Is banking a blot on your CV?
If you left university and achieved a position in investment banking, you were probably towards the top of your class. You are probably highly driven. You are probably accustomed to the company of similar individuals and to the notion that non-performers are akin to four legged animals. Outside banking, unfortunately, none of this will do you any favours.
"Bankers tend only to have only worked in a professional services environment in which everyone is a graduate and everyone is highly focused," says one senior headhunter working in the corporate sector. "In industry it's very different - you are working with a lot of people from very varied backgrounds and it's much more about managing than doing.
"People in the City are very good practitioners, but not very good managers," he adds.
As a result, it appears that highly qualified M&A bankers, who should find it easiest to move into corporates, are often shunned due to the absence of anything else on their CVs.
Recruiters say the worst hit are typically vice presidents who are expensive for banks to hold on to and too long in the tooth to retrain in other sectors.
Do you agree? Is banking a solid foundation for launching yourself into another field? Or is it tantamount to building a career on a swamp? Feel encouraged to comment below.
