With the many options available out there, choosing the right career is not always easy, especially in banking, posing the question; is investment bankers brokers service a good career path? The straight answer to that is yes.
However, to find the right career in banking one must do a self-evaluation. This involves evaluating your career options, assessing your interests, passions, and skills. Banking is without a doubt one of those industries that have stood the test of time.
It offers massive opportunities for professionals to excel and grow in their career path. The financial banking industry is highly competitive and ideal for anyone who loves to work with clients, loves working on numbers and derives joy from helping others accomplish huge goals.
What does it take to Succeed in Investment Banking?
The primary entry point into an investment banking role is usually the junior positions available for new graduates from top performing universities.
Most of these graduates have majored in finance, economics, and any other finance related course. The main qualities required for anyone interested in investment banking include:
- Attention to detail.
- Highly competitive and top achievers that can work for long hours.
- Good in writing, reading, and mathematics.
- A passion for deals and particularly huge deals.
- Exceptional networking skills and industry knowledge.
- Work and leadership experience in related investment banking areas.
- Good academic grades.
It therefore is obvious that it is important to highlight above qualities in your resume especially if preparing for investment banking interviews.
Is Investment Bankers Brokers Service a Good Career Path?
A career in this field can be exceptionally fulfilling. But is investment banking a good career? Below are some of the reasons to consider this as a career:
It Pays
If wondering is investment bankers brokers service a good career path? Yes. Pay is a motivator, and this industry fully focuses on making money for investors. It is therefore only fair enough that those that make money for clients also enjoy the benefits. The compensation for investment banking professionals is high irrespective of their investment banker job description.
U.S Bureau of data stipulate a pay range of between $80,000 to $200,000 and more for IB professionals, starting with entry level roles. These cover the investment banker salary, benefits, and bonuses that are a part of their job.
The top banks are principally the most lucrative, attracting top employees in the investment banking market. Additionally, the potential for income growth in IB industry is unlimited since you not only help clients but also learn and grow your own investments.
As an entrance staff you also enjoy plenty of attractive exit opportunities when preparing for investment banking job elsewhere.
Exciting
With the unpredictability of the financial environment, work can never be mundane in such an industry. This fast-paced atmosphere offers immense challenges and learning opportunities to professionals.
Therefore, every single day is an exciting one. The fact that you enjoy an exposure to different industries, companies, and managements teams helps build your professional network. You also gain hard and soft skills that can be applied in other industries. is investment bankers brokers service a good career path? This is an exciting role, and a good one.
Opportunity to help others
If you love work that has a direct impact on those you deal with then this is the best choice for a career. Investment bankers take care of others and their work entail direct and frequent interactions with clients.
Their ability to solve problems through their expertise and experience is highly satisfying. With that said, is investment bankers brokers service a good career path?
Downside to working in Investments Banking
Of course, every career choice has its setbacks and IB roles do come with their share. These include:
- Work/life balance may not be in your vocabulary during your early years in the field.
- Work can be boring if you stick to the same role for a long time, and when work is repetitive.
- Might not be easy to progress from mid-level roles to the top since the industry is highly competitive.
- Ideal for fresh graduates to get into the industry and extremely difficult to get in for those switching careers after many years of working.
Investment Banking Career Path and Progression
Is investment bankers brokers service a good career path? Here is a summary of the career path and career progression in the investment banking industry:
- Degree-you will need a bachelor’s degree for the entry-level positions. Preferred academic qualifications include finance, economics, or any other finance related course. A master’s in business administration will give you an upper hand.
- Interns-internship roles provide an excellent opportunity to work with investment bankers. They support associates and analysts. These are the individuals that later gain an entry into the job.
- Analysts-are assigned roles that include preparing excel work and presentations for the top management. They will also manage deals and data room documents. Analysts also handle potential and existing client requests. They will stay in this role for two to three years then move to investment banking.
- Associates-as an associate your work is like that of the analyst, but you will be assigned more work and responsibility. The Associate will assign the work to the analyst, review it, and step in at times to help complete excel and PowerPoint presentations. They will be present in client meetings but are assigned fewer speaking roles. At this level, an MBA is necessary to guarantee a promotion to the next role.
- VPs-as a vice president you will have more responsibility and deal with clients more often. The VP will oversee the work done by associates and analysts, besides dealing with clients. They directly deal with the MDs and Directors, handling their requests with help of the Analysts and Associates. They assign delegated work to Associates and Analysts then give guidance on what need to be done. They will also engage in deals with potential clients. These are the professionals that move to more specialized roles such as hedge fund management after three or four years. Is investment bankers brokers service a good career path? Indeed, it is for aspiring VPs.
