Laid off analyst rant
Just want to rant not even looking for specific advice.
Got laid off as a freshly promoted analyst 2 from mid tier BB in NYC in October. Had great reviews for my analyst review in summer so it was def a shock. Firm claims it was part of “cost cutting.”
Gone through 3 interviews super days already but ended up getting rejected, even though feedback was all positive. 2 of those were at credit funds and the other one was for sell side ER. I’m not completely sure but perhaps firms just want people with more experience. 16-17 months in IB doesn’t cut it.
I’ve made my search very broad at this point, literally anything in sell side or buy side would be amazing. Banking, HFs, PE, VC, PC, GE, ER and even investor relations, real estate, corp development/finance, asset management, capital markets…I’ve opened up my search to all of these verticals but nothing has come to fruition yet. I don’t even care about which industry coverage it would be (for what it’s worth my previous role was healthcare focused).
Everyday I spend hours applying to jobs and during the week spend hours on interview/HH calls, but wow I totally underestimated how bad the job market was.
Feeling so discouraged right now even though I’m trying to remain optimistic FML
OP here, wso test box won’t let me add blank spaces between paragraphs.
Apologies that it looks like word vomit
WallStreetOasis.com
Narrative will be important here
1. Were you the only analyst laid off?
2. Do you have solid references at both the junior and senior level?
What sectors do you have experience in?
Also, I’ve seen job market picking back up recently, have seen quite a few people I know get lateral or PE offers and have seen more listings / recruiter inbounds over the past couple months. Dec is a slow hiring month regardless of the market though.
Been in a similar position. Make sure to have references from a few md, dir or vp level people lined up firstly if you haven’t done so already. If you don’t have references, it’ll be really hard for you to convince anyone to hire you given you were let go, have seen people even get offers pulled bc of no or mediocre references.
Reach out to recruiters instead of applying on LinkedIn (these listings get hundreds of apps per day).
Bump
I recommend narrowing your search to roles that are most relevant to your experience (healthcare investment banking). I know that sounds like annoying advice but sometimes less is more and reducing the roles you go for and having a truly airtight story increases your chances over the hurdle.
e.g. for coverage IB roles focus on healthcare IB openings.
For product roles (M&A, capital markets) focus on healthcare-aligned roles or focus on the products that you truly have the most experience in from your deals.
For corporate dev / investment type roles focus on companies and funds that are healthcare aligned. If you craft the story that you’re a healthcare finance guy through and through (a story so good that even you start to believe it) then if you get a first round somewhere it’s just way more likely you’re one of the top 3 most credible candidates from the very beginning that’s favored by everyone.
Right now- lots of banks are hiring/looking for healthcare banking in NY. I’ve personally heard in the last few weeks from: JP, Wells, Webster and Citizens. Its also a lot of making connections to start later in 1Q, I would make a connection at one of those banks on LinkedIn and go from there. Don’t worry too much- 16/17 months in Heathcare IB is a good start to find a job the real issue is that I think most are looking for seniors so you need to get in front of them. Generally, once a connection is made, there is always space to find for an analyst with some experience.
Adding in here with no real insight, but I was also an analyst who was let go due to a personal emergency in my family that I had to tend to. Humbled me real down from my pride to see myself being tossed aside rather than being approved for an extended leave of absence, but comes to show that you are as indispensable as can be.
Stay hopeful and keep networking. The economy is in a bad place right now but there is hope on the horizon as deals have been artificially plummetted via interest rates and yet there is high dry capital in PE and other companies needing to consolidate due to these hard economic conditions.
Trying to think ahead, I believe RX and MM will see the most deal flow, along with buy-side in upper MM trying to consolidate companies with failing economics but solid business strategies they themselves have no exposure to (vertical integration). Worth a look in these sectors.
Adding here too. Exact same thing happened to me. Was working on a pitch that wasn’t due for a good week and had an emergency where an immediate family member got into a very bad accident.
It sucked seeing the “writing on the wall” and coming to realise my time on the team was going to be short-lived from there on. Genuinely felt like everything was crashing down at the time given I worked so hard to get the job in the first place, made personal sacrifices and worked incredibly hard.
Now looking back, I’m glad I got to see the true colours of some individuals on that team and the circumstances that led to finding that out sucked.
(And no, we didn’t win that pitch).
Thanks for sharing and sorry to hear about your family accident -
I am the OP of this comment thread and just wanted to add I was at one of the more "junior-employee friendly" banks where they had rhetoric of "us > me," "teamwork" etc. painted onto the wall lmao. I'm sure some banks are friendlier than others as I can attest to, but it doesn't matter for them if you have shown any sign of weakness, be it professional or personal. You can't believe the HR rhetoric as it is just bullshit motivational quotes.
Curious how you ended up after? Did you re-recruit? I am kind of not even trying to recruit after seeing all the competition and tighter hiring. Feel like it'll be a waste of months and I will walk out with nothing but disappointment.
The economy *is not* in a bad place at all. In fact, it has been INSANELY robust. Unemployment is sitting at 3.7%. Jerome Powell's soft landing no longer seems like a joke
Investment banking and financial services is another matter though. But even that is picking up
keep your head up op
They were taunting around a "white collar" recession during mid 2022 and this is what appears to be holding true. But to be honest, I have been following some smaller but more consumer-facing companies (grocery chains, sporting goods, department stores) and even they are struggling due to inflation, theft and higher expenses. It is a lazy way of doing things but cutting expenses (lay-offs, restructuring capital sx, reducing perks to customers, increasing self-checkout, etc.) is the easiest way to boost a company's margins independent of the macroeconomic environment. So, been seeing some major stores close locations near me even though I live in one of the major cities in this country on the West Coast.
Mind you, I think a cashier or someone blue-collar and supporting a family in the traditional way is far more effected than I / other typical bankers were, but comes to show no one is a winner until either a total market correction occurs and / or interest rates decrease.
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