Finished FLDP, now what?
I finished a 2 year FLDP with one of the largest in Big Pharma that you've all heard of. I'm about 6 months in to my roll-off position and looking to jump ship Q1 2018.
I'm eyeing top of Tier 2 consulting and have started case prep. However, I wanted to take a step back for a moment to consider other opportunities before going all in on prep for this route.
I honestly am at a loss as to what a next step for me would be. What is typical for someone looking to take a next step after FLDP? I do not want to continue in FP&A which is where I'm at now. Honestly, nothing is very lucrative to me at my company (or in corporate fin at the analyst/ senior analyst level) unless I get some kind of consulting experience, an MBA, and then re-enter in an actual strategy-focused role...
I'd like to steer my career in a way that would allow me to get into more entrepreneurial territories where I'd have more of an impact day-to-day. I'm thinking of going to consulting so I have more exposure to business cases across many different industries to build out my toolkit.
Are investment-oriented roles out of the question or extremely difficult to land pre-MBA at this point for me? I do have a few connections in my network to a PE fund here in the city (I'm in NYC) but fear I'm just not in that "world" enough to be competitive.
Anyone have any thoughts or have been in my shoes in the past?
beginswithavowel, hey, look at the bright side, at least you didn't get a ton of monkey shit thrown at you...here is my best guess on threads that might be helpful:
More suggestions...
Hope that helps.
Thanks WSO Monkey Bot!
I "graduated" from a Pharma FLDP based in NJ and applied to various Corporate Strategy jobs and landed a CS gig with large company in the ~same location/different industry and now I'm looking to go to B School to switch over to MBB consulting. Honestly, I hated the FLDP experience - it was mind numbingly boring and there wasn't a lot of talent there/insanely difficult to move up/absurd levels of politics. We might have even worked for the same company.
I guess you could try to switch over to a Tier 2 consulting firm - MBB would be very difficult.
Anyways, my advice to you is to do something "new" for the next 2 years and get into a MBA business schools">M7 MBA program.
Maybe we've walked the same halls! Low probability though as the program I was in was fairly new to the company as a result of an acquisition that ignited it, but the depiction of your FLDP experience is very similar to mine.
Yeah, no desire to kill myself to get into MBB pre-MBA. I am planning to try for MBA business schools">M7 but that's going to be 2-4 years down the road. Like you've said, I'm trying to find that "something new" to bridge the gap. Thought T2 consulting would be a logical choice for me as some graduates of my program have moved over to that.
Do you enjoy the CS gig? Did you feel that your FLDP experience prepared you well for the interview process for CS? Did you look for opportunities mainly in NJ or did you include NYC in your search as well?
Thanks!
Interested in your path. PMed.
CS is much better than FLDP, the work is much more interesting, and I get to work on projects with MBB consultants. My FLDP experience certainly did not prepare me for this job - I "self prepared." Spent countless hours reading forums, practising case interviews, reading 10Ks (Being prepared!) and applied to a LOT of jobs (in NJ/NYC/Philly) until I got lucky and got an interview. I killed the interview - was very well prepared for cases, and read up extensively about the industry.
The "Big Pharma" brand definitely helped though. I guess you know which company I worked in, but their products are very well known by patients and consumers alike.
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I can neither confirm or deny that. Lol.
CFLateral What has your Corp Fin career path been like?
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I feel the same way. I would almost call it a waste of 2 years. Did you move out west or stay in the east?
I'm on the West coast now.
I can argue that for me it was great as I got to work outside of the county for a rotation and also assisted move to NYC from the Midwest so definitely a better experience vs some other fldps that my friends back in the Midwest had. But yeah, rotations were pretty dumb and accounting heavy which I absolutely despise.
I was thinking about a move over to the Goog here in the city but only saw availability for FP&A which I don't want to get stuck in. Are there good opportunities outside of this function for a business undergrad pre-MBA. I'm thinking not.
When you say function, are you referring to corporate finance or just FP&A?
Coming out of FLDP, I've normally seens pre-MBA moves to other parts of a finance department or a department that looks, smells, and feels like finance (analytics, forecasting, etc.).
FP&A is not the only finance function you can be in pre-MBA, but it is the most common. I'd encourage you to keep looking. A lot of roles where you are close to product lines and product managers will give you good exposure to strategy and decision making that can be spoken to well in applications. Even in FP&A, there are schools that really respect time taken in that function to know how the financial sausage is made...can always be spun as "FP&A was where I chose to work because it gave me foundational knowledge of how XYZ company and XYZ industry funds itself and makes money....and with an MBA from your MBA business schools">M7 school, I will combine both into being an entrepreneurial pro that will close my funding rounds before they even open!"
Remember, it's a marathon, not a sprint.
p.s. - we send a LOT of FP&A folks to Fuqua / Keenan-Flagler / Stern / Darden.
I would suggest first speaking with connections in both what you consider your "world" and outside of your world. This might help you get a feel for how your experiences stack up with others your age and help you identify particular projects to focus on in your CV and interviews. I am currently on the back end of an FLDP and know examples of work I will never share with anyone and work I am willing to brag a little about. These roles are incredibly varied so you'll have some leeway in selling yourself and selling particular aspects of your experience!
Finishing FLDP Soon, Next Best Opportunity? (Originally Posted: 01/31/2018)
About me: * FLDP analyst at an MM/F500 financial services firm in the U.S. Rotated through corporate banking, SEC reporting group (think 10-Q, 10-K reporting), equity research, and product strategy group. * Previously interned at a boutique VC firm and interned in Ops at a BB.
What do you think are some good paths I should pursue from here? I want whatever with the most opportunities/pay.
Equity research might be out of the questions due to uncertainty from MiFID II.
Here are some paths I'm thinking: A) Staying with the firm and pursue a strategy position, hopefully fast track to management B) Management consulting for financial services clients (though not sure how consulting firms would view a candidate coming from a FLDP) C) Pursue MSF at Vanderbilt, then go into IB
Thanks fellow monkeys
That's good advice and I will start doing this in other industries. But I just don't think I have the pedigree for this connection I have to PE or they would expect me to come in with working knowledge on things I never deal with day to day. You know?
Hi supamoney, just because I'm a bot doesn't mean I don't have feelings...I'm hoping these links are helpful. If not, feel free to throw monkey shit at me...
Maybe one of our professional members will share their wisdom: andyhkt liewwanpang formerproptrader
I hope those threads give you a bit more insight.
bump
Est ut sed vero et. Dolore repellat saepe unde.
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