When Warren Buffet is looking for a top investment professional, he looks for three distinct qualities. How well do you stack up against these three criteria, and communicate these qualities in your quest for an investment banking job?

The three criteria are intelligence, energy, and integrity, according to a recent story from CBSnews. Buffet says a leader having only 2 out of 3 of them can kill a business, or, as one might surmise, dampen your chances of landing that job.

High intelligence and high energy but without high integrity basically means you have a “smart, fast-moving thief.” Low energy but high intelligence and integrity means you have a “shop keeper,” not someone who is going to drive growth. And low intelligence but high energy and integrity means you have someone who will follow the rules, but not be great in the problem solving or vision department.

How well are you expressing these qualities in your job hunting materials? The article is written for the recruiter or person on the other side of the desk. But you could just as easily translate them for yourself. How well are you communicating your energy level? What sports or physical regimens do you have? Do you work out? Run? Practice a martial art or meditate? You need to demonstrate your capacity for hard work and endurance.

As for mental acuity, expect to be put through the ringer, taking various tests from games like “Connect Four” to making a presentation solving a financial or business problem. Shrewd interviewers may also ask you to give the same presentation over again, in half the time or cutting it down to one minute, to show your ability to think on your feet.

Demonstrating your integrity may be a trickier issue. They will likely perform a thorough background check on you. However, think of what you can do in terms of awards or service citations that indicate your strength of character.

Are you covering all these bases in your job-hunting efforts? How are you addressing the integrity issue? Add your comments below.

John Carney offers an interesting glimpse into the backroom negotiating techniques of investment bankers in a recent column for CNBC.

Carney was responding to an op-ed piece by former investment banker William Cohan who had attacked Mitt Romney and his Bain Capital cohorts as being a “bunch of jerks” in the negotiating process for buy-outs. Cohan says Bain Capital “gamed” the system by offering the highest price in the early rounds of bidding for a prospective company, just to get to the exclusive second round of the process. Then they would suddenly find all sorts of warts and wrinkles during the more extensive due diligence process, and start lowering their big, but only after all their competitors had been booted out of the process. Cohan accuses Bain of being particularly rapacious capitalists.

But Carney argues this beating down of the bid was not limited to Bain Capital, nor was it driven solely by greed. It was also a function of the normal and valuable risk management processes of creditor investment banks.

“Investment banks were typically not just found on the side of the deal where Cohan worked, arranging for owners of companies to cash out to private equity firms. They were almost always on the other side of the deal as well, providing the cash the private equity firms would use to buy the companies,” writes Carney.

These creditor banks would go through their own bidding process to win the privilege of financing a private equity firm’s buyout deal. But once they won that right, they, too, had the right to dig more deeply into the guts of the deal looking for potential problems.

Very often it was the creditor banks that forced the private equity guys to adjust their bids. “We cared a lot about managing the risk we were taking on with these loans. From the lending bank’s perspective, it often seemed like the private equity guys had been so eager to win the role of buyer that they had overlooked serious problems at the company,” writes Carney.

Of course, things went “off the rails” between 2005 and 2007, when M&A activity reached such a fever pitch that banks were rushing credit out the door at a frantic pace to keep up with their competitors. The result was astronomical acquisition prices and far less attention paid to risk and due diligence.

The process wasn’t always simple and it wasn’t always polite, says Carney, but it helped keep valuations in line with reality says Carney.

Have you ever been involved in one of these negotiating sessions in one of your investment banking jobs, either on the buy-side or sell-side, at an investment bank? Add your comments below.

At least one major investment bank is weighing the option of freezing bonuses for their junior investment banking jobs, a move that could catch on if other major banks follow their lead.

Credit Suisse is reportedly considering suspending the automatic bonuses doled out each year to analysts, associates and some vice presidents, according to a story in Businessweek. These staff will still get their regular annual salaries, but bonuses may be lowered to keep total pay flat from the year before.

Industry insiders are watching to see if other big banks such as Goldman Sachs or JPMorgan Chase follow suit. If they do, it could mark a turning point on the Street. But if not, it could open up Credit Suisse to large-scale defections by junior bankers who are able to get higher pay packages elsewhere.

Junior-level bankers typically comprise about three quarters of a firm’s workforce. They often start with base salaries in the $200,000 range, and can expect increases of 15 to 20 percent each year. An investment banker often spends three to four years as an analyst or associate, then three more years as a vice president before being named as a director. Top-producing vice presidents in their third year can earn in the neighborhood of $600,000 to $700,000 in total compensation, according to the article.

