Spend any time on industry blogs or social network discussion forums… and you’ll feel the industry’s pain. People with $100K dollar salaries are being released for people willing to work for $70K… People with 15 -20 years (or even more) in the industry are being overlooked for those with just 5 (or even less)… and everyone’s weighing in on whether or not an MBA even holds value any more. 

 

The possible “sweet” silver lining in this “bitter-sweet” tale is that the churning over of personnel for lower cost (and experienced) candidates is at least creating some opportunity for those who smartly match what the banks are looking for. In general, the pool of applicants is so large at the moment, that direct experience is what tops the list in recruiters’ selection for any given position… Unfortunately, this means that even for the traditional “entry-level” analyst position at an investment bank, candidates who already have experience in that position are the only pool of candidates which are being considered… So, unless you’re well networked and highly leveraged, as far as the big bulge bracket banks are concerned… you are “green” and need not apply.

Cash Bonuses as part of an employee’s compensation structure have fallen under great media and political scrutiny since the collapse of the financial sector. However, it was not the existence of bonuses that caused the collapse… The bonus is a tool… nothing more. In fact, when it comes to motivating individuals to perform, especially in the banking industry, the bonus is the hammer that works.