Undergrad Decision. PLEASE HELP (GE- ***, JPMorgan, ABNAMRO)

[yamasho]

Hello all,
I am new here. I have been on here reading posts for a good minute now and figured I'd join the fun. I have until December 15th to make a decision. Yes, 9 days! Here is the scenario:


I recently received an Offer from GE- Commercial Finance for a position as an Investment Analyst. I wanted to know what you all felt about this position and program specifically. How does it stack up with FMP? I looked at both programs before I showed interest and chose to go after only one and that was the IA program. Has anyone been involved with the program or heard anything about it. The pay is somewhat lower than expected, but that is not my top priority out of college.

Also, what is the career path like. On the GE site it is listed as: "IA-> In-Charge analyst-> Business Analyst-> underwriter-> Underwriting/Marketing VP"

However I am not interested in Underwriting what-so-ever. Also, this program is listed as a Commercial Lending Leadership Development Program. However, I wanted to know how reputable this program would be and if it would be considered "formal training". I have an offer from LaSalle Bank for their Commercial Leadership Development Program as a credit analyst. I also have an offer from JPMorgan as an analyst for Private Client Services. I would like to know how you all would rank these and what you all thought would provide me with the best opportunities in the future. I know that ultimately it boils down to what I would be happier doing and what I am most interested in. Thanks for your help!


ps. Those of you that work for GE, or have worked for GE in the past. ANY words of advice would be great.

[brewer12345]

I'd probably rank them as:

1) GE position
2) LaSalle position
3) JPM

Getting credit trained at GE or LaSalle will have enduring value.

[yamasho]

thanx 4 tha response. and thats really what it's all about. They all are paying good money so that really isn't an issue. GE is in Chicago so the cost of living will be much higher. (I am from Detroit)

Have you heard anything in regards to the specific programs?

[brewer12345]

No, I know them by reputation only. I think GE's corporate culture would drive me insane (I don't drink the six sigma kool aid), but it is a great name to have on your resume.

LaSalle is owned by ABN-AMRO, so they may have a more "European" approach to things. Or not.

[saluki9]

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewer12345 No, I know them by reputation only. I think GE's corporate culture would drive me insane (I don't drink the six sigma kool aid), but it is a great name to have on your resume. LaSalle is owned by ABN-AMRO, so they may have a more "European" approach to things. Or not.

Despite being owned by ABN LaSalle is still very much a Chicago run organization. They are run very well (I know one of the Sr VPs) and tend to promote from within.

Can't go wrong with the first two.


Just out of curiosity, what are they offering salary wise? You don't have to be specific, just a range.

[TromboneAl]

Quote:

I have been on here reading posts for a good minute now and figured I'd join the fun.

Well, that's a refreshing change from the "I've been lurking for three years and finally decided to post" topics.

[yamasho]

LaSalle is on the low side, but above 45k in base salary. JPMorgan and GE are both paying more...

...I interned with LaSalle over the summer and I truly enjoyed the culture and the people. Also, they promote fairly quickly from the Credit program. That is why I am not sure on what to do. It seems as if each choice begins a totally different path...

...I know that they are all great opportunities, but it is still stressing me out. Especially considering that the forced deadline is taking place during finals week :

[Danny]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TromboneAl Well, that's a refreshing change from the "I've been lurking for three years and finally decided to post" topics.

[Brat]

GE has a great name, but you have good vibes about LaSalle from your internship. Relationships mean a lot in business, I would give LaSalle an extra star.

[brewer12345]

Quote:

Originally Posted by yamasho LaSalle is on the low side, but above 45k in base salary. JPMorgan and GE are both paying more... ...I interned with LaSalle over the summer and I truly enjoyed the culture and the people. Also, they promote fairly quickly from the Credit program. That is why I am not sure on what to do. It seems as if each choice begins a totally different path... ...I know that they are all great opportunities, but it is still stressing me out. Especially considering that the forced deadline is taking place during finals week :

Based on these comments, I would probably go with LaSalle. The thing to focus on when you get there is simple: learn credit. Learn as much as you can about credit analysis, and if you can learn about workouts, your future will be even brighter.

[donheff]

Granted you got good responses to the question you asked -- so this turned out to be a good forum to come to. And, you will now get to drink our LBYM and invest cool-aide which will dramatically improve your future. But how the heck does an undergrad researching job offers end up at an early retirement blog?

[Danny]

Quote:

Originally Posted by donheff But how the heck does an undergrad researching job offers end up at an early retirement blog?

