Going Fully Remote

I think I'm in the minority when I say I freakin' love WFH. Been a lot more focused / productive, am on the phone enough during the day that it's not lonely, and have enjoyed the time outside of NYC immensely. 

My firm is likely going back to the office in a couple months and was thinking about asking to go full remote (and come into the office like a week each month or something). We're a small team and I can operate fairly autonomously (Senior Associate, probably get bumped to VP in 12-15 months) so it wouldn't seem to make a big difference to anyone where I hang my hat.  

Curious if anyone has done the remote thing pre-Covid or had this conversation with their employer? I'm nervous to broach the subject...

 

I'm with you. But my view is that I could do 1-2 days /week in the office to sync up with people and get internal meetings done. Sort of like in strategy consulting, where people come to the office and sync up every Friday.  But for sure I'm much more productive skipping the commute and working in a quiet space, as opposed to being in the office. That said, I think it depends on what job you're doing. If you're doing analytical work, building modes, writing, doing PPT work, WFH may be much more efficient. If you're trading, likely being on a trading desk is better.

 

It will hurt you politically to be the odd man out doing WFH if everyone else returns to the office, even if you plan on popping in every once in a while. That 12 month promote to VP could now be 24 months, or you could risk being replaced in full. You are not (and no one really is) as valuable or irreplaceable as you might think you are. I think everyone realizes how well they can WFH, but if the firm decision is to go back you're going to have to play ball or suffer consequences. Just the way it is. 

 

[Citation needed]

I did my first job at a large organization of its kind (e.g., JPM / McK / BX etc.) about 75% remote (pre-COVID) and hit every promotion possible.

If your point is around small team dynamics - that may be true, but still - in my example here, I was in a silo'd group of <10-15 and managed to hit every promotion.

I think it really depends on where you are and only OP can evaluate whether or not to broach the topic.

 

Very curious on others' experience too! Biggest outcome I got from Covid on office is greater flexibility on working remote for personal trips, unexpected life stuff, etc. Like if I want to work from a beach house for a week (here and there, not abusing it), nobody cares now, whereas before I would have gotten a "that's not going to fly, work around it."

We are currently "experimenting" with doing 4 days/week in office, aside from the caveats above, but will reassess at end of year... my guess is 3 days going forward. 

Returning to the office, plus other factors at work, have made me shift my state of mind from preferring remote to preferring hybrid: 

  • Spending more time in-person with colleagues has helped me realize that a lot of collegiality is the unplanned interactions, or the ones that have nothing to do with work. Sure you can riff a bit at the start/end of Zoom calls, but a call just inherently feels a lot more "what do you want to cover" than being side-by-side with someone. 
  • I am traveling a lot more, probably every other week (heavily sourcing focused role). So the benefits of being remote + drawbacks of being in-office are both less acute since there's somewhere I "have to be" anyway
  • I now manage a few Associates and like being able to see them informally... both so I can see them in action on a greater variety of tasks, and so they feel more comfortable being open with me
  • NYC is a lot more enjoyable to live in now that I make more money

So tl;dr Remote work isn't personally the hill I'm going to die on relative to other things (comp/carry, job evolution, etc.). That said my employer would probably let me do it if I put my foot down, and has generally gotten chiller about this stuff. 

EDIT: Replied to the wrong post, meant to do this to the guy below who asked "how did conversations turn out"

 

Had this discussion today with a partner today. As a MF group (saying this because it is still group-dependent), my group isn't planning on going back to the office until 2021. We are considering a staggered office staffing throughout the week but at this point it's been made clear that the remote work has had almost no knock on workstream execution efficiency. So I'm hopeful that yes, we need to go into the office 2-3x a week but also looking forward to not having to be in attendance 24/7 now that the remote setup has proven to be successful.

For new guys this may be different but for this fiscal year my group didn't hire any new associates so we haven't had to worry about politics etc 

 

Bump - wondering how any of these discussions turned out. 

 

I've been working completely remotely since 2018, which is not unusual at all in certain roles.

Overall, I find it suits me well, given the way I choose to live. Additionally, I have worked for offices in NYC/DC/Miami/Vancouver/Atlanta and other financial centers from anywhere. For a long time, I've lived and worked in a major financial hub, but have since moved back to where I'm from. Overall, I think it's a business decision, and it doesn't work for everything. I don't see why you would be nervous if it's just a discussion.

I don't think it's suited for every type of job or every type of person. If your job is not typically done remotely and you aren't in a position to decide that, then it's really about power and negotiation, if that's really a risk that's worth it for you. Executives often have the most incentive to work on-site as they have the nicest offices! Additionally, they are the ones calling the shots on remote work. I think it works best for technical roles and newer companies where remote work is not unusual.

 

Eveniet assumenda fuga atque libero ipsa. Numquam ea cumque non aut.

Architecto modi error qui ut est labore. Ipsam enim suscipit deserunt quam eius eveniet dolorum est. Autem repellendus assumenda voluptatem voluptates. Molestiae ratione voluptates dolores.

"Son, life is hard. But it's harder if you're stupid." - my dad

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Warburg Pincus 99.0%
  • Blackstone Group 98.4%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 97.9%
  • Bain Capital 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Blackstone Group 98.9%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.4%
  • Ardian 97.9%
  • Bain Capital 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Bain Capital 99.0%
  • Blackstone Group 98.4%
  • Warburg Pincus 97.9%
  • Starwood Capital Group 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Private Equity

  • Principal (9) $653
  • Director/MD (21) $586
  • Vice President (92) $362
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (89) $280
  • 2nd Year Associate (204) $268
  • 1st Year Associate (386) $229
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (28) $157
  • 2nd Year Analyst (83) $134
  • 1st Year Analyst (246) $122
  • Intern/Summer Associate (32) $82
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (313) $59
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

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...”