A few short months ago, I received an offer to come in and interview for an interesting role. It was in the IT audit, but there was also an opportunity to enhance existing processes and to build new capabilities within the audit department. I have only been with Deutsche Bank for three years this May, and I had considered staying there long term. It took until my 2nd year at DB to finally build a small network, get to know the processes, understand the bank, etc. It’s about pros and cons, but the opportunities at the new place are very interesting to me. There are always opportunities if you know where to look or how to create them.
But I was finding challenges working at DB. In no particular order:
- I was finding that all the best career advancement was going to happen for those based in London or Frankfurt. It wasn’t impossible to move up here in the States, but…. it’s always better to be closer to home base. And home base was Frankfurt.
- My last audit was a vendor operating in Germany, and for about a year, I had been really looking forward to going to Germany. It was sold to me that I would be there for a few weeks, I’d get to network and meet many people, build connections, etc. It would help cement staying at the Bank, getting invested, making this relationship long-term. At the last second (and I really mean right before I was going to book the trip), all these travel restrictions came in, and I would be required to work remotely. And only the German and London folks would be meeting together. See bullet above.
- The Bank has been in the news a lot recently…. and my Spider Sense was tingling.
It was an interesting job, but I was travelling less and less, and it was getting less rewarding.
Despite all that, it was tough to make the decision to move on. I had learned a lot, and made some good connections along the way. I’d miss my team, despite them being all around the world. I also had a lot to wrap up, including my audit, another project, and two other audits that I was supporting. By mid-to-late June, I got everything wrapped up, and I was happy to move on.
I’ll miss working at Deutsche Bank. I learned a lot being there, especially in the past year. Both of my managers that I had there were great, and I’ll miss my regular conversations with them. I’ll also miss my colleagues. But nothing lasts forever.
I’ll be based in Jersey City, with 1-2 times a week working in NY in Midtown. Being in Jersey City isn’t bad, because you can wear jeans. And it’s 20 minutes closer each way. That’s right! 40 mins shorter round trip. Not bad.
Wish me luck!