Maybe we are becoming recognized as wise men and women.
We definitely are a general clearing house for life's questions and dilemmas. As soon as the ER story breaks in Draft magazine expect a flood...

By the way ... what do people think about coffee - how many scoops should I use for 4 cups and for how long should I grind my beans

[Brat]

I make my coffee in 8 cup quantities, use 1/3 rounded cup of beans. I grind until it looks like course sand, if I want it very strong almost to the powder point. I drink my coffee black, no suggar, and strong.

[TheGeneral]

I don't think you could go wrong with either Lasalle or GE. I would stay away from "private client services" unless you want to be a stockbroker/adviser/salesman. However, I would caution you about GE - the culture is very competitive (bottom 10% out every year) and they work people hard. If you're young, you can put in the time, and then leverage that on your resume somewhere else down the road. However, the red flag is your statement that "I don't want to do underwriting." If GE says that a training program is supposed to produce XYZ result, and you don't see yourself becoming XYZ in the future, then I would think very hard about whether it is the right fit for you.

I speak from experience on this topic (I was an FMP). In some cases, working for a diversified company like GE is great because there are so many different types of businesses you can work for. However, there is also a tendency to pigeonhole people in certain functional roles and you have to fight to break that mold. In some cases, you can't, and you have to leave for another firm or MBA school.

Also, I see you are crossposting your career threads on Vault and the RE board...that's an interesting combination. :-)

[yamasho]

Thank you guys for the info. "The General" do you have any experience with the Investment Analyst position with GE at all? Not direct experience, but do you know anything about the position or have any advice that you could give? If so, this would be great. How did you like FMP? It seems as if I hear so much more about FMP when compared to the position as an Investment Analyst.

[TheGeneral]

I don't know anything about the IA program (it's specific to ***), but I was in an industrial segment until recently, so a lot of the capital stuff was off my radar. I'm more familiar with OMLP, IMLP, and of course, slave camp (CAS). FMP is probably the most well known entry-level program since it's been around for several decades and has about 600 people on-program across the world.

I checked out the description of the IA program and it looks interesting. To my mind, it looks more interesting than what I did on FMP, which was a lot more accounting and a lot less finance than I was expecting. Nothing wrong with accounting, but I was expecting to do more analytical work in finance (NPV, modeling, etc.) instead most of my rotations had a lot of subledgers to tie out and account reconciliations to complete. I think there are more diverse assignments on the Capital side, because you can get into capital markets or pricing. Even so, a lot of the rotations are heavy on FP&A which I think is a tedious chore of consolidating budget numbers from myriad disconnected systems/divisions. For GE's reputation, you would be surprised how many problems we have from poorly integrated acquisitions that create tons of manual work for the finance team. Then they expect you to work every weekend at quarter close (which consistently kills July 4th and New Years) because no-one at headquarters can figure out how to move a deadline up a few days.

Don't get me wrong, I had a good time on FMP, learned a lot and had some fun but at the end of the day, I'm not interested in being a CFO for GE. I'd rather work on discrete projects, not the constant budgeting/planning cycle (which NEVER ends), and I'd like to become more of a specialist, rather than a generalist CFO. I'm currently interviewing with consulting firms.

So back to your original question, I think you would be well served by doing the IA program for a few years and getting the GE meatball on your resume. However, it's probably not going to be quite as heavy on the credit analysis as the LaSalle job will be. On the other hand, I imagine that LaSalle is going to be very focused on real estate, which may be too specific for you at this point in your career. $45k isn't bad but I would be skeptical if their offer is substantially below GE (which is not known for big paydays)...if a firm is paying you more, they are going to expect more out of you and give you meaningful assignments, rather than just intern-level grunt work. I know it's easy to say that the money is not as important (I said the same thing) but after a year or two, do you want to be $10k/year behind your peers? You did sayyou liked the culture at LaSalle, and GE is an unknown. It's really your call.

[yamasho]

Thanks alot. I have to be make the decision by Friday the 15th. I am definitely leaning towards GE. I really would like to be in Chicago after college. I am truly interested in Commercial Lending and I would like to learn as much as possible, and grow my knowledge base as much as possible over the next 2-3 years. Like you said, getting the GE "meatball" will be great. Also, I believe that working directly with various clients will give me a chance to learn much more about business in-general. I don't want a 9-5 at a desk, learning only the way that my employer does things.

[yamasho]

I accepted the GE- Commercial Finance Investment Analyst position this morning. Just figured I would let you all know. Thank you a million for the help...

...now I just need help finding an apartment for next summer! haha :