I have a dilemma. I started a new job last Monday as a Reconciliation Administrator. Today, an insurance company that I interviewed with last month told me that they would want to hire me as a junior financial analyst. I would be analysing financial statements and give recommendations on which companies to insure. It’s not investment analysis but more in the accounting field of financial analysis. The Reconcilation Administrator job pays 37K while the junior financial analyst job would pay around 33-34k. But, I feel that there is more potential taking the financial analyst job. What to do? Can I leave the job after 1 week, considering my current supervisor is overworked and desperately needs some help with reconciliation as they are late (due to my predecessor getting fired over a month ago)?
I say go back to your former job.
I seriously doubt he truly was a former trader commstudent 
However, I would certainly take whatever position you feel is best to advance your career. Cold as it may sound, I think it is simply dumb to stay at a firm because they are understaffed, even if it means putting your boss in an uncomfortable position. As a courtesy, you might give him 2 weeks notice even though you said you were there for only a week. From what I hear of Wall Street, in all likelihood you will probably be asked to leave the day you inform him on your intent.
Get away from reconciliation. Doesn’t help you at all.
DTD2003 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I seriously doubt he truly was a former trader > commstudent I was a prop trader for 4 years. I did great my first 2 years, but not so great the last 2 years. I wanted a job on a trading desk somewhere but was unable to find one. After 4 months of being unemployed, I accepted the recon gig.
37K and 34K? Where do you live and why don’t you move? There are no finance related jobs that you should do for that money. Finance jobs are just not as fun as lots of other jobs that pay more than that. I made more than that being a graduate student and consulting for the Navy 20 years ago…
Agree with commstudent.
Maybe those salary figures are in UK Pounds?
I’m in Montreal. They’re in Canadian dollars. Cost of living here is cheap.
“I’m in Montreal. They’re in Canadian dollars. Cost of living here is cheap.” What “Montreal” do you live in?
Quebec. Salaries here are easily 10-20% below Toronto.
What was your position before?
im guessing StandardLife…only “big” insurance company i know of here in MTL. But ~35k doesnt sound THAT bad…still could be better from what i know (which is very little :P).
wonggei79 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > What was your position before? As I mentioned before, I was a prop trader (daily/scalper) for 4 years. Trading mostly the eurostoxx index futures. I did great my first 2 years (over 100K), but brutal the last 2 years (under 15K). 100% of my salary was commission. I had an offer to trade prop by another firm recently, but it was under the same conditions: 100% commission. I have no confidence I can make any money trading as a prop anymore. When I first started, 50% of the office was making 6 figures (we were 20). Today, only 4 of those 20 are still in the businesss. It’s a very rough career and the ineficiencies aren’t there anymore. Very few traders survive. That’s the reason I started the CFA in 06 because I knew my days as a prop trader were counted. I am now a Level 3 candidate. I feel employers don’t have much respect for prop traders (scalpers) having applied everywhere for the last 4 months. I decided to take the recon position last week.
Mez Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > im guessing StandardLife…only “big” insurance > company i know of here in MTL. But ~35k doesnt > sound THAT bad…still could be better from what i > know (which is very little :P). It was Jevco insurance.
mcpass Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Get away from reconciliation. Doesn’t help you at > all. Agreed- you may be getting paid less if you take the Jr. Fin Analyst but you’ll feel satisfied knowing the opp for growth is better when you leave that position. Sometimes experience pays better than salary…a concept that you and many others in this industry prob to understand but outsiders do not.