eFinancialCareers

Making the jump from Operations to front office management often brings with it a healthy dose of bumps. Factors like education and perceived skill can pigeon-hole candidates, forcing them to overcome the stigmas associated with years spend in the back office. The good news? It can be done. Doug Rickart, of Robert Half International in Minneapolis, argues the stigma associated with Operations jobs no longer exists. "There are a lot of... Read more

John Marzulli, a partner in the law firm of Shearman & Sterling, focuses on international corporate finance, specializing in cross-border mergers and acquisitions. A partner in the Mergers & Acquisitions group of the law firm Shearman & Sterling, New York-based John Marzulli focuses on international corporate finance, specializing in cross-border mergers and acquisitions. He devotes much of his time to acquisitions of publicly traded companies, defensive assignments, privately negotiated acquisitions and... Read more

"Most important is the willingness to work hard. Investment banking can be rewarding but you work a lot of hours. You have to give 100 percent, all of the time." How did you become a managing director? I’ve been in investment banking at JP Morgan for 10 years now. I started out in the New York office as a summer associate, and now I'm a managing director in our Los Angeles office.... Read more

Chris Ricciardi is the chief executive of Cohen Brothers, LLC, a boutique investment bank in Philadelphia that specializes in asset-backed securities. Ricciardi has been a pioneer in the markets for collateralized debt obligations – or CDOs – and asset-backed securities, first at Prudential and CSFB, then as Managing Director and Global Head of Structured Credit Products for Merrill Lynch. What’s a typical day like for you? There really is no typical day.... Read more

Richard Cervone, managing director and portfolio manager at Putnam Investments: "It's essential to learn everything you can about businesses, even by simply walking around the city and looking at retailers and how they operate." Richard Cervone is a managing director and portfolio manager on Putnam Investments' U.S. Core Equity team, which manages the firm's Core Equity and Core Concentrated Equity institutional portfolios. He is also on the management teams of Putnam's... Read more

"I think you have to be aggressive. If, for example, you put your head down and just do your job, you won't be as successful as if you worked hard and networked with your peers and senior colleagues." Rebecca Patterson is a vice president and global currency strategist at JPMorgan, helping her colleagues and clients understand the implications of currency moves. In her reports, Patterson evaluates economic trends, geopolitical moves, changes... Read more

A discussion with Savita Subramanian, Head of U.S. Quantitative Strategy for Merrill Lynch. How did you get started in quantitative strategy? I attended the University of California Berkeley and graduated with a degree in math and philosophy. When I finished I ended up on the buy side at Scudder Kemper in their quantitative products group. The group I was in managed money using quantitative models. It was my first experience in this... Read more

Kathleen D. Scott is a principal of RA Capital Advisors, a private investment bank based in San Diego. A 12-year veteran of the firm, Scott is responsible for services related to mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, financings and restructurings for an array of clients. Her work has covered industries such as packaging/logistics, aerospace and defense, technology, retail, software, energy, healthcare, and biotechnology. How did you come to work in M&A? My previous experience was... Read more

James Janesky, managing director at Ryan Beck, has covered business services and outsourcing companies for the last 10 years. Janesky joined the firm in April 2004 after holding research roles at Janney Montgomery Scott, Banc of America Securities, Stephens, Inc. and ABN AMRO/Chicago Corp. His recent coverage has focused on human capital services companies, healthcare-staffing companies and professional services companies. How did you come to work in equity research? I started as... Read more

Brian Urkowitz, Merrill Lynch managing director and head of Global Transactional Client Services: "The most important thing is to look at how things are done and ask why, and whether they can be done more efficiently." As managing director and head of Global Transactional Client Services for Merrill Lynch, Brian Urkowitz is responsible for service delivery across the firm's Global Markets and Investment Banking Services unit. In addition, he oversees the... Read more

A Q&A with Candace Browning, senior vice president and the Head of Global Securities Research and Economics for Merrill Lynch. She discusses opportunities in research, the kind of background she seeks in analysts, and the role researchers play with firms and clients. Candace Browning's group provides Merrill Lynch and its clients with investment insights and ideas, industry and company overviews and asset allocation recommendations. Until February 2003, she served as director... Read more