Recent experiences @ Deutsche bank?

[Kanye]

I've been offered a role with Deutsche. Searching this forum scares me a little. It sounds like long hours, a 9 month rule, enforced rate cuts and enforced time off all likely. Does anyone have any recent experiences over there?

[barrydidit]

I've been offered a role with Deutsche. Searching this forum scares me a little. It sounds like long hours, a 9 month rule, enforced rate cuts and enforced time off all likely. Does anyone have any recent experiences over there?

Over where? Germany? Canary Wharf? Brum?

Personally the answer is no to each, but I do have a friend who moved to their Brum site a few months ago. IIRC, it seemed to be the standard onboarding operation - no desk/laptop/logon etc to begin with but he never complained about being overworked and abused after being there maybe 3 months.

I say go for it!

[BlasterBates]

It depends on where you work and the project. If you work in "Morgan Grenfell" bit as it used to be, i.e. investment bank, then long hours will be more likely. As for rate cuts and cutting contractors that is now pretty universal. If you are working in London I don't see Deutsche is any worse than the others.

But don't forget you are a contractor, you can just do your hours, if you're good at your job they won't sack you. No-one is going stop you putting your coat on to go home.

Perhaps put in a few extra hours at the beginning to show willing and then slack off when you've become indispensible to the delivery date. After 6 months you can bog off anyway. Just make sure you bring full concentration for the 8 hours you're there, don't chat to anyone other than essential communication and polite responses to friendly chit-chat and don't surf. If you do that you'll probably be more productive than any of the long stayers. The main thing is the stuff you deliver works.

On the whole it is generally a relaxed sort of place to work in though some employees are overworked on some projects, as is the case in most banks in London. If you do your job it is unlikely you'll have a problem.

If you are not in the front office trading i.e. back office or wealth management I think it would probably be just be a more bureacratic place without the pressure you sometimes get in the front office. Here boredom would probably be the biggest problem.

[Kanye]

Thanks for responses. This is a front office role in London.

Does anyone have any info on this 9 month max rule for contractors? That seems very short given how long it takes to get onboarded at a bank.

[BlasterBates]

I don't really know about how the 9 month rule works but I wouldn't count on long contracts in investment banks any more. Not really much of a future there any more.

The days when armies of contractors worked at Deutsche and the other banks are gone.

[Dallas]

The days when armies of contractors worked at Deutsche and the other banks are gone.

The change the bank function at DB is at least 70% contractors, the permies cant deliver. Same at ~6 other IBs I have been to.

[PEEL]

Thanks for responses. This is a front office role in London.

Does anyone have any info on this 9 month max rule for contractors? That seems very short given how long it takes to get onboarded at a bank.

There isn't a nine months rule if you operate through a Ltd. Hard to discuss the hours - very much depends on your team. What dept are you in, Front Office IT Support? I was under the impression that many of the contracts were hourly with no hours stipulated in the contract as the standard through Resource Solutions.

[LondonPM1]

The change the bank function at DB is at least 70% contractors, the permies cant deliver. Same at ~6 other IBs I have been to.

Very happy to hear that only contractors can deliver. Fast for ward five years and DB is still stuck in a rut spending way too much and struggling with technology

Remind me please why only contractors have the secret sauce for delivery and permies dont? Ah yes because they do a once a year performance review...

On a serious note if you want my view the reason why DB and other bank are in so much trouble is because they hire contractors. The OP asked if DB only hired contractors for nine months.

If you were running your own business would you hire a contractor or perm if you knew you needed them for nine months?

[jmo21]

Very happy to hear that only contractors can deliver. Fast for ward five years and DB is still stuck in a rut spending way too much and struggling with technology

Remind me please why only contractors have the secret sauce for delivery and permies dont? Ah yes because they do a once a year performance review...

On a serious note if you want my view the reason why DB and other bank are in so much trouble is because they hire contractors. The OP asked if DB only hired contractors for nine months.

If you were running your own business would you hire a contractor or perm if you knew you needed them for nine months?

Bitter permie alert

[cojak]

Bitter permie alert

Particularly since he’s revived a zombie thread to give us this story...