I’ve had something where I got a verbal offer from a BB but they need to circle back to headquarters to confirm bandwidth budget and timing, and they couldn’t get it so the offer didn’t go through.

Actually, this happened twice - two different BBs.

Though, have never had something where they gave a verbal indication and then went with someone else. That seems pretty unprofessional.

 

Same thing happened to me a while back. Got a verbal offer and they said that their budget would be finalized within a week. Two weeks passed, I reached back out to them....budget was still in the works and they asked me to be patient. Reached back out a few weeks later and they never even responded....ultimately, no one was hired for the position.

There really is no lesson here for the new recruit; it just sucks and you can't do anything about it. The real lesson should be for hiring teams. Don't say anything until you're sure this is the candidate or you have the budget. No need to even mention the budget if it isn't finalized.

 

What you described was very similar to one of the times that it happened to me. And what sucked was it was an incredibly arduous process - had multiple interviews/calls with MDs/EDs/Group heads in multiple regions (NY, HK, London, etc) and had a case presentation as well.

What ultimately happened was the hiring MD (after 1-2+ months after the verbal offer) telling me it’s probably not going to happen because of group restructuring. He was actually a really nice guy, but the process was a huge time commitment with no payoff. That said, it was probably for the best (getting hired into a group going through restructuring is risky business).

The other one was for a more standard IB role. Was told by HR everyone liked me and want to make the offer, but they need to circle back with HQ. Then week later told me they couldn’t get the go-ahead and hired no one.

My guess is, in situations like this, the group themselves didn’t get clarity on hiring (or are also given more positive signals than in actuality), but know they need to do it ahead of time given need and time commitment to find good people. And then when they still haven’t gotten clarity but found someone, they want to hang on to them and hope they can bridge the gap on budget with HQ. It definitely sucks for the candidate, but I suppose at times it can turn out well.

 

Interesting scenario and I'm sorry that happened to you. I just finished a hiring cycle not all that long ago and I would be all kinds of disappointed if that had happened to me.

Will you consider naming the BB?

 

First suspicious sign would have been them saying it would take a week to get the documents together. For a bulge bracket, it takes hours....

Why get your own coffee when you can get an intern to do it for you?
 

That's really shitty dude. Just try and take it as a lesson and to never treat anything as a sure thing from employers unless its on a contract. Somewhat similar situation to you, I have a friend who signed an SA offer at a slightly lowered tier BB over a mid-tier BB because he was verbally guaranteed M&A (it would be coverage at the mid-tier BB). Ended up being shafted into DCM unfortunately

The banks and recruiters do not give a **** about you, treat whatever they say with a grain of salt until its in writing

 

Hic quam animi quis quod reiciendis sit. Velit voluptates minima et delectus voluptatem libero quibusdam aspernatur. Facilis et modi cumque et beatae non quo. Doloremque ea facere alias adipisci quia quisquam. Et aut voluptas et.

Perspiciatis aspernatur sed modi pariatur ut magni fuga. Et odit vero autem odit impedit ipsa.

Aut eligendi illum facilis tempore dolore dignissimos non dolorem. Quo qui eum voluptas aut enim asperiores. Repudiandae asperiores voluptatum officiis exercitationem aut ad expedita est. Aliquid cumque quia nihil est. Consequatur sint dolorem eos aut eligendi et doloribus.

Explicabo laboriosam et ex et pariatur dolores sint. Sit voluptas voluptas sit quo possimus nam veritatis provident.

 

Et quia libero optio dolores. At qui voluptas in maxime. Aperiam officia deserunt atque qui dolor voluptatem ipsam. At voluptatem et laboriosam illo. Voluptates praesentium iste voluptatem reprehenderit beatae sed. Ut veritatis modi voluptates veritatis est. Ea exercitationem veniam voluptatem neque et.

Voluptas est aut est pariatur necessitatibus. Laboriosam ullam dolorum laudantium fugit. Molestias aspernatur sed impedit culpa tenetur hic illum non.

Dolore nam cum fugiat sint. Quaerat similique quidem excepturi. Quos minus dolores illum eum sit commodi. Quas beatae aliquid vero ipsam. Eum odio aut laudantium natus quo dignissimos odio. Similique atque commodi est sint aut.

Career Advancement Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. New 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (205) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (145) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”