Hr Case Essay

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SG Cowen: New Recruits Case Analysis Introduction By the turn of the 21st Century, SG Cowen had grown into one of the world’s largest investment banks. It had developed a reputation as “a firm known for top‐tier research, strong equity sales and trading capabilities.” (Delong and Vijayarghavan, 2006, pg. 2) The Harvard Business School paper by Thomas Delong and Vineeta Vijayaraghavan details the recruiting process followed by the firm. SG Cowen was in positioned uniquely as a “boutique” bank, not as large as the powerhouses such as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, but still competitive and prestigious enough to be selective in its recruiting. While the Wall Street giants would grab top‐of‐the‐class students from schools like Harvard, the recruiters at SG Cowen took a different strategy. “We used to go top 10,” said Chip Rae, Director of Recruiting, “but at some of the top schools we were getting people in the middle of the class.” ((Delong and Vijayarghavan, 2006, pg. 4). Instead, Rae and his team went to second‐tier schools but targeted the top students in those programs. Historically, these have proven to be hard‐working, intelligent and suitable candidates for their firm. Question 1: What are the key decision points used by SG Cowen in making hiring decisions? What is your team’s evaluation of the hiring process used by the firm? SG Cowen utilized a well‐developed, tiered process to make hiring decisions on potential candidates. SG Cowen first conducts informational sessions at on‐campus recruiting events to describe the firm, its benefits and steps in the recruiting/hiring process. They use these first‐round interviews, in advance of the formal recruiting process, to assess how serious candidates are about the opportunity. SG Cowen then reviews the resumes submitted by interested students and holds open, on‐campus interviews. The firm also selects

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