FO job share - is it possible in investment bank? Post Reply

[Trinka]

Hi ladies,

Wonder if anyone has ever worked in job share arrangement with another mum in FO. I am working on the trading floor and love my job however part-time is not really an option, but I am also feeling that I miss out on my child's life and development.
Spoke to a few head hunters and internally, so far looks like I need to come up with a solution, I.e. offer a ready-made plan for my employer to agree to such scheme.

Would anyone have recommendations or perhaps could even get in touch if you do have interest to do a job share, especially if you have relevant FID trading experience and would like to discuss. I would probably consider to re-qualify and move into other areas but preferably it is client facing role which again has to be full time/job shared and agreed by the employer... But I hear banks also need to gain ticks on diversity panels so maybe it could be an option for gaining work/life balance and working 2.5 days/week.

Look forward to hear your thoughts and advice - do you think if I might be too idealistic?

[millymoo]

Hello Trinka,

Firstly, this is a really interesting thread and I applaud you for asking the question.

However, I think the brutal reality is that we are light years away from this materialising as the norm in many FO positions within investment banks. I believe there are several reasons for this:

1. It is more expensive for employers to set up and support this type of arrangement and given the current economic climate with many banks still into a 3 -5 year cost cutting (read redundancy) exercise this would be a tough business case to justify and there are plenty of men willing to work full time in your position.

2. You would presumably have to find another women to work in the job share as I don't think any men working in front office financial services would want to do this and in my exp. women who have come back post maternity into front office roles tough it out to compete alongside their male counterparts.

3. How would the clients and revenue be covered? 50/50 I presume, you would need to find someone likeminded who was happy with that arrangement.

4. Would you be happy to sideline your promotion and career ambitions? Despite what everyone says to the contrary, returners and part-timers do not get promoted, given more responsibility etc. (I have first hand exp of this) and most management positions on investment banks are held by men (a large majority of whom are with women who do not work) so there is a huge amount of unconscious bias towards women who do and the choices they have made. (I have had coments ranging from "but WHO looks after your children" to "is it really worth it, you can't be making any money" and "what does your husband think about you working?, I'm sure you don't really need to work" and "are you some kind of feminist making a point?") Yes, these are all true and would they ever be said to a man with a family?, errr no.

5. Yes, banks do have to improve their diversity quotas but this doesn't specifically have to be within a front office environment. Most of the senior women in my organisation do not sit in FO roles but in either COO, Business Support or other functions.

I think your best solution is to consider re-training in a different role with a) more friendly working culture and b) more open minded to different contributions that a working mum can bring to an organisation.

In terms of moving the agenda forward on this point and highlighting that we need a seismic shift in the attitudes towards women in this industry, can I suggest that you join some of the networks out there (CityWomen, Women in the City, City Mothers etc) as they are doing good work on lobbying to change views however I have to be honest and say that I am not sure anything significant is going to happen during my career lifetime (I would happily like to be proved wrong on this point!).

Good luck with finding the right balance and do PM me if you want to chat further.

[EHMorris]

I am client facing front office and don't think a job share would work for my clients or me - however you might find someone who thinks differently.

If you do it would be worth exploring the compliance implications of having two dealers job sharing - position marks, responsibility for reporting etc .

I would imagine that you start work early but also can get away at a reasonable time (depends what you trade of course) - could you tweak the end of your working day to give you more time with your children?

Good luck - and was interested to read the other reply so far.

[jingo_x]

short answer - yes. I have done this for 7 years.
It can work in specific circumstances and with certain client bases, the important thing is that it needs to be seamless for clients, colleagues and management (especially your direct management). In many cases people didn't even realise that we were in a share. There are some general pitfalls to be aware of with job-sharing and some that are specific to Investment Banking, but I would be happy to offer you some advice based on my own personal experience if you would like to PM me.
Biggest thing is to research it well before you ask, provide all the answers to questions the bank might have and make sure there is an upside for the business.
Also check out www.thejobshareproject.com for good advice about senior level job-sharing and www.workingfamilies.org.uk for more detail about your legal position to request flexible work.

[Trinka]

Hello lovely ladies!


Many thanks for all your responses and just to ptoovide an update - guess what, I got redundancy the week after I have posted my initial question!
The timing was pretty good for me and I finally I had the time to do some life projects I have been delaying for so long due to the work that was wearing me out! And well, there wasn't many mums who are metals sales traders as commodities is the most male dominant division in FID/FICC so I didn't stand chance being the only lady in 30-members team globally)

Anyway, I am discussing a new role on the buy side where the boss agreed yo some flexibility (5days condensed into 4days), fingers crossed no one will be pointing fingers out when I have to leave at 6pm on the dot to release the nanny!

This break taught me a few things -1) that actually the moment you even start thinking about part-timing in FO, your male colleagues see you as not committed enough and great material for departure opportunity. 2) also probably not to share my thoughts and opinions with colleagues who look trusting and pretend to be your mentors as they might have the boss's ear and keen to secure their backs and 3) that I actually like my job a lot, its less challenging and more relaxing than being a full-time mum, and that life is often full of sacrifices and some of them are worth taking, like opportunity to work for the sake of being a good mum/partner instead of anxious isolated person I could turn into if I chose to stay at home.
Again, thanks a lot for your contributions and best wishes for any mums juggling careers in the CITI with home life.

[jingo_x]

Sorry to hear about your redundancy, but glad to hear that something positive may come out of it (as is often the way). I did wonder what had happened to you!
After writing my own post last year I had been put in a position where I had to work full time again and was told that I would never get promoted because I had been part time. I became very unhappy so asked to be considered for redundancy. So after a very long career in FICC I was made redundant too and have also been on a bit of a journey trying new things and meeting new people. I have decided not to go back and to try my hand at freelance work. A bit scary, but I am really enjoying my new life.
I wish you lots of luck on the buy side and hope your compressed hours give you the balance that you are looking for!

[MamanMummy]

I gave up very full time, impossible to share, very decently paid equity research job when we decided to have a fourth child. I had been working on my career for many many years and family and friends were stunned. It was four years ago and I am fulfilled, even if the journey was not easy. Best of luck to both of you and all those who make this very difficult decision.