A plunge in trading revenue and European debt worries have put a crimp in profits for the big banks, thus leading to more strategies for cutting costs. However, limiting pay among junior bankers could be a risky move since juniors tend to talk more with peers and former classmates and compare notes. The news of lower entry-level pay at one firm can put it at a disadvantage recruiting new employees.

Many of the big U.S. banks will inform their employees about salaries and total compensation by the end of January. New compensation schemes would go into effect at the beginning of February. With earnings estimates slashed by a downturn in trading revenues, the banks are eyeing each other’s compensation plans carefully this month before determining their next step.

What’s your opinion? Do you think the inevitable downward pressure on total compensation, especially for more junior employees, is going to put a damper on young people pursuing investment banking jobs? Add your comments below.

Bloomberg reports that compensation for investment bankers in Brazil is heating up in a big way, with pay hikes in the neighborhood of 25% for bankers ready to defect to rival firms.

And while the financial services industry continues to shink in such centers as London and New York, the opposite is true in Brazil. There’s actually a shortage of experienced investment banking talent in Latin America’s largest economy.

Brazil is showing a net increase in investment banking jobs in 2011. Salaries for managing director-level bankers ranged from around $350k to $500k, not including bonuses. This compares well with the average $300k to $400k at top U.S. banks. In fact, according to the Bloomberg article, average pay for bankers fell by roughly 27% last year, while it declined by only 1% in Latin America.

“The local debt and credit markets will be the next big thing,” (in Brazil), said Vinicius Bolotnicki, a partner at Options Group in Brazil. Foreign companies such as Deutsche Bank AG (DBK), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), Bank of America Corp. (BAC) and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) have been adding employees at their offices.

The biggest challenge for Brazilian banks will be to retain senior executives, says Bolotnicki, especially as fees decline from underwriting stocks and bonds and from advising on M&A.

Total revenue from investment banking fees in Brazil reached $891 million last year, according to data from Dealogic. That level is below 2010 levels of $1.16 billion and far off the peak of 2007, $1.6 billion. This means that senior executives may take the lion’s share of banks’ bonus pools, leaving mid-level professionals’ compensation essentially flat. Nevertheless, Brazilian banks still pay their bonuses in cash, something that’s especially attractive at a time when U.S. and European banks are being forced to defer larger chunks of executive compensation in shares of stock, and trim bonuses overall.

Bright spots on the Brazil scene include increasing demand for equity analysts and equity-derivative teams.

What’s your take? Are you investigating Brazil as either a place of doing business or for an investment bank job? Add your comments below.

It takes more than a Hermes tie and a snappy Powerpoint presentation to make a Maserati-sized living these days, says Rob Cox in his Reuters column on investment banking jobs and the industry.

Gone are the days of being a plain vanilla banker. But the crises of the moment, namely Eurozone debt doubts and increasing government regulations, are creating opportunities for “entrepreneurial” financiers.

Start with exchange rate and debt price volatility. Cox says it means that multinational companies will have to hedge their exposure like never before. Which gives currency, commodities and derivatives experts a brand new way to gain access to corporate boardrooms, which had previously been the private fiefdom of traditional M&A bankers.

With bank lending harder to come by, particularly in Europe, companies will have to go to investors directly. Which creates underwriting business for enterprising bankers and investment opportunities for cash-rich private equity firms.

Even if a worst-case scenario plays out in Europe and the Eurozone breaks up, it would still create new opportunities for foreign exchange traders with 17 more currencies to trade. How’s that for finding the silver lining in every cloud.

Looking at the U.S., Cox sees opportunities for mergers among the 7,000-plus smaller, regional banks that are ripe for consolidation. Whereas in South America, companies are looking to create regional businesses by acquiring assets from retreating European owners. 2011 saw a record number of intra-Latin American takeovers.

And in a related article from Economic Times, consulting firm McKinsey & Co says Asia will become the biggest corporate and investment banking market by as soon as 2015. Global corporate and investment banks will derive almost half their revenues-as much as 45 per cent or about $ 790 billion-from Asia by 2015, led by India and China, from about 33 per cent or $ 442 billion in 2010.

What’s your take? What do you think will be the bright spots for investment banking jobs in 2012? Add your comments below.

