Confused and need advice!

[solution9]

Hi guys, I have read a quite a few threads and actually am needing myself so would like some advise from professionals. I am deciding to make a major career switch from engineering to financial/banking industry(25 this year). Because I have zero experience in this line and is really interested to get in and know more. I would say I have 2 options at hand. I wanna go into the frontline (sales) because at least I believe that how hard you work (effort) determines how far the rewards can be determined. As compared to my previous job as a engineer getting a fixed pay monthly working non stop.

1. Banks offered me a roles in the frontline to do sales (you can call it Personal Banking Associate/PFC)I have to revert back to them by 1 week time!!

2. Join my friend who is doing quite well in the insurance industry(in fact very well after I heard alot of experiences and stories from him/his agency, shall not name which angency/company it is)

My aim at the end of the day is wanna achieve certain targets by certain age, and at the same time to learn and meet a lot of new people/help them in terms of financial guidance.

Would be glad if to hear from you guys. Thanks thanks thanks. !

There's a saying: the grass is always greener on the other side

Make sure you find out fully about what you will be expecting in sales. It may look glamorous on the front but to succeed in it is definitely not an easy job.

If you are really set to go into financial sales, my advise would be to join your friend in the insurance industry. Much more hard work is require as compare to PB but there is a higher growth on the long run. For sure being a PB to the general sounds more prestige as compare to insurance agent but the pay off is much more rewarding.

You have more control of yourself as insurance agent but that per say means more discipline is required from you.

[solution9]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

There's a saying: the grass is always greener on the other side

Make sure you find out fully about what you will be expecting in sales. It may look glamorous on the front but to succeed in it is definitely not an easy job.

If you are really set to go into financial sales, my advise would be to join your friend in the insurance industry. Much more hard work is require as compare to PB but there is a higher growth on the long run. For sure being a PB to the general sounds more prestige as compare to insurance agent but the pay off is much more rewarding.

You have more control of yourself as insurance agent but that per say means more discipline is required from you.

Ya because I am willing to "chiong", so I like to know whether to "chiong" into which company is better. $$ will be my number one factors to consider. But by you saying: "For sure being a PB to the general sounds more prestige as compare to insurance agent but the pay off is much more rewarding".

You are referring to banker or insurance agents more rewarding?

Originally Posted by solution9

Ya because I am willing to "chiong", so I like to know whether to "chiong" into which company is better. $$ will be my number one factors to consider. But by you saying: "For sure being a PB to the general sounds more prestige as compare to insurance agent but the pay off is much more rewarding".

You are referring to banker or insurance agents more rewarding?

Insurance agent is more rewarding in the long run but that per say each role have its pro and con.

Most people would choose PB due to basic salary, prestige(working in bank), customer walk in etc but you have to understand that having those advantageous factor comes with smaller control area, you have to abide by the working hours, you have to go to the branch assign(chance of being assigned to a low traffic branch), politics: depends on branch/bank culture(seniors get to choose their customers and leaving the less potential customers to the junior)

yes, the grass is greener on the other side, the role sounds great, but does it fit your personality. do you enjoy cold-calling clients, promoting insurance, credit cards, products and what not, meeting sales target and travel around. if yes, good for you, go for it.

as prestigious as pb is might sound, not everyone is cut out for it. for some, like being an engineer, is having job stability and solving real-world problems. this kind of satisfaction is different from frontline sales.

you have no experience. definitely lose out to your peers. do open your eyes for opportunities. like sales engineer, pre-sales, financial engineer, the finance industry is huge.

i work in a mid-office of an IB, have working knowledge in all kinds of financial instruments and the kinds of products that banks sell (whether to retail or institutional).

personally having -
1) seen some of the products being traded,
2) read and studied quite a bit on financial services and the products they sell (and the kind of products a "banker" might have to sell to the average joe/jane),
3) having friends who are retail "bankers",
4) having tried out and disliked the retail insurance business in SG, not to mention, doing the simple math to see how a customer can have their eyeballs screwed out...

