Investment Banking Sales Brokers

The work atmosphere for sales brokers is fast-paced and intellectually stimulating. The telephone is their best friend—or worst enemy depending on how they look at it—because sales brokers are constantly on the phone prospecting for clients or following up with existing ones. They’re expected to make hundreds of cold calls a day to build their client base. It’s a roller coaster occupation, not one for the fainthearted; the upside is the potential for having a well-paying career. The work can be very stressful because brokers have to meet sales quotas, they sometimes provide investment suggestions that result in the loss of millions of dollars, and they face frequent rejection from prospective clients.

Sales brokers start their days around the same time as traders—prior to market open (6 a.m. to 7 a.m.) and only stop working the phones when the markets close. Once the closing bell rings, brokers meet with traders to discuss the day’s activity, update databases, and plan their sales strategies for the next day. Sales brokers typically leave the office around 5:00 or 6:00 p.m., but often meet with clients in the evening. They typically have weekends off. Some sales brokers work longer hours. In fact, many more than 40 hours per week, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

There’s a lot of schmoozing in this career. Sales brokers take asset managers out to lunch, to sporting events and concerts, and to other activities to try to convince them to become clients.