Where Should I Work: JP Morgan Chase or Citibank?
Citigroup and JP Morgan Chase (JPMC), both headquartered in New York City, sit side by side on the list of the Big Four banks in the U.S. Each provide investment banking and other financial services to a wide variety of institutions, governments, private investors, and corporations.
Applicants with MBAs are obviously in high demand at both companies, and competition is fierce for positions at either one. Here we’ll compare the two and hopefully lend some insight into which one is the best fit to your career goals.
Internships
JP Morgan Chase offers internships for both early year undergrads and for postgraduate students. The undergraduate Early Insight program has a variety of positions posted, and applicants can consult the site for opening dates. These are typically short term and take place in JP Morgan’s worldwide offices as well as online.
For graduate and later year undergrad students, Internships at JPMC are usually 10-12 weeks long, with longer terms available in certain regions and business divisions.
Citigroup offers internships for undergrad and graduate students at the analyst level. Associate level internships are available to MBAs and other Master’s students on a full-time or summer basis. Opportunities in the U.S. and at the firm’s global offices are all searchable and available for application online.
Interviews
According to figures posted on Indeed, both firms have a process that takes around two weeks from scheduling to notification of your next interview. One interviewee for an Associate position at JPMC advised to “be confident and give qualitative and quantitative details regarding previous experiences”. Another candidate recommends inquiring about your potential team’s goals, and initiating a conversation about how exactly you will fit into this scenario.
Interviewees at Citigroup also report an overall positive experience, with phone appointments lasting about fifteen to thirty minutes. At the end of the call, the interview team will notify you as to whether you’ll advance. A current employee in the Operations department said of their interview that it was “open and loose and to the point. Professional questions like a checklist.” Another hire in Investments Accounting said, “I was interviewed and got an offer a month later.”
Compensation
The most recent published data from Paysa states that Citigroup pays an average salary of $96,700, ranging from $63,000 in the 25th percentile to $118,000 in the 75th. Specific positions pay as follows:
- Investment Banking Analysts – $70,000 on average with a range of $60-79,000
- Financial Analysts – $84,000 on average; a range of $75-$91,000
- Credit Analysts – $62,000 on average; a range of $52 – $71,000
- Risk Analysts – $90,000 on average; a range of $78 – $100,000
- Technical Analysts -$93,000 on average; a range of $82 – $102,000
As for JP Morgan Chase, the average salary is $84,524, ranging from $52,146 at the 25th percentile to $104,814 at the 75th percentile. A breakdown by position is as follows:
- Private Client Banker – $67,000 on average; a range of $57 -$76,000
- Underwriter – $58,000 on average; a range of $53 – $63,000
- Financial Advisor – $65,000 on average; a range of $55-$73,000
- Technical Analyst – $75,000 on average; a range of $65-$84,000
- Business Analyst – $92,000 on average; a range of $82 – $103,000
- Senior Business Analyst – $118,000 on average; a range of $104 – $130,000
Culture
JPMC employees have described the culture there as “fast paced and stressful” which should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with the investment banking world. Another worker said, “always be on task, time management is key but you must know how to manage your time before [getting hired]… it is not something that can be taught nor is it the responsibility of management.” Hours were generally reported as average for the industry, sometimes 40 per week but often more. Dress code is business casual/corporate casual according to the majority of employee reviews.
Again, no surprises with Citigroup when one employee said, “[it’s a] competitive environment in a highly competitive market. Management focused on profit, client service and emphasized adherence to compliance parameters.” Another Citi employee rated it a 5/5, saying, “The environment if fun and professional at the same time. The managers are organized and passionate about what they do.” Other workers cited increased stress at year-end, and yet another mentioned that their office was “in a constant state of change”.
Most reviewers said that hours were 40-45 per week on average with an increase during busier quarters. As for dress code, Citi is also business/corporate casual, and employees can earn a ‘jeans badge’ by donating money to charity.
Career Development
Citi offers promotions after 6 months, and raises once a year. Bonus structure here is strong and reliable, and any pay increase is based upon a ratings system.
JPMC’s promotion system is less well documented by employees, and one said, “pay raises are guaranteed. However, the amount is unknown.”
Both companies provide an impressive benefits package including healthcare and wellness coverage, retirement plans, and family leave, among others.
Recruiting
JPMC recently updated their university recruiting schedule; details on the changes can be found here. Citi also offers a robust recruiting program globally, with events updated here.