The average base pay for investment banking jobs in Hong Kong has shot up by 15 percent in the past year, and has outpaced salary hikes in London’s financial center.

Analysts in Hong Kong have seen pay increases in the range of 20 percent, while managing director-level staff have seen 25 percent average raises, according to a story from Britain’s Telegraph. Average base pay for investment bankers now hovers around HK$890,000 (US$ 114,428). Whereas similar staff in London saw pay increases in the neighborhood of 12 percent. All this is pretty remarkable given the uncertainty in markets, belt-tightening among banks, and the ongoing hangover from the European debt crisis.

“Investment banking teams operating in Hong Kong have performed more strongly than their counterparts in London and New York in 2011. Generally banks are keener to invest in their teams in Asia than in Europe and the US and that has meant a bigger boost for Hong Kong bankers’ base pay,” said Mark O’Reilly, managing director of the recruitment firm Astbury Marsden which conducted the research.

But insiders expect things to cool down next year as the Eurozone crisis puts more of a damper on growth, and conditions force larger global banks to be more cautious about hiring and salaries, including their Asian offices.

In fact, O’Reilly commented that many of these pay raises were agreed upon early in 2011, when confidence in the banking sector was stronger and banks were eager to retain key staff in order to be well-positioned for a possible recovery. Now, with less of a recovery in sight, pay raises are fewer and more modest.

Some banks, such as HSBC, are even paring back their Asian units. Research from another recruitment firm, Morgan McKinley, shows that 35 per cent of financial services firms plan to reduce their headcount within the next six to 12 months.

One bright spot on the horizon is staffing for compliance. As Hong Kong has expanded its range of financial products, it has triggered a greater demand for compliance professionals. Staff working on compliance teams reported an average 21 percent increase in salaries over the past year, nearly double that reported in London.

Does the growth in Asian investment banking jobs present an opportunity for you? Is it something you’d pursue? Add your comments below.

The UK is proposing legislation that will force banks to separate their investment banking and consumer banking business. The move is part of complying with the findings of an independent commission on banking led by John Vickers, a former Bank of England Chief Economist.

Back in September, Vickers suggested that banks should create fire walls between their consumer and investment banking divisions, and boost the amount of equity or capital they hold to between 17 to 20 percent, to better withstand shocks to the system. It was in response to the 850 billion pounds (US $1.3 trillion) that the British government has had to spend, pledge and loan to big UK banks since the financial crisis took hold in 2007.

The announcement comes a week after British Prime Minister David Cameron opted out of a European accord to stem the Eurozone’s debt crisis, reports Bloomberg. Cameron’s position was joining the pact would stifle the UK’s ability to support its own financial industry. The Vickers proposals are Britain’s own attempts at preventing another financial crisis and shielding taxpayers from having to shell out for massive bailouts.

“We cannot risk having a repetition of that financial catastrophe that we had three years ago,” said British business secretary Vince Cable. “We can’t have a position where the banks are too big to fail.”

The move sounds similar to the Glass-Steagall legislation passed by Congress in 1933 that prohibited commercial banks from collaborating with full-service brokerage firms or participating in investment banking activities. Glass-Steagall was repealed in 1999. As a result, the distinction between commercial banks, investment banks, and brokerage firms has blurred. Many banks own brokerage firms and provide investment services, according to Investopedia.

Which leads to the question: do you think the UK developments will put further pressure on Congress to pursue similar regulations, or reinstating Glass-Steagall? And what effect would that have on the health of the investing banking industry and investment banking jobs? Add your comments below.

Adam Janikowski left his job as a vice-president of investment banking at BMO Capital Markets in Britain to pursue an MBA at INSEAD in France. However, INSEAD offers a ten-month MBA, rather than the traditional two-year stint offered by other schools such as Harvard and Wharton. So would pursuing a summer internship still be desirable, or necessary, with the shorter program?

For those pursuing a traditional MBA, the summer internship gives you a chance to “test the waters” at an investment bank, to make sure you are choosing the right career path. It also dramatically improves your chances of landing a full-time position with the same firm after you graduate.

INSEAD’s program runs from January to December and gives students a full two months off for the summer. Students can choose to use the time for a summer internship, or to travel, volunteer, or just relax at home with their families. INSEAD doesn’t require students to do anything in particular at this time.

However, according to Janikowski, who offers his perspective on the program in an article for the Globe and Mail, 56 percent of his classmates found an internship and spent their summers working. This compares to 100 percent of MBA students who participated in summer internships at Harvard.