- i feel that rather have studied a little harder and went to study engineering or IT instead of finance in school; although in hindsight without my financial background i might not have learnt the simple (decent) principles of it.



as an advice, i would recommend you NOT to take #1 and #2. because both will still require you to sell sub-standard products to your customers (who might be your family/friends/friend's friend), you must ask yourself if you are willing to do that. it's usually the sub-standard products (insurance cash value plans, unit trusts) that are the hot-sellers in the insurance & retail banking sector because commissions very good. selling deposits and term insurance won't make you a lot of money.

it's apparent i do have a bias towards retail bankers and insurance agents, mainly because i know what they do/sell and i know they can never give me quality (and objective) financial advice.

but if you still want it, then you should take #1 over #2. reason being, ANYBODY can be an insurance agent (seriously.) but banks won't just take any mother-son/daughter in; and that in bank sales you might take over an existing portfolio or of course have customers come to you, hence you get to meet people.

objectively speaking - do consider this as well. financial services (with the exception of loansharks and maybe vanilla moneylending?) are gaining more and more regulatory oversight - what this means is that there's a shitload of paperwork & do's and don'ts, and of course with the advent of the DNC list - just see how happy your peers are when they register, and think of the **** you have to do in order to cold-call prospects (especially if you are an insurance agent).

as for your objectives of meeting people and dispensing good financial advise (or rather, having in-depth knowledge on personal financial/risk planning, investments, etc) - you don't have to be in the financial services industry to attain both.


of course both are still honest jobs - nobody pins the fault on the corner stall uncle selling cheap cigarettes if his 20-year old regular suddenly contracts lung cancer.

This is real solid advice for TS. Couldn't agree more.

Originally Posted by anon

i work in a mid-office of an IB, have working knowledge in all kinds of financial instruments and the kinds of products that banks sell (whether to retail or institutional).

personally having -
1) seen some of the products being traded,
2) read and studied quite a bit on financial services and the products they sell (and the kind of products a "banker" might have to sell to the average joe/jane),
3) having friends who are retail "bankers",
4) having tried out and disliked the retail insurance business in SG, not to mention, doing the simple math to see how a customer can have their eyeballs screwed out...

- i feel that rather have studied a little harder and went to study engineering or IT instead of finance in school; although in hindsight without my financial background i might not have learnt the simple (decent) principles of it.



as an advice, i would recommend you NOT to take #1 and #2. because both will still require you to sell sub-standard products to your customers (who might be your family/friends/friend's friend), you must ask yourself if you are willing to do that. it's usually the sub-standard products (insurance cash value plans, unit trusts) that are the hot-sellers in the insurance & retail banking sector because commissions very good. selling deposits and term insurance won't make you a lot of money.

it's apparent i do have a bias towards retail bankers and insurance agents, mainly because i know what they do/sell and i know they can never give me quality (and objective) financial advice.

but if you still want it, then you should take #1 over #2. reason being, ANYBODY can be an insurance agent (seriously.) but banks won't just take any mother-son/daughter in; and that in bank sales you might take over an existing portfolio or of course have customers come to you, hence you get to meet people.

objectively speaking - do consider this as well. financial services (with the exception of loansharks and maybe vanilla moneylending?) are gaining more and more regulatory oversight - what this means is that there's a shitload of paperwork & do's and don'ts, and of course with the advent of the DNC list - just see how happy your peers are when they register, and think of the **** you have to do in order to cold-call prospects (especially if you are an insurance agent).

as for your objectives of meeting people and dispensing good financial advise (or rather, having in-depth knowledge on personal financial/risk planning, investments, etc) - you don't have to be in the financial services industry to attain both.


of course both are still honest jobs - nobody pins the fault on the corner stall uncle selling cheap cigarettes if his 20-year old regular suddenly contracts lung cancer.