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发表于 2007-3-19 01:16:30
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ENTRéE JUST FOR STARTERS
In1921, Goldman Sachs partner Waddill Catchings called Paul Sachs, then director of Harvard's Fogg Art Museum, to ask about the US university's business school. Mr Sachs said he should come and see for himself, and teach a class.
The visit resulted in the start of what was then a unique policy (at Goldman Sachs) of hiring four of the top business school graduates per year, as well as an internship program hosted by the firm.
More than 80 years and thousands of MBA hires later, the landscape has changed. With sophisticated undergraduate business school graduates, tenured analysts, and seasoned experienced hires competing for jobs, the question can be asked: “Is the MBA still as desirable a credential on Wall Street?”
At Goldman Sachs, the answer is well reflected in our recruitment numbers. Last year we hired about 165 business school graduates to join our first-year associate programmes in the US, Europe and Asia.
We recognise that MBAs, as key members of our client coverage teams, bring many technical, analytical and other professional skills with them from their graduate programmes. As such, they are quickly integrated into both the transactions of our businesses and our team-oriented culture.
We believe that MBA graduates have a broad perspective and a focused determination about what they want to do with their degree. Their unique workplace experiences, acquired during their pre-business school lives, can also be more valuable than they might realise.
At Goldman Sachs they are often asked to bring these experiences to bear by managing people and projects as soon as they join the organisation, and in working with business leaders who may be many years their senior. In addition, they may be able to leverage prior industry experience in sectors such as healthcare, retail or entertainment.
Equally important, however, are less measurable skills, attributes and qualities that MBAs develop in their two years at business school. At Goldman Sachs, their networking, relationship building and communication skills are of utmost importance. MBAs learn the importance of making decisions, thinking strategically and negotiating. Their maturity and sophistication attracts us to them.
In a business such as private wealth management, for example, which along with investment banking hires the majority of MBAs at Goldman Sachs, business school training has several advantages for junior professionals. They receive not only the rigorous analytical training necessary for managing financial assets, but also access to a robust business-school network of future executives, which will be helpful for attracting new high net worth clients to the firm.
One characteristic that MBAs are not guaranteed to possess, however, is real-life financial market experience. In fact, some recent MBA graduates might find their practical financial expertise rivalled by undergraduate hires who have been working in the industry for a few years, especially if the MBA graduate has chosen to switch careers.
Many investment banks hire analysts from higher education institutions with strong undergraduate finance and business programs, such as New York University, University of Pennsylvania and London School of Economics. Coupled with on-the-job training and an in-house training programme such as our own Goldman Sachs University, analysts acquire the professional and financial skills critical to any business line.
The result is a recent recruiting trend among banks, including Goldman Sachs, to promote many analyst hires directly into the associate ranks while reconsidering the number of MBAs needed to fill the roles. This is especially true in areas such as sales and trading.
Today's MBAs are competing with analysts who are already building credibility and, in some cases, profit lines in their organisations, and with holders of other degrees such as Masters of Finance. They also represent a more expensive hire than college graduates and can be stigmatised by a reputation for arrogance sometimes associated with a new MBA.
MBAs will serve themselves well by highlighting their coursework in areas such as ethics and leadership, and the increasingly international nature of the top business school programmes. MBAs also have an edge over other graduates in understanding the global economy and interacting with those from different cultures.
Despite the huge increase in the quality and quantity of undergraduate hires and stronger in-house training programs, we continue to believe that MBA recruiting is a vital part of our overall recruiting strategy. We have already begun to witness the change in course programming, and its impact, and feel strongly that business schools will continue to graduate some of the smartest minds in the financial services industry and beyond.
MBA job seekers should feel confident that their degree – and their time, commitment and effort – gives them a much more sophisticated outlook on the world and a breadth and depth of experience that employers recognise as invaluable. The MBA also continues to offer the world's best “fresh start” for young professionals interested in switching careers.
If I can offer any advice to MBA students, I would say to remember that at a company with a strong meritocratic culture, such as Goldman Sachs, the importance of your contribution outweighs any degree you might earn.
While we care about your MBA degree, we care more about how you integrate yourself into the organisation, what responsibilities you take on, and what value you add. Business school will give you entrée to a company, but what you do when you get there matters more.
Aaron Marcus is global head of recruiting for Goldman,Sachs |
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发表于 2007-3-19 01:13:14