The Summer 2020 MBA Internships That Should Be On Your Radar
While this column typically focuses on MBA graduates, we don’t want to leave our current MBA students high and dry. In this week’s column, we’re going to switch our focus from jobs for graduates to summer 2020 internships available for current students. If you are one such person, don’t fret if you haven’t gotten in on this yet—there are a variety of options still available. However, time is of the essence.
MBA Intern for FX Networks — Walt Disney Company
Walt Disney Company is a leading media and family entertainment enterprise. The company is well known for its vault of classic animated movies, soon-to-be streaming empire, and amusement parks.
The company is looking for talented candidates to work as interns for FX Networks, a recent acquisition in the merger of Fox and Disney. The intern will work on studio finance and strategy, update financial models and forecasts and building analyses. In addition, they will have their own project to steward for the length of the three-month (May–August) internship.
Candidates must be currently enrolled in an MBA program or graduated within the past six months. In addition, they should have experience with Excel and PowerPoint and have experience with financial analysis.
Key responsibilities include:
- Learning about the strategic issues facing a television network
- Gaining exposure to financial planning and analysis
- Gaining exposure to strategic finance
More about this internship and others can be found on the Walt Disney website.
MBA Internship — GE
GE is a multinational conglomerate that has been in operation for over 120 years. Headquartered in Boston, the company currently works in the following sectors: aviation, healthcare, power, renewable energy, digital industry, additive manufacturing, venture capital and finance, and lighting.
GE is hiring talented MBA students to work as interns at the company, operating at its aforementioned Boston headquarters. The person hired for this internship will be assigned to a senior leadership team project on which it will work throughout the 10-to-12-week internship. In addition to the project, he or she will have a coach assigned to them.
This person will provide them access to senior leadership within the company. Candidates for this position should be currently enrolled in an accredited MBA program and have a 3.0 GPA. In addition, candidates should have three to five years of previous work experience and be able to work full time for the entire summer.
Key responsibilities include:
- Building knowledge of the GE ecosystem
- Establishing networks
- Demonstrating the ability to adapt
More information about this and other internships can be found on the GE website.
MBA Intern — Uber
Uber is a rideshare service that provides rides to customers in more than 785 metropolitan areas around the world. Based in San Francisco, the company also offers a food delivery service (Uber Eats).
Uber is hiring an intern to work out of the company’s corporate headquarters in San Francisco. The person hired for this position will be working on strategy and planning for the company with regard to its community operations in the United States and Canada. This internship will run during the summer. Candidates for this position should be completing their first year of a full-time MBA program and have at least four years of previous experience in investment banking, consulting, or corporate strategy. In addition, candidates should have exceptional Excel skills.
Key responsibilities include:
- Developing strategic insights to support Uber’s sustained growth
- Conducting industry benchmarking analysis
- Providing thought leadership on problems without precedent
Visit the Uber website to learn about this opportunity and many others.
MBA Intern — Ford
Ford is a major player in the automotive industry. The Dearborn, Michigan–based company is the second-largest auto maker in the United States and the fifth largest globally. The company sells vehicles under its own name as well as under the Lincoln name.
Ford is looking for talented MBA students to come to the company’s headquarters and learn more about the company. The person hired will be joining Ford’s finance team, learning more about its globe-spanning operation. Unlike the other internships listed here, this is a leadership program, intended to cultivate talent that will join the Ford family.
Each rotation in the program is 18 months, and interns will go through two rotations. Candidates will have made progress to complete their degree by spring 2021, and they will have at least three years of prior experience in finance.
Key responsibilities include:
- Advancing Ford’s global plan
- Gaining exposure to marketing and sales
- Gaining exposure to financial planning and analysis
More about this program and other opportunities can be found on the Ford website.
Top MBA Recruiters: Oracle
In 2019, landing a job in tech during or after your MBA studies is a wise move. As covered in a previous ClearAdmit article, a specialization in the field can lead to a broad and ever increasing range of career opportunities.
Top MBA Recruiters: American Express
The fact that “Don’t leave home without it,” once American Express’ omnipresent tagline, is now “Don’t live life without it” speaks to its transformation. Its YouTube channel features content ranging from “Unlock the Money,” showing the evolution of various startups, to “Epic Everyday,” which offers crafty lifehacks like how to make smoothie ice cubes. Not just a credit company anymore, AMEX has billed itself an “engine of commerce.”
Like many global financial services groups in 2019, AMEX has learned that to thrive, it must adapt to meet the many needs of the millennial consumer. This, along with its wide variety of job opportunities and a top global recruitment program, make it a great place to work for MBAs.
Why American Express?
