The best of British
Pros
The leadership and influence of Bob Diamond has been key to Barcap being where it is today, and to the respect it has earned in the sector. During my interactions with other units, I have come across several senior managers who appear to have taken inspiration from him, and have driven performance of their teams. Therefore, the major upside is probably being able to work and get experience from certainly the best of British IB’s, and one of the best globally. Provided you are in the right team or business unit, this place is generally a true meritocracy. There are many MD’s who are still years away from hitting 40. At the same time, there are several high profile senior MD’s and global heads who were let go, when they failed to continue to deliver. It certainly is hard work, but having been there for nearly three years, I have never come across anybody saying it is a sweatshop. You have freedom to manage your work. The culture is fairly relaxed; and there is great drive and support to recruit, retain and develop talent (something Diamond never fails to reiterate in his quarterly updates); and promote charitable activities. Women’s networks are very active, and there are several female MD’s; however, their ratio is far from being 1:1. Staff benefits such as pensions and health insurance are reasonably generous (from my UK experience), and I doubt are available at similar levels at some of the American banks.
Cons
The downsides really depend on the team or business unit you are in. Overall, there is probably a net upside, given my comments earlier. However, what I have found is that, in some cases, Diamond has not been so successful in passing down his inspiration and enthusiasm through the leadership ladder. Generally, front office is devoid of this issue, as I guess it benefits most from his oversight. However, there are certain pockets in the middle office (where I work), where culture and perspectives are still not quite 21st century; where internal politics and cronyism is a bit too obvious. Consequently, meritocracy and fair treatment have tended to suffer. There are highly talented senior managers (in their area of expertise), but with hardly any interpersonal skills and knowledge of people & relationship management. Their lack of the softer skills have sometimes tended to impact the team fabric. Occasionally, there are individuals, whose lack of knowledge is far exceeded by the positions and rewards they enjoy. If you are unlucky enough to work in such teams, especially in times of a very dry market such as the current ones, where there are not many other jobs on offer, this can have a huge impact on morale.
