How to leave on good terms?
Hey all!
Currently, work for a SM hedge fund.
I'm in the process of receiving a few different offers from a couple of alternative asset management firms to make the step up from Analyst to PM. My current employer has no idea that I'm in conversations (I think everyone will be caught off guard) and I'm not sure how to exit in the best way given that my role is pretty multi-faceted and my leaving will definitely leave a void that won't soon be filled. I've been here for ~2 years, spent 2 years at another HF, and did one year in PE.
Reasons for leaving:
1) No clear path to PM at my current firm
2) Got stiffed hard on compensation even though I put up solid PnL
3) Desire to step up to the plate and manage risk
My employment contract has a 1 month notice period (which is fine - not sure they'll even want me to stay the whole 30 days), and a 4-month garden leave (although the firm I'm joining is not a competitor to my current fund, and I highly doubt my fund will enforce this/be able to enforce this).
What's the best way to leave gracefully without burning bridges? How can I frame my leaving in a political way to maintain some semblance of a good relationship with my current colleagues?
Thanks in advance.
You say your fund will be surprised when you leave so am I right in thinking that you (i) haven't expressed a desire to become a PM, and (ii) haven't expressed any complaints about comp? If you have complained about both then there wont be any real surprise if you leave to a job with a path to becoming a PM and better comp.
My advice is to keep everything factual and to the point. (i) Tell them you are leaving for an opportunity to manage money/take on risk and that it is a great opportunity for you to progress in your career and achieve the compensation you are looking for. (ii) Thank them for the opportunity to work with them and express gratitude for your time at the fund. (iii) Tell them that you are happy to work your notice period, or not, and will leave that decision up to them and that you are happy to help out in any capacity you can over the next few weeks with the handover.
If you don't want to disclose where you are going, just say that your new employer has asked you not to disclose anything until after they have communicated your decision to join to their internal stakeholders. You can always say that you will send over an email with your new contact details once you have started at your new shop. Whether or not you want to go down this path depends on the relationship you have with the key partners and how you think they will react.
Thanks, all great points. To answer your questions, 1) I have expressed my desire to become a PM and specifically asked what the path of progression looked like; I was met with very vague and generic replies, and was also told "there are no timelines here". 2) I didn't express any reservations about comp; I was thinking about leaving prior to my YE bonus.
I'm a fan of how you've outlined the appropriate response, and think this is perfect (so thanks). I'll err on the side on keeping things on the DL; I don't think my fund will do anything to prevent me from working for a competitor, but would rather not offer up any information that I don't need to disclose. The email over with new contact details is a good move and one that I'll probably do. Appreciate all the insight again.
Be careful with the non-compete. Just because you think you're not competing, doesn't mean they will share that assessment. And to state the obvious, they cannot tell whether your new fund is a competitor or not if you don't tell them where you're going.
In all honesty, I don't get this mistery of not telling people where you're going. It's unnecessary intrigue that is naturally going to put them on the defensive and lean towards enforcing the non-compete ("if you are not going to a competitor, why are you being so sketchy about telling us where you're headed?").
Otherwise I share the advice you were given above.. leave in good terms, but saying where you're going is IMHo a part of that.
You are overthinking this. Just tell them you got a better opportunity somewhere else and it aligns better with your career goals. Sometimes employers ask for feedback on what they could have done to retain you. That's the point where you can burn bridges, so be as diplomatic as you can be.
Employers (if they are competent) are always prepared for people to leave. If they need you to train someone, that's where your notice period will come in.
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