The time has come for investment bankers to feel the pain.
Up until now, it's been their trading brethren who have born the brunt of layoffs in the wake of last summer's volatile markets. Consumer bankers in the retail divisions have been feeling it too. But now rainmakers are getting poured out.
Bank of America is planning 2,000 job cuts in the investment bank, commercial-banking unit and wealth-management divisions outside the U.S. Those cuts, if you can believe it, are going to be leveled on top of the 30,000 already taking place.
BofA's personnel expenses increased 17% between 2009 and 2011. Revenue for that period declined 22%.
Another new change being bandied about: junior investment-banking bodies will be for hire. That is, they'll be pooled together and then sent to whatever area needs help at that moment. An informal rotation program, if you will, dictated by need.
BofA, like other bulge-bracket banks, is being careful about not pruning too deeply while also reducing costs. Its talent, after all, is responsible for its success, so it has to walk a fine line between getting rid of talent and appeasing shareholders.
If you want to avoid edging onto a "glass cliff," consider how quickly you make your descent at a company and ask yourself why they're choosing you to fill that position.
It's all in the past now, but here's what the top rainmakers at Lehman Brothers took home in 2007. We're talking tens of millions, naturally.
Easing Your Way East (DealBook)
The Middle East hasn't quite emerged as the financial center everyone was hoping for, but there are pockets where you can be successful.
It's hard to run a successful business when your employees keep leaving the company. Just ask Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Asking the Right Way (The Globe and Mail)
If you want someone to do something for you, lay on the flattery. Thick. Doesn't matter if the person knows there's nothing behind it.
Dwindling Benefits (Robert Half)
The next thing on the list of perks to go: continuing education. More and more companies are refusing to pay for employees' classes and the like.
Buzz Around the Office
The 15 Most Memorable Ad Jingles (BuzzFeed)
The list includes Wrigley's "Double Your Pleasure, Double Your Fun", Band-Aid's "Stuck on Me" and Pepsi's "Simply Irresistible."
List of the Day: Biking to Work
Save on gas and help the environment by taking your bike to work.
1 .Leave a change of clothes at the office.
2. Ensure there's a shower you can cool off in once you get there.
3. Invest in the right biking clothes.
(Source: MoneyWatch)
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