Is it now safe to take a sabbatical?
Now that the majority of financial services firms have placed the axe back in the woodshed, the prospect of taking time out from the industry for a sabbatical no longer seems quite so daunting. But, as some recent high-profile cases demonstrate, it's not always possible to get back in.
Jean-Phillip Blochet, one of the founding partners of Brevan Howard, stepped down from the firm following his return from sabbatical spent racing across through the Sahara last year.
Meanwhile, Kamal Tebet never returned to his role as a managing director of global markets at Citigroup following his career break and Simon Yates' 'sabbatical' involved him stepping down from his role of co-head of European equities at Credit Suisse in London to relocate to New York.
Of course, the reasons for taking a sabbatical are wide and varied and taking one definitely doesn't mean the death knell tolls for you career. However, you might want to carefully consider the amount of time you take out.
"In the most part, those who take a 12-month sabbatical do not return to their current role, particularly in investment banking" says Cathy Allen, chief executive of The Santa Fe Group consultancy and co-author of a forthcoming book on sabbaticals. "The norm is three to six months, but if you're a high-powered executive you should be at the lower end of that."
In fact, of the 180 people interviewed for Allen's forthcoming book 'Reboot Your Life' who took a sabbatical, only half returned to their previous position.
"Not because they got kicked out for doing the sabbatical," she (hastily) adds. "People take time out for various reasons - to prevent burnout, to learn a new skill or, increasingly, for volunteerism. Often, they either leave their current firm or realise the career isn't for them."
In fact, some firms are actively encouraging it. Goldman Sachs, for instance, has its Public Service Program, which allows managing directors, VPs and executive directors to take 12 months paid leave to work with a charitable, public service or cultural organisation (they do have to have been there a year, though).
PricewaterhouseCoopers has also rolled out "a number of sabbatical and furlough programmes" this year.
Such a move could be rewarding. Joseph Quaderer, a director at Morgan Stanley, has taken six months out to teach in Uganda. "While I'm going to Uganda to teach high school students the basic tenets of entrepreneurship...I know I'll be doing a lot more learning than teaching," he said in his blog.
