SG
The financial crisis destroyed the career aspirations of many back and middle-office employees with their eyes on the ultimate prize – breaking into a money-making, client-facing role.
But as skill shortages start to plague the front office again, is hope returning for those wanting to escape their boring operational jobs?
Are you now applying for front-office positions, and if so, how are banks responding? Are you more likely to succeed if you’re looking to move internally?
Is there an age limit beyond which everyone is essential stuck in their job silo?
And how important are qualifications in your fight to make the front office? Does tacking on an MBA or CFA to your CV give you a real chance, or is it more about your personality than your education?
Are you aggressive enough to be a revenue generator, or are you better off using your degree in the back office? Let us know your thoughts below.
Banks are looking to take established front office talent from each other. It’s very hard to change job functions.
Very difficult in investment banking as you go to the f office (or not) at young age…plus there’s always a new chunck of grads to replace those who fail – back office people not so needed
sometimes it boils down to a bit of luck, market timing and affinity.
it is possible if the front office people wants you. i used the career coaching service onementor.com which guided me over a year how to get the FO role i want. after 14 months, i landed a trader(junior) role.
Its almost too optimistic to look into that direction for me. ive been pretty much jobless since start of 2009 to get back to what i used to do in consumer banking in regulatory role just because i switched to FS much later in my career
As a person who moved from inhouse counsel to front office, I say its difficult at senior levels but easier if you are willing to take a salary cut and start from the base level
Interesting topic. Most IB’s are more likely to take candidates from B School or audit firms to fill positions in the IBD functions. If you are looking to move from middle or back office to the front, your best bet is to try your luck in your present shop … internal currency goes a long way.
I think finance is all about who you know than what you know. Forget front office, even middle office jobs are hard to get for 2009 graduates like us. Recently I interviewed with a major IB and got rejected in 2nd round. Fair enough. But the way I got the interview was interesting. I knew they have been looking for a candidate since Jan’10 and I kept on applying through the site, but no response. After a friend forwarded my resume through someone he knew, I was immediately called. Says a lot about “meritocracy” that these banks practice.
Can anybody advise and assist?
If we get, CPA Singapore membership, will it be helpful in getting accounitng/finance job for those who aged 55
Thanks in advance
Anxious job hunter
Hi evrbdy_scks
it is not too late to know now. Do you know that you can smell a bank employee miles away? Especially for those that join a different industry at a later part of their career.
They have been mould to think and work like a shark. In the bank, it does not matter what you study. The points below matter
who you know professionally, personally, value of your family assets, what type of house you stay (DBSS and Condo not counted), which district, whose your boss, who is your father.
Hope you get the drift.
Insert your comment here (under 1200 characters)…”Says a lot about “meritocracy” that these banks practice.”
When did banks ever say they practice “meritocracy” ? BTW I applied for FO positions straight out of university and was invited to several interviews with the usual bunch of banks ( including some BBs). Was offered a position and accepted it right away.
&& “When did banks ever say they practice “meritocracy” ?”
You are joking, right? Or have you never applied through a company’s website where there is a part that says “they don’t discriminate based on…..”?
There are very few FO jobs out there, but somebody has to get it , right? Maybe you were really brilliant, maybe you were lucky. But given the fact that you haven’t read what’s on a bank’s website, You must be the kind that one of the guys talks above about having a dad’s connection.
Ho ho…I hope to get something good as my dad is the bank’s regional COO’s friend xD
Having a tough time switching FO jobs. Most openings seem to be in the middle/back office.
at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how u get into the FO. As long as you can break into FO all’s well, if not too bad
&& “When did banks ever say they practice “meritocracy” ?”
You are joking, right? Or have you never applied through a company’s website where there is a part that says “they don’t discriminate based on…..”?
Nope, i’m not joking – indeed, banks say they don’t discriminate based on gender, age, etcetc – that’s not meritocracy , that’s being politically correct. …if you look carefully, there’s nothing there that mentions they anything about 1. where the applicant studied 2. who his/her folks are.
ergo – where you studied and who you know are important in FO jobs. then again it’s nothing which we don’t already know. the easiest path to getting a FO job in my opinion is to attend a top target university in the US/ UK ( ivies, MIT/stanford/chicago etc, oxbridge/lse).
I started as a IT consultant made good money with a global IT consulting firm . Changed my career, moved to bank working on strategy then FO Sales trading. I also worked for a while as a product controller and Back office process consultant
I have a Eng , MBA and a Masters. I spent abt 150 – 180 K on my education all in . Some ppl will say it is foolish. but i made many times over in less then 24 months. Each of my degrees was good enough for me to make career out of , but the zeal to challenge my self, kept me going and rewarded me.
I find too many ppl just doing simple graduation or diploma and banking and finance wanting earth moon and Sky.
I must say education is the KEY. If you have a reputed degree Probably a good MBA or strong Masters, it will take you a long way. If you see any top leadership of big banks , these guys have good education at least a masters and multi-faceted experience.
Well most business leaders have good education, at least a Masters, but that doesn’t mean a good education will you lead to C-class. Err hmm ?
How is discriminating on educational background not meritocratic?
Generally if you went to a better university, equates to being better.