- MDs-the managing director is primarily in charge of a team. They are concerned with making money for the business and will spend their days hunting for new clients and on-boarding them. They are also responsible for maintaining existing client relationships. Other duties include delegating work to those on lower roles to ensure the business operates seamlessly. At times they will handle the work done by VPs.
The Average Salary for Investment Banker
Salary is a huge factor to consider when addressing the concern; is investment bankers brokers service a good career path? IB roles pay well and generally vary slightly depending on the organization. Top banks are known to offer competitive packages in terms of salaries, bonuses, and retirement benefits. On average, this is how much to expect for each of the individual roles in investment banking:
- Analyst-enjoy a base salary of $100,000 to $125,000 a year. Total compensation range between $150,000 to $250,000/year. The average age is between 22 to 27 years and will take 2 to 3 years to be promoted.
- Associate- enjoys a base salary of $175,000 to $225,000 a year. Total compensation range between $300,000 to $550,000/year. The average age is between 25 to 35 years and will take 3 to 4 years to be promoted.
- Vice President- enjoys a base salary of $250,000 to $300,000 a year. Total compensation range between $500,000 to $900,000/year. The average age is between 28 to 40 years and will take 3 to 4 years to be promoted.
- Senior VP/Director- enjoys a base salary of $300,000 to $350,000 a year. Total compensation range between $800,000 to $1,200,000/year. The average age is between 32 to 45 years and will take 2 to 3 years to be promoted.
- MD- enjoys a base salary of $400,000 to $600,000 a year. Total compensation range between $1,000,000 to $3,000,000/year or more. The average age is between 35 to 50 years.
Above figures relate to the front office staff in investment banking and not the supporting functions at back office or middle office. The figures also give an average of what investment bankers earn in the large banks in U.S major cities such as New York. The figure might differ slightly in other regions, depending on the city and size of the bank. Is investment bankers brokers service a good career path? Well, it is across the global industry.
FAQ
What Do Investment Bankers Do?
An investment banker offers advisory services to companies, individuals, and governments about huge corporate transactions like equity issuance, mergers, or acquisitions. They are responsible for giving insights to top management in companies on issues such as marketing and selling of companies. They spearhead the role of seeking buyers and ensuring deals are successfully conducted. They will also suggest the best terms and timings for capital raise. They will further market the issuance of the debt and equity to investors.
Is It Hard to Become an Investment Banker?
No. A bachelor’s degree is the basic requirement on how to become an investment banker. A master’s degree is an added advantage. It is however important to seek specialist training in your interest. Extensive experience will also come into play when it comes to potential client choices.
Is Investment Banking a Rewarding Career Option?
A career in investment banking can be highly rewarding in terms of pay, bonuses, and retirement benefits. The industry is however highly competitive.
Some of the beginner positions that can help kick-start a career in investment banking include Personal Financial Advisor, Equity Research Associate, Investment Operations Representative, Collections Specialist, Office Support or Administrative Assistant, Investment Banking Analyst, Investment Banking Associate, Junior Tax Associate, Finance Analyst, or a Stockbroker.
What Other Career Options are Available for Investment Banking Majors?
Many career options are available for investment banking majors for anyone wondering is investment bankers brokers service a good career path.
These include accountancy, business development manager, business analyst, financial advisor, chief financial officer, underwriting, financial services sales agent, insurance agent, and banking consultant. A bachelor’s degree in any finance related field is a requirement for most of these roles, with a master’s degree in business administration granting an upper hand over other applicant.
How Do You Become an Investment Banker?
You begin from the bottom and work your way up the organizational ladder. Career growth is well-structured and there exist lots of opportunities for growth.
These also come with high pay packages. The field might be competitive but with proper training, skilling and re-skilling, networking, one can easily excel in investment banking. You will however need to commit long working hours and dedication to grow and thrive in investment banking.
Conclusion
You require a prominent level of education and expertise to succeed as an investment banker. The investment banking jobs offers an exposure to the various facets of financial management and will involve strategy building in areas such as debt markets and equity markets.
The primary work of the investment banker is the management of client accounts and provision of funds to the market. A solid knowledge in capital markets and option futures is a pre-requisite for an individual to succeed in investment banking.
The main gateway to becoming an investment banker could be through an internship program, part-time work during holidays for students, and analyst opportunities for new graduates. Voluntary work can also help set one apart from other applicants for the entrance positions.
The preferred academic requirements include economics, business studies, statistics, management, finance, and mathematics. Is investment bankers brokers service a good career path? Well, it is a good one.