One interesting side note on INSEAD: of the students who did spend their summers working, the vast majority of them did NOT go to work for their summer employer. In fact, 95 percent decided to try something new!

However, the reverse is also true. INSEAD Career Services advises students who are interested in moving into an investment banking job, particularly in a bulge bracket firm such as Goldman Sachs, that a summer internship is crucial. Many bulge bracket firms will only make full-time employment offers following an internship program.

“Participating in an internship gives you the opportunity to experience a career change without actually having to make a commitment. Almost all of my fellow students who worked over the break felt that the experience will be useful in their future career. An internship is also a good opportunity to earn some money at a time in one’s life when there is only cash outflow,” writes Janikowski.

Did you do a summer internship during your MBA program? Did you receive a job offer as a result? Add your comments below.

Insiders on Wall Street from CEOs down to investment banking analysts expect to see a dip in compensation this year versus last, reports the LA Times. Although the release of bonuses are still a few weeks away, many are predicting that 2011 compensation levels at the largest investment banks will fall between 15% to 30%.

Banks have been hammered this year by global economic uncertainty, volatile markets, and more restrictive regulations coming out of Washington, D.C.  This marks an abrupt halt to the quick bounce the industry enjoyed coming out of the financial crisis, when there was a brief uptick in employment and bonuses.

“Generally speaking, everybody is cutting back big time,” said Steven Eckhaus, an executive compensation expert at the law firm Katten Muchin Rosenman, who is quoted in the article. “The mood is wary.”

Nervousness among investors has also sent shares of investment banks and brokerages southward. And these falling stock prices mean that stock options for executives which are part of their compensation package will also be worth much less.

In addition, recent financial regulations have forced banks to cut back on some of their most profitable activities, such as proprietary trading, and pressured banks to retain more of their capital.

But while banks trim their work force and compensation levels, there are always bright spots. The cutbacks are not affecting all aspects of investment banking the same way. While traditional mergers and acquisitions bankers may see their compensation drop by as much as 14%, bond traders face steeper pay cuts because of current rock-bottom interest rates that squeeze profit margins.

And all this news still doesn’t mean investment banking jobs aren’t among the most lucrative on the planet. Goldman Sachs, for example, set aside enough funds in the first nine months of 2011 to pay each of its 34,200 employees an average compensation of $292,000 for the year. And that number could grow larger before the end of the fourth quarter.

How does all this affect you? Are you seeing mild or major reductions in compensation at your firm? Add your comments below.

It’s one of the hottest areas for growth within investment banks, and yet the banks have to get out of the business.

That’s the good news-bad news story from Bloomberg on how just as commodities trading is adding substantially to big banks’ bottom lines, they have to divest themselves of the business. And that certainly has repercussions for the dozens of top commodities traders on the Street.

Ever since the Volcker rule, named for former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, was included in the Dodd-Frank Act, it has placed new limits on banks taking risks with their own capital. And on October 18th, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission voted to curb trading further in 28 commodity futures, including oil and gold.

As a result, the big banks are shutting down their commodities units. Among them, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) and Bank of America Corp.

This is all taking place at a time when money is sloshing into commodities trading and generating huge revenues. Revenues generated by the 10 largest banks’ commodity units increased by almost 16 percent to a combined $5.49 billion in the first nine months, year over year, according to data gathered by Coalition, a London-based research company. Meanwhile, overall revenue at these banks shrank by 12 percent.

That money has to go somewhere, right? No surprise that commodity hedge funds attracted $7.91 billion from investors in the first 10 months, 10.2 percent more than a year ago and above the hedge-fund industry average of 2.1 percent, according to New York-based eVestment|HFN.

It also means as investment banking jobs in commodities trading disappear, the best traders will look elsewhere for opportunities. “A lot of banks are going to struggle to retain their top traders over the next few years,” said Justin Pearson, managing director of Human Capital, a London-based firm which helps to recruit commodity and energy traders.

The list of refugees is growing. Kieran McKenna, who traded oil for Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN) and JPMorgan, started a hedge fund that will start taking money from outside investors in December, called Mastic Investment Advisory AG. Former JPMorgan trader Damien Bombell has started a hedge fund to invest in metals, grains and energy. To name a few.

Do you think the forced exodus of top commodities traders will put further downward pressure on investment bank earnings and hiring in 2012? Add your comments below.