eFinancialCareers

Government To the Rescue?

Should the federal government disburse emergency aid to homeowners, home builders or lenders – or none of the above - in order to revive the economy, the financial markets and job opportunities for b ...

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Is the Downturn Past its Midpoint? Or Only Beginning?

Depending which manifestation you look at, the credit crunch has raged anywhere from three to 18 months. Is the tide about to turn? Housing has been correcting for more than a year. Financial marke ...

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Does Wall Street Need a 'Compensation Code?'

On Wall Street, no subject is more emotionally charged than compensation. Is the bonus system ailing? Even if it is - could a cure be fashioned that wouldn't be worse than the disease? A group of h ...

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Are Additional Write-Downs Good For Wall Street?

Fortune Magazine suggests further asset write-downs will make bank stocks attractive - an implicit forecast the credit crisis will soon pass and business will return to "normal." That flies in the ...

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Are Middle Office Escapees Dangerous?

Should a person ever be allowed to advance from the middle office to a trading role within the same bank? On the day the rogue trader scandal at Societe Generale broke, we asked, "Is a bank playing ...

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Which Text Books are the Most Helpful on Wall Street?

Which professional publisher or books provide the most useful information on Wall Street? When it comes to professional books on finance and investments, who publishes the most useful books: Butter ...

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Will the Job Market Be THAT Bad?

Maybe not. At least that's what most users of eFinancialCareers believe, according to our latest poll. Where do you stand? Just more than half - 52.5 percent - said they think 2008 is going to be a ...

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What Sort of Year Are We in For?

Will 2008 resemble the gloomy last six months of 2007? Or will it be more like the buoyant first half? The credit crunch is finally having a visible impact on Main Street as well as Wall Street. Th ...

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Knife Mack?

Should John Mack forego a bit more than his bonus? Morgan Stanley’s fourth-quarter loss of $3.61 per share was so far off consensus estimates, the firm is almost unrecognizable from the one analyst ...

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Apologize? Are You Crazy?

A recent poll suggests that people who apologize - even for things they're not to blame for - are more successful. Can that work on Wall Street? According to Fortune's report on the Zogby poll, "a ...

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Would You Cut Your Bonus to Aid Your Firm?

So the market's rocky and financial giants are taking billions of dollars in write-downs. Would you trade part of your bonus for better job security? We asked eFC users whether they'd take a smalle ...

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A Good Time for a Sabbatical?

If you've been thinking of taking a break, is this the right time to do it? Jim Turley, head of Deutsche Bank’s institutional client group is doing just that, reports Financial News. He's taking si ...

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Is This a Good Time to Switch Jobs?

There's talk of recession, banks are taking write-downs in the billions, and people up and down the street are speculating about more layoffs. Is this a time to be looking for a new position, or shoul ...

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Do Ph.D.s Make Better Traders?

What is the real value of a Ph.D. on a trading desk, a reader wonders. Perhaps inspired by the animated discussion of the role of quants in trading that appeared in our earlier debate thread devote ...

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What's on Your Mind? Employment Tests, Value of CFA

This week's comments include an anecdote about failing an employer's psychological test, and a fresh thrust in the CFA wars. More Candidates Face Psychological Testing J. Anonymous, who w ...

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Promotions: To Ask or Not to Ask...

How upfront should women be about their ambitions? eFC readers had no shortage of opinions. Women on Wall Street Say Female-Focused Programs Work Two readers commented on an anecdote with ...

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Job Destruction: Is the Worst Still to Come?

Wall Street is in job-cutting mode, for the first time in years. How many more shoes have yet to drop? Amid the ongoing parade of layoff announcements, recruiter Jay Gaines voices this view: "We' ...

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Glass Ceiling Sparks Reader Response

EFC users this week joined the debate over barriers to women's advancement, and continued to reject the idea that experience in varied departments is a career booster. Why Aren't Women Breaking ...