The document summarizes a 3-day career trek organized by EnvisionCareers to Hong Kong from January 5-7, 2011. The trek included company visits, presentations, and informal meetings with professionals from various financial industries including wealth management, investment banking, private equity, and hedge funds. Participants gained industry insights, career advice, and networking opportunities. The trek concluded with a happy hour where participants shared their experiences.

1. EnvisionCareers Hong Kong Career Trek Report
January 5-7, 2011

2. About
EnvisionCareers
• We are a career coaching firm that offers career counseling, career
seminars & events that help professionals accelerate their career
progression
• We have an extensive network of professional contacts throughout key
Asian hubs & industries who can provide industry insight & networking
opportunities that are hard to find elsewhere
• We can give you a realistic assessment of where you stand vis-à-vis
your peers and how you can improve your positioning in the market
place
• We can increase your exposure and help expand your network

3. About
HK Career Trek
A 3-Day trip (January 5 - 7) consisted of company visits and informal coffee chats
that provided great networking opportunities in the financial industry. Over 10+
top talents from the most elite firms in Hong Kong were our speakers and shared
their experience with participants.
Wealth Sales & Investment
Industry Networking Management Trading Banking
Insights
Job
Opportunities Alternative Management Equity
Investment Consulting Research

4. Event Schedule
1/5 Wed 1/6 Thu 1/7 Fri
10:30am – 12:00pm 11:00am-12:00pm 11:30am – 12:30pm
Company Visit: Merrill Company Visit: JP Morgan, Company Visit: Alp Invest
Lynch Asset Mgmt Division Partners We had a great mix of
Speaker: R.L. (ED, Wealth Speaker: C.M.(VP, Investor Speaker: J. S. (Principal) company visits and informal
Mgmt)/B. K. (Product Advisory Services)
Advisory, Wealth Mgmt) coffee chats where
professionals from different
12:30pm – 14:00pm 15:00pm – 17:00pm 14:00pm-15:30pm
industries share their
Lunch Meeting: Company Visit: Coffee Chat:
Speakers: A. Y. PeopleSearch Speaker: J. S. (Director,
experience and answer
(ED, Goldman Sachs, Asset Speakers: J.N ( Regional Paul Capital), F. C.(ED, questions from the
Management Division) D. H. Consulting Director), Y.C. K., Oliver Wyman), participants. We also visited
(ED, Goldman Sachs, Business Development
Investment Banking Director PeopleSearch, a leading
Division) headhunter firm, where
15:00pm – 16:00pm 19:00pm – 21:00pm 16:00pm-17:00pm participants received career
Coffee Chat: J. Y Coffee Chat: Company Visit: advices based on their unique
(Associate, Deutsche Bank, Speakers: P. T. (Associate, Oppenheimer situations
Sales & Trading, Fixed Royal Bank of Scotland, Speakers: Steve Bernstein
Income) Investment Banking (CEO)
Division), Howard Peng (ED,
Goldman Sachs, Principal
Strategy)
19:00pm-21:00pm
Happy Hour:
Speaker: C. C. (Associate,
Deutsche Bank, Sales and
Trading Division)

5. Meeting
Meetings Overview
Overview
•Jan 5 10:30am – 12:00pm
•Company Visit: Merrill Lynch Management Division/Speakers: R.L. (ED, Wealth Mgmt) and B. K.
(Product Advisory, Wealth Mgmt)
•Meeting Overview: Robert has worked in Merrill for 10+ years. He shared with us the key criteria
of a good private banker, the differences between the brokerage and banking system, and ways to
break into the industry. We got a great presentation on various investment strategy that they
typically recommend to their clients.

6. Meeting
Overview
•Jan 5 12:30pm – 14:00pm
•Lunch Meeting with two speakers from Goldman Sachs: A. Y. (ED, Asset
Management Division) and D. H. (ED, Investment Banking Division)
•Meeting Overview: Great insight into various career paths within finance and
what it takes to excel in investment banking division. Bottom line: passion is key,
if you don’t like investment, you will not survive the 15 hour work day.

7. Meeting
Overview
Jan 5 15:00pm – 16:00pm
•Coffee Chat with J. Y.(Associate, Deutsche Bank, Sales of Fixed Income)
•Meeting Overview: In this session, our speaker shared with us the life of a
sales in a bulge bracket firm. A lot of socializing with the clients and a lot of
reading (even during weekends!) as you need to follow the market closely
and are expected to know everything that could impact a client’s
investment. He also provided tips on how to ace an interview with a top
bank.

8. Meeting
Overview
•Jan 6 11:00am – 12:30pm
•Company Visit : JP Morgan, Asset Mgmt Division/Speaker:
C.M.(VP, Investor Advisory Services)
•Meeting Overview: We visited JP Morgan’s investment center in
Central. Our speaker gave a detailed overview of JP Morgan Asset
Mgmt’s Asia operation, company culture, her roles and
responsibilities as an investor advisor, and the impact to the Asset
Management practice after the financial crisis in 2008.
•

9. Meeting
Overview
•Jan 7 11:30pm – 12:30pm
•Company Visit: Alp Invest Partners/ Speaker: J. S. (Principal)
•Meeting Overview: Our speaker has worked in management
consulting, investment banking, and now a global private equity
firm. She gave an excellent overview on the different lifestyles of
each industry and shared insights on what is it like working in a
PE firm in Asia. In general, PE firms look for people who have
financial modeling skills and understand the language and culture
of the company they invest in.

10. Meeting
Overview
•Jan 7 14:00pm – 15:30pm
•Coffee Chat with J. S. (Director, Paul Capital) and F. C. (ED, Oliver
Wyman
•Meeting Overview: We were grateful that our speaker, Managing
Director of a PE firm, came to talk to us even though he only slept 2
hours the day before! He talked about the differences between
investing in China and US/Europe and how to succeed in the financial
industry. Another speaker provided great advice to career switcher
who are looking to break into the financial industry.

11. Meeting
Overview
•Jan 7 16:00pm – 12:30pm
•Company Visit: Oppenheimer/Speaker: Steve Bernstein (CEO)
•Meeting Overview: We had the pleasure to meet with the CEO
of Oppenheimer Asia and had a casual conversation. It was great
exposure for all of us as the CEO does some of the recruiting
himself and he printed out everyone’s resumes and reviewed
them carefully in the meeting!

12. Meeting
Overview
•Jan 7 19:00pm – 21:00pm
•Happy Hour with C. C. (Associate, Deutsche Bank, Sales and
Trading Division) R.Y (Associate, Deutsche Bank, Research Division)
•Event Overview: This is the last event of our career trek,
everyone got together and exchanged thoughts on working in the
financial industry in Hong Kong. Great networking opportunity
over drinks!