For junior bankers using AI to help draft their resumes: Recruitment firms are on to you.
Words like “robust” and “meticulous” are telltale signs that banking hopefuls have enlisted AI to polish up their resumes, according to Wall Street executive search firms. Other giveaways are overused phrases like “ever-evolving,” or when candidates say they played “a significant role shaping” something, recruiters say.
Like many job applicants, young bankers are increasingly using AI tools like ChatGPT to draft their resumes. But it becomes an issue for recruiters when they don’t properly proofread their applications and errors creep in. This raises red flags for their potential investment banking employers who prize attention to detail, accuracy and seek applicants who don’t take short cuts.
“If this person didn’t bother to take the time to build a resume, why would I take the time reviewing it and interviewing them,” said Brianne Sterling, head of investment banking recruitment at Selby Jennings. “A lot of what these bankers are doing in their first jobs is putting together financial models and presentations for clients. It’s probably an immediate red flag for employers if they see a resume with errors in it or looks generic.”
One error she’s noted cropping up in junior resumes is when candidates say they’ve had experience in a bank’s “industrial group.” The team that advises companies in industries like manufacturing and transportation is typically called the “industrials group,” plural.
The biggest banks declined interviews with their recruitment executives, but the external recruiters said the proliferation of AI-assisted resumes is slowing the hiring process. External recruitment firms often take a first round of interviews before sifting their chosen applicants through to the banks. They’re now spending longer probing candidates with more specific and technical questions to ensure they’re as good as their resumes say.
“There is a massive influx — pretty much everyone is using AI,” said Bennett Jordan, managing partner at Litney Partners, the recruitment venture between digital media company Litquidity and Whitney Partners. “It’s just those who do not edit or put things into their own words who get caught or thrown out.”
Multiple applications
AI can help job seekers expedite the process of writing resumes by formatting and tailoring the information they include. Some recruiters also use AI to help filter applicants, but even then, candidates can include key words that ensure their applications get noticed.
Some applicants are also applying for the same job multiple times with slightly different keywords, according to Richelle Konian, who is co-founder of Careers On The Move, a firm specializing in Wall Street hiring. Some positions — for example at a hedge fund — can attract 3,000 applicants, she said.
“This is not the way to go about going for a position,” she said. “If anybody that’s looking for a job thinks that they can take shortcuts by using AI or embellishing their resume, they should really concentrate their time on developing their skills.”
Jeanne Branthover, head of the global financial services practice at executive search firm DHR Global, said the frequency of AI use may prompt companies to look harder at the individual’s character.
“When it turns to the in-person interview, the focus will be on who are you as a person, versus just your resume,” she said.
Once inside the bank, the junior banker hiring process is notoriously competitive. Depending on the firm, it may involve interviews with the bank’s head of talent, another with junior team members and then interviews with a vice president. Sometimes there are assignments to complete at home. Then, there will be interviews at managing director level and with group heads or more senior executives as well. With such a lengthy process, hiring the wrong person and then having to train them can be a costly mistake, Konian said.
The job is known for its long hours spent building financial models and creating PowerPoint presentations. That has periodically sparked debate about the impact of those conditions on the well-being of young employees, particularly when deal volume rises. But with the long hours come lucrative rewards and the potential for compensation running into the millions of dollars as employees progress.
Those serious about a career in finance are likely to take more care on their resumes, according to Konian.
“Someone that gets the seat in the job would have the courtesy and respect to submit their resume with integrity,” she said.