With over 65,000 employees worldwide, American Express was ranked 13th by Fortune on its “100 Best Companies to Work For” list in 2019. One of its major attractions is the recent added focus on work life balance, and it now offers a whopping five months of family leave time for new parents. Other benefits include generous healthcare coverage which begins on day 1 of employment, wellness and prevention programs, and tuition assistance. American Express also offers a variety of virtual positions, along with a compressed work week.
The company also matches employee donations to nonprofits, offers a variety of volunteer opportunities, and prioritizes environmental sustainability efforts across all levels of employment. It has also earned 100 percent on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index for LGBTQ—inclusive workplace policies and practices. In addition, AMEX was voted the “Best Company for Diversity” by Black Enterprise in 2017 and one of the “Top Companies for Women in Tech” in the same year.
Phoenix, Salt Lake City, and Fort Lauderdale are listed as key cities for external hiring and internships, and the New York City headquarters is a top hiring location as well.
American Express Salaries
Glassdoor reports the typical American Express Analyst salary at $72,034. Managers make $101,000, while Senior Marketing Managers make $118,000. Top salaries are $149,000 for Marketing Directors and $196,000 for Vice Presidents.
Starting an American Express Career
American Express’ recruitment program is robust, and it hires MBA interns across all disciplines. According to one recruiter, “The culture and people at AMEX are what make it a great place to intern … [it’s] an environment centered around collaboration.” Interns can find opportunities in the following areas:
- Consulting
- Finance
- Marketing
- Operations
- Human Resources
- Risk and Governance
One former intern says, “Many of the casual coffee chats of my intern days have developed into true mentor-mentee relationships in my full-time career.” The 12 week summer internship program is offered in New York, Phoenix, or Fort Lauderdale, and AMEX also offers ‘talent communities’ in which students and professionals can track available opportunities and find matches for their abilities. Having shifted in the past decade to a focus on digital commerce, AMEX seeks MBA graduates who are well versed in data analysis, no matter what position they seek.
Top recruiting schools for AMEX include the New York University Stern School of Business, Columbia Business School, the University of Michigan Stephen M. Ross School of Business, Cornell’s SC Johnson School of Management, London Business School, IESE Business school in Barcelona, IIT Bombay, and IIM Ahmedabad. Roughly 250 interns and full-time hires are brought into the company each year, according to recent figures.
A final helpful piece of American Express career advice offered by a recruiter:
“It’s your job to sell us on your passion. I also need to understand that you know what the job is. That might seem obvious, but a lot of people come in unprepared. I love questions from candidates that look to the future: ‘What do my first 90 days look like?’ ‘What are the key things you’d like to help me to achieve?'”
Top MBA Recruiters: Samsung
With Vision 2020 goals that include $400 billion in revenue via VR technology, the implementation of 5G, and biotech, Samsung is one of the most desirable companies for MBAs who want to advance their careers at the intersection of business and tech. Along with a strong recruitment record from top programs for interns, a potential Samsung career also offers recent MBA grads competitive starting pay.
Samsung Career and Internship Opportunities
Samsung’s Global Strategy Group (GSG) is comprised of 25 affiliates across a wide range of industries. In a recent talk with Harvard Business School, Jake Junghyun Suh, Senior Manager at Samsung GSG notes that the company “recruits the best talent from top business schools and develops them into high-caliber global general managers … [As an intern or a strategist], one learns essential management skills by working across diverse geographies, industries and functions.”
The company recruits first year MBAs as interns and second year students as Global Strategists via its Leadership Development Program (LDP), which has been active since 2016. The program seeks to place students into positions furthering the company’s goals and enriching the management pipeline. Adhering to the principle of “a company is its people,” Suh says, recruits are not just brought in and left to their own devices. Instead, they become ambassadors for GSG, connecting with managers across affiliated companies. Interns and second year strategists continue to be engaged at all levels as they advance through the LDP.
Interns begin the LDP with a two month placement at Samsung’s Seoul headquarters, before advancing into marketing or strategy roles as internal consultants. If they choose to advance, strategists then transfer to one of GSG’s subsidiaries or one of fifteen regional headquarters.
Three main categories of rotations make up the LDP: Product Marketing (12 months); Strategy & Operations (six months); and Sales and Marketing (six months).
Product Marketing
In product marketing, students see development of products through development to launch, and end-of-life cycle transition. In this rotation, interns are exposed to both customers and various stakeholders from the Seoul headquarters.
Strategy & Operations
During the strategy & operations rotation, interns engage in strategic planning and a wide variety of functional areas, gaining the opportunity to provide support toward driving company goals.
