So where can I find a coach or individual to help me break into ER or another aspect of the investment industry? This is definitely what I want to do so are there executive coaches that can be the “second pair of eyes” and provide some added value to enhancing my chances?
By the way, here’s some info about competition.
http://www.cfainstitute.org/community/challenge/Pages/index.aspx
numi runs a consulting business that does just that.
I just looked at your credentials and noticed that you are provide career coaching services. Would you be able to help me out? Also, do you offer a short free consultation call? I just want to gain a better understanding of what you do and how you’ll be able to help me. I’m only asking for maybe 15min, but I’m definitely interested and I think you could really help me.
Aside from my posts here (which I think are quite valuable already…slightly biased view, of course), I don’t give free consults of any kind. As for getting an understanding of what I can do for you, generally it would be pretty similar to what I do for every client. They sign up for my advisory, and I advise them on the most direct way of getting a six-figure salary (or beyond). The recommendations I’ve gotten on LinkedIn should be pretty telling of the value proposition.
Feel free to email me at numi.advisory@gmail.com and I’ll send you more info.
itera – thanks for the plug.
1-800-numi-4-me
agreed. keep it coming
Thanks Numi. I sent you an e-mail.
You started this thread asking for advice…and when you didn’t hear what you wanted to hear you tried to justify why you’re qualified…with athletic mumbo jumbo, as itera put it. The athletic stuff is not a differentiator to get you into an interview, it may be an enhancer to have some analogies to talk about when you’re at the interview but to be honest I only used sports analogies in my interview for my very first job out of college, which was not that great. After moving up (now in PE) those sport things are minimal…not even the 5% itera talks about…you need to bring value through your WORK experiences…not your hobbies. Unless you’re a pro-golfer or excellent fly fisher, these private equity types won’t care that you’re a track star or a football legend.
Like I said, a good approach would be to use your strengths for getting into a firm in an industry you want (e.g. accounting dept at a PE firm) and complete CFA, network with the PM(s), ask them about the portfolio companies that you’re probably just tying out cash flows for and talk about them like you know what’s going on (the thesis, operating performance, management issues, industry outlook for the company, etc.). When you have the CFA and MD’s who know you know how to analyze companies in an illiquid market then you can inquire as to moving to an analyst position or associate position and have a decent shot at it. However, there is probably a <1% chance you will get your dream job in the industry you want coming from where you coming from. That’s the advantage of an undergrad, they’re not coming from anywhere, they’re not branded as anything yet…they’re a clean slate.
You guys are definitely very straight forward and I appreciate it. Ramos4rm, I think the reason you see a lot of the fluffy superlatives is precisely what you mentioned… it’s straight out of college lingo. I haven’t gone through the interview process in about 4.5 years. PwC is essentially my starting point. I was with another firm and Deloitte for a combination of about 1.5 yrs, but my interview game is still stuck the same mode. I’m not quite sure what recruiters, managing directors, and other hiring folks are looking for in the process. So that’s part of the reason why I throw down the athletic comments. I agree that it would be useful to draw analogies in relation to experience, but what specifically do I need to say in an interview? When a question appears to be broad and somewhat ambiguous there are multiple paths you could potentially go down, which I understand could lead to the wrong answer. So how do you know what the right answer should be? I had a phone interview recently with a mutual fund company and the questions were so generic and broad I felt like I was talking to a college freshman. Do I speak to DCF, Multiples, Residual Income Valuation, etc? Do I speak to my knowledge of the markets and stock picks I like at the moment? Do I talk about leadership and different industries I’m familiar with? Do I talk about the financial statements? You see what I’m saying? You can go anywhere with some of the questions I’ve received.
Aside from that, your approach is definitely a valuable one; however, I think “branding” doesn’t matter as much. Numi apparently took a Big 4 guy and gave him the tools to lock down a really solid ER job. I think what everyone is saying is valuable advice and I’m a realistic person. I understand the situation at hand. Yes, I’m currently labeled as a Big 4/accounting guy and have some obstacles to overcome, BUT realism doesn’t mean pessimism. I can be realistic without being pessimistic.