I’ve been lucky enough to land two offers - one in Business Valuations with a Big 4, and one in a finance rotation program with a major aerospace/defense company. Both seem like great jobs, both located in nice cities, and the difference is pay is small enough not to be a big concern. Anyone have any inside advice that would push me one way or the other? I assume the exit & advancement opportunities would be better with the Big 4, right?
big 4 hands down, more secure, better rep with current/future ibanks/funds
From a future career perespective: If you wanted to one day do IB, AM or PE, go valuation. Both can translate into an equity research position One positive about the valuation job: It will qualify for the CFA - the rotation with the large frim will not. The valuation job may also qualify as experience for the CPA. From a personality standpoint: If there both good jobs, it should come down to what is interesting. The rotation job is corporate finance. If you are interested in capital markets and investment decision making, then it may not be for you. Still, this is a pretty good problem to have.
niraj_a Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > big 4 hands down, more secure, better rep with > current/future ibanks/funds More secure? How? It sounds like he’s talking about a Lockheed Martiin type here.
I know a few people in Deloitte FAS in a couple of specific pieces of the valuation spaces (one is real estate and the other business valuation) and then like it OK. Sounds a little hands off for me, but they seem to like it and you could likely get into corp finance later down the road if you wish. But I dont think from those I speak with it is going to be too easy to move into Investment side of things, despite some of the similarities…
I started out in Bval and have seen many paths… 1. You can do 1-2 years in Big 4/Botique and go to IB/Sell side research…couple of more years there and you will have many options… 2. I’ve also seen many who like the career path and stay the course…you get paid more than for of those corporate analyst roles, but less than a banker (fewer hours though)…8-12 years to partner where you pull down 250-500k/year 3. I’ve also seen guys who swith to more specialized roles in consulting…turnaround/restructuring/strategic advisory Overall I enjoy the structure of Big 4 consulting more than an analyst role inside a massive organization. Those larger companies are simply too bureaucratic for my liking. Thats my two cents…
I work for an aerospace company, and we’ve having major layoffs - even for white collar jobs. There are several other big aero companies in the city, and they’re all doing the same thing. It’s an interesting industry, very interesting products, and there is plenty of room for advancement, BUT our jobs certainly aren’t recession-proof (although these days it seems there are very few career paths that are…).
Well, Big 4 isnt recession proof, FAS or Audit, as at least in my state I know the 3 major offices of Deloitte and KPMG are going through at least one round of lay-offs. Deloitte just let another 40 people go after doing I think close to that number a few months ago. Some was from FAS, but I think most Audit. Used to be one of the most recession proof places to be…
Florida_Gator Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I’ve been lucky enough to land two offers - one in > Business Valuations with a Big 4, and one in a > finance rotation program with a major > aerospace/defense company. What a&d company? I recently accepted an offer with one, for their finance development program. I think your choice is dependent on what you want to do down the road. For me, I wanted to work in corporate development for an a&d company, so I took the job at a company I wanted to work for that will provide a good transition in the near future.
Why do you think big 4 TAS is hiring? It seems like with the economy in such bad shape that TAS services would not be in great demand, especially the purchase price allocation work. Is the offer in a particular area like litigation support or reorg work?
Take the Big 4 offer!
Yes there are layoffs, but usually they are very few and far between and usually involve the people who deserve to be fired. You know who I’m talking about, those analysts/associates who somehow slip through the cracks and have an IQ that rivals a tick.
The layoffs I am talking about were actually the second round of lay-offs, where they are getting rid of the better people. At least at Deloitte…they had a first round which was more “trimming the fat”.
j-rad Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > What a&d company? I recently accepted an offer > with one, for their finance development program. > > > I think your choice is dependent on what you want > to do down the road. For me, I wanted to work in > corporate development for an a&d company, so I > took the job at a company I wanted to work for > that will provide a good transition in the near > future. Lockheed Martin. A&D is by far my favorite industry, and I spent 4 years in the Navy (aviation) prior to starting university, so it’s a good fit. But, I think the future is brighter with the Big 4, and from what I understand they do quite a bit of valuation work for the DoD/Govt. So, I’ve decided to decline Lockheed’s offer… I sent in my acceptance for the Big 4 today. Anyway, congrats on getting your offer!! Part of me says I’ll regret turning it down, but I might just be nostalgic for my Navy days.
Florida_Gator Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > j-rad Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > What a&d company? I recently accepted an offer > > with one, for their finance development program. > > > > > > > I think your choice is dependent on what you > want > > to do down the road. For me, I wanted to work > in > > corporate development for an a&d company, so I > > took the job at a company I wanted to work for > > that will provide a good transition in the near > > future. > > Lockheed Martin. A&D is by far my favorite > industry, and I spent 4 years in the Navy > (aviation) prior to starting university, so it’s a > good fit. But, I think the future is brighter > with the Big 4, and from what I understand they do > quite a bit of valuation work for the DoD/Govt. > So, I’ve decided to decline Lockheed’s offer… > I sent in my acceptance for the Big 4 today. > Anyway, congrats on getting your offer!! Part of > me says I’ll regret turning it down, but I might > just be nostalgic for my Navy days. The US Navy has four year contracts? hat could be a decent fall back plan, too bad im not a citizen
SeanC Wrote: > > The US Navy has four year contracts? > > hat could be a decent fall back plan, too bad im > not a citizen You only have to be a citizen for some jobs (intel, special forces, etc)… in fact several of my friends gained US citizenship by serving in the Navy. You do have to take an oath and swear allegiance to the US. They were from Brazil, Colombia, Canada and the Philippines … It’s an awesome experience, I’d recommend it
Lockheed is a great company… I actually applied for their rotational program but never heard back… I think I applied too late. I applied to Raytheon and BAE’s programs as well. Good luck at the Big4 though - you will get a lot of good exp and have great options when you decide to move on.