's why I was thinking that maybe I should broaden my horizons and get a finance degree take a decent amount of accounting still (perhaps enough to minor), but also take some quant classes, some econ, etc. Then, after my masters, I'll still have a good idea of accounting, plus I'll have some other skils. But you also mentioned that finance is probably better, so is there a reason why you say that?
So I was thinking about going one of these routes (btw, I'll probably end up getting a masters in accounting anyway):
I've done a bit of reading, and it seems that supposedly a lot of CFOs have a CPA (a lot of them don't even have an MBA!). Does anyone know why a CFO (a financial officer) would have an accounting designation? That seems odd to me.
Well, about finance vs accounting, here's the thing. I know that accounting is good to have because I can get some of the upper division credits, but I was thinking about sitting for a masters program anyway (mostly to complete the 150 hrs requirement if I want to sit for the CPA). That's why I was thinking that maybe I should broaden my horizons and get a finance degree take a decent amount of accounting still (perhaps enough to minor), but also take some quant classes, some econ, etc. Then, after my masters, I'll still have a good idea of accounting, plus I'll have some other skils. But you also mentioned that finance is probably better, so is there a reason why you say that?
So I was thinking about going one of these routes (btw, I'll probably end up getting a masters in accounting anyway):
I've done a bit of reading, and it seems that supposedly a lot of CFOs have a CPA (a lot of them don't even have an MBA!). Does anyone know why a CFO (a financial officer) would have an accounting designation? That seems odd to me.
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