Rather than focusing on one coherent theme in this week’s session of reader Q&A, I decided to pick some of the more interesting questions I’ve received recently and address them here. Completely random questions on unrelated topics always make for spectacular writing. 
Investment Banking And Ego
“One question I’ve always wondered about whenever I read about investment banking is whether it boosts your ego. Is everyone working at a bulge bracket basically a miniature version of Gordon Gekko?
And as an Analyst, do you have to assert yourself to avoid being trampled on? I know you have to have a decent ego to even get the job, but do you have a bigger ego now compared to when you started? Or at least a thicker skin? It would be great if you could dedicate a post to this question.”
Inquisitor:
That’s a great, great question and one I’ve never heard before. It’s an interesting topic and I may indeed devote a post to it, assuming I can come up with something intelligent to say. (note: this has not happened yet, which is why it is being featured in Q&A for now)
I do think you develop a thicker skin and become more assertive after doing banking, both of which are probably good things. I was not at all assertive before doing this job, but now I’m much more direct with people when I need something. Sometimes I can come across as rude or impatient, though, so it’s a double-edged sword.
As far as whether or not it boosts your ego, that’s hard to say. Some days you feel like you’re on top of the world, and other days you want to crawl into a hole and hide.
Sometimes you do feel like you’re Gordon Gekko, even though you’re just an Analyst, and other times you get assigned random stupid work like formatting Excel, crossing out names in documents and even manual labor (I’m not making this one up… full story coming later) and you feel like a peon.
On the whole, though, I would say it boosts your ego simply because you’re around so many important people and get to witness such high-level business discussions.
Hopefully I can write more on this topic soon. As one of my friends observed, banking is one of the few jobs that changes peoples’ personalities, so I think there’s a lot more to explore here.
Finance: Just How Male Dominated Is It?
“In your post How To Get An Investment Banking Job you wrote: “No one at an investment bank will spend more than 2 seconds on your resume (unless you are a hot girl and attach a picture, I mentioned banks were male dominated and chauvinistic, right?).”
As a female, this made me wonder how much my looks and gender will factor into banks’ decisions to hire me. If investment banking and finance in general are really that male dominated, should I try to dress up for interviews? Are people really hired based on appearance, or is that all a myth?”
Inquisitor:
Well, that line was kind of a joke. Banking is indeed male dominated, but I don’t think it’s so ridiculous that females should attach their pictures to their resumes or anything.
To be honest, I think attractive people (whether males or females) are at an advantage in the recruiting process. And this is not just true in finance - I’ve heard the same conclusion across the board regardless of the industry.
In terms of interview attire, looking nice is good but I would not go all out and wear provocative clothing or anything. Just by being female you will be at an advantage; if you try too hard it might end up backfiring if you happen to get a female interviewer.
Finance is still very male dominated but that is definitely changing. The workplace is becoming more diverse, and I know of quite a few females who have very senior positions at banks.
In 2001, for example, Izumi Kobayashi made waves when she became the first female President of Merrill Lynch Japan. And that’s in Japan, where the workplace is even more male dominated, so things are changing.
Excel Mistakes In Front Of The MD
“I’m a first year Analyst at a bulge bracket bank. My second month into the job, I completely screwed up an Excel model for my MD. Since I was new to the job, the file looked a bit odd to me but I didn’t see anything blatantly wrong with it.
Before showing it to him, I had some friends check it over and had an Associate look at it. Everyone said it was fine, but as soon as the MD saw the printout he saw a massive mistake in one cell and had a temper tantrum.
Ever since then, no matter how good my work has been, the MD has always looked at me like I’m an idiot.
Am I doomed to get bottom-tier bonus? Is there anything I can do to save myself?”
Inquisitor:
That’s a tough one. Assuming you can’t switch and work for a different MD, I don’t there’s much you can do beyond what you’re already doing. People tend to have a short memory in banking so I’m surprised they’re still making a fuss over that. First impressions are important, but 2 months into the job is well after the “first impressions” period ends.
If it continues to be a problem, I might try to switch groups (probably difficult at this point); I don’t know if I would bring it up directly to the MD because that would just make him remember the incident again.
If it’s any consolation, I screwed up plenty of times in front of my MD and he often looked at me like I was an idiot but I still got top bonus last year, so you might be worried over nothing.
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Tags: attention to detail, Gordon Gekko, investment banker lifestyle, investment banking, Managing Directors, understanding investment banking, Workplace Diversity
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