Sales and Marketing
During the six months of the sales and marketing rotation, interns can expect to consolidate market information to shape consumer profiles while interacting with ad agencies and working on brand development projects.
While the three rotations provide students with a framework within which to develop, each recruit is encouraged to explore projects based upon their own interests and expertise. Initiative is key to Samsung career success.
Roshan Vaidyanathan, Michigan State University MBA said in a contribution to Samsung’s recruiting website, “This program provides countless opportunities for valuable industry exposure, rapid professional development, and accelerated networking … You are given the platform to define your career.”
Samsung MBA Salary Expectations
Samsung career salaries, according to recent figures from Glassdoor, range widely based upon education and experience level. While a field sales manager with a BA can expect to start at around $50,000 per year and a $12,000 bonus, senior managers with MBAs earn upwards of $125,000 with $30,000 in bonuses.
Recent openings include a Senior Strategy Management position within Samsung’s Accelerator, which supports the company’s startup efforts via innovative software and product development; a Product Marketing Manager job with Samsung’s TV division, and a Senior Manager for Integrated Marketing position. Each of these are located in Samsung’s Ridgefield Park, NJ headquarters.
MBAs willing to relocate may seek employment openings in the Seoul headquarters, or at one of the company’s locations in Silicon Valley, Seattle, Dallas, or New York City. The internship program also offers positions at each of these locations.
Some recent reviews by employees address Samsung’s company culture and benefit structure. Among these are that the company offers “an awesome environment [with] lots of freedom”… along with “exposure to new technologies and good benefits.” Samsung offers paid parental leave, along with competitive 401K matching and healthcare coverage that includes fitness memberships and wellness education.
Along with a strong community engagement/volunteer program, one of the other benefits of working at Samsung is its diverse environment. Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) for women, veterans, new mothers, and LGBTQ people offer networking and connection that help to enhance the employee’s experience at Samsung.
Top MBA Recruiters: Bridgewater Associates
Of the manifold of competing hedge funds, one clearly stands out above the rest: Bridgewater Associates.
With over $150 billion in assets under management, the Westport, Connecticut, firm is highly-regarded for its ability to consistently make gains—even during the 2008 economic crisis. In 2018, the firm’s flagship Pure Alpha fund gained 14.6 percent.
Let’s take a closer look at why MBA graduates should consider a Bridgewater Associates career.
Why MBAs Love Working at Bridgewater
Given its position in the market, Bridgewater provides a generous starting salary. According to Glassdoor, Management Associates—a position which MBAs would start their careers—are paid an average of $120,199 per year.
As with most investment jobs, bonuses from a successful year can raise this total even higher. This base rate puts Bridgewater well ahead of many of its peers in terms of compensation.
In addition to the starting salary, many MBAs are drawn to Ray Dalio, Bridgewater’s idiosyncratic leader. Dalio runs Bridgewater according to a series of principles that he developed early in the firm’s life that all employees are expected to follow.
Life at Bridgewater
Bridgewater’s culture is rooted in two major policies: radical truth and radical transparency.
Unlike other hedge funds, there is a flat hierarchy at Bridgewater. No one person is above criticism, meaning that anyone can criticize anyone else if they have done something incorrect. Since the company thrives on openness, employees’ ideas are often challenged by others to ensure that they are the best possible ones. Every person at Bridgewater is held accountable; all communication and meetings are recorded and made available to anyone who cares to access them.
While some find this environment to be too intense, many thrive in it. The openness of the company has created a tight-knit community that supports and takes care of one another. In terms of perks, the company offers employees free breakfast, lunch, and dinner; on-site meditation rooms, gyms, and laundry facilities; and shuttle service for those commuting from New York City or north.
Bridgewater Associates Career Prospects
Given that Bridgewater is extremely tight-lipped to the public about many aspects of its business, it is unclear where they recruit people and how many people they pull from particular locations. It can be said that they do engage in on-campus recruiting. When interviewing a managerial candidate, Bridgewater looks for “intellectually curious people” who value “truth, openness, and the pursuit of excellence at all costs.”
Candidates undergo the Bridgewater interview process. Often described as weird, the process involves many different interviews and tests to assess a candidate’s skills, as well as his/her potential fit with the organization. This can be a grueling process that wears down less interested candidates.
As noted earlier, the most important aspect is whether a candidate fits into the Bridgewater culture. To this end, anyone who is considering applying to work at Bridgewater must read Dalio’s Principles. This will let potential applicants know if Bridgewater is for them and give them a leg up during the interview process.
