Advancing in Finance
I'm currently working as a Sr. Financial Analyst in Bay Area. What do you guys recommend on learning and advancing faster in the field? MBA? CFA? Coding? I have a friend that is telling me the field is changing rapidly and tech will change the dynamics of the field so hold off on getting an MBA.
Toastmasters. Develop a silver tongue
CFA helps in some roles, in others it’s CPA.
Depends on your goal - you want to finish as portfolio manager? If so an MBA is pretty useless, CFA is a must if you want any credibility and if you want an edge a strong coding ability
Thank you for the advice! My goal is become a CEO one day or die trying. How do you feel about the change in the dynamics of the position though? Automation is slowly coming in, coding is going to become a need?
Look at our former cfo who’s at lpl now. He’s a cpa. Our current coo (who used to be cfo and to whom new cfo reports to) is CFA. Both got the job in early 40s. They represent alternative paths, check out their bio. Current Cfo is quite young too. I don’t think any of them wasted time on mba. All undergrad only. All of them would excel in mba
It’s good that you are aware of your ultimate goal of becoming a CEO someday. Think about it like a top unit of a large building. You first have to go through all the other floors below. Considering that, right now you should think about how you can be a Manager, and then a Director, then VP, then CFO, and lastly CEO. Having a CPA will definitely help you get till Director’s level. After that, it will be a combination of your interpersonal skills + luck + your hunger to reach the next level. I can keep talking about this all day as I have lived the same route as you and I am in between Director and VP level right now. Feel free to IM me with specific questions.
Thank you! I will definitely reach out to you for questions!
Better route is CFA, CPA is okay if going accounting but CFO is going the FP&A route which is more CFA degrees then CPA.
What is your actual job though? Buy side analyst?
Currently FPA for IP Licensing, Legal, Facilities, HR, and Strategy. The company is splitting so lots of ad hoc experience from time to time.
Coding and statistics
TC YOE?
TC: 150k YOE: 6 years but 9 year with rotating internship
And going to turn 30 this year