My Dilemma
So out of the blue I got an interview and subsequently an offer from a VERY small merchant bank in Montreal, Canada. I would basically be an analyst on a deal team that would consist of 5 people. From asking around, the person running the firm has a great reputation with excellent contacts who had previously started another firm and sold it to one of the largest banks in Quebec. Is this a good experience, i.e. better than nothig? Will I be able to leverage say 2 years working for this firm while doing my CFA into a position at a more reputable investment bank in Canada? Any guidance would be appreciated.
If I were you, I would go for it. However, base your decisions on what your current experience is and what your future aims are. If you have already had experience as an anlyst, then don't go for the position since its time to move on. However, if you are just stepping in the industry then go for the job. The smaller firm might mean that your work load could be less (hopefully) which will give you a much better chance to study for CFA. Also, use your boss to get contacts in the indsutry and get better exposure.
Agree. What is your past experience? If this is a career change it could be a good stepping stone to a future job at a bigger bank. I say go for it.
I'm actually an accounting major. I did an internship at a Big 4 firm last summer and now realize that I could not stand the tedious, boring work that auditors do. I kind of fell into this offer.
Sorry to be a wet-blanket dude, but be prepared for the same tedious, boring work in i-banking, especially as an entry-level analyst. Read: churning out pages after pages of monotonous pitch books; standing in line at the copier centre, fighting to get your pitch books printed; helping the associates "beautify" their client presentation slides...and if you are really lucky, the associate/VP might allow you to build your very own valuation model, which will never see the light of the day
As for CFA...there is no way how I can see anyone in i-banking complete their level 2 and 3 (assuming they have done level 1 in college). Even at a small-medium sized i-bank, I suppose an average analyst would be expected to pump in at least 80 hours per week? You would be dog tired by the time you get home at 10pm every night...let alone study for the CFA. Any other comments from the senior analysts here?
Yup. Seems to me like us analysts just do all the grunt work... stuff that no one else likes to do. However, working at a smaller bank with small deal teams MAY mean that you get more substantial work than just formatting pitch books (I can say this at least for myself).
Honestly, auditing is the most boring job imaginable. The hours can be pretty bad for extremely low pay and the work is extremely unstimulating. Going over 200 invoices to test accounts receivable is about as low as you can go. Even the higher level people don't seem to do anything interesting. Pitch books is a step up.
I think invoices are not the lowest point. Have you tried doing SOX, it is boring, I just don't think it can get any worse. I know i don't want to be an auditor. At this point i am begging for an Excel sheet with numbers.
Sorry, double post
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