SK-16 at SEC - what salary would it take you to leave for private sector?

[Anonymous]

For those making 260k as a SK-16 at SEC, would you move to private sector for a price? Or have you already hit the golden goose and want to stay put?

[Anonymous]

Golden goose in terms of overall compensation package and quality of life. I guess I would in theory give up dinners with family and weekends for $750-1M but really time is priceless

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Golden goose in terms of overall compensation package and quality of life. I guess I would in theory give up dinners with family and weekends for $750-1M but really time is priceless

This is great to hear. Thank you.

[Anonymous]

Curious to also hear the opposite path: Would partners making 750-1M rather have the SEC at this point (assuming maxed out 16)?

[Anonymous]

*Or if they had to do it again. Thanks in advance for any advice.

[Anonymous]

sk-14 that recently interviewed private sector, and calculated that i would need an offer around 550-700k in order to leave. staying put, but wouldn't turn down an sk-16 or or sk-15.

[Anonymous]

Making about the same at a different fin reg, and it would take triple.

[Anonymous]

For those who are saying it would take double or triple, you should know that the private sector isn't all 60+ hr work weeks, high turnover, and stressful environments. You can leave, make a decent amount more money, improve your work environment, and still work normal hours.

Just in case some misconception of private sector life is holding you back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those who are saying it would take double or triple, you should know that the private sector isn't all 60+ hr work weeks, high turnover, and stressful environments. You can leave, make a decent amount more money, improve your work environment, and still work normal hours.

Just in case some misconception of private sector life is holding you back.

NP and I've wondered what the other options are that don't involve biglaw hours and I've come up empty. Almost all of the people that leave end up going to biglaw. One person I know left to go in house although from the Barker Gilmore comp studies it's not clear that move would result in materially higher comp. Perhaps something like working at the PCAOB or a higher level position at FINRA or Nasdaq/NYSE might be decent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those who are saying it would take double or triple, you should know that the private sector isn't all 60+ hr work weeks, high turnover, and stressful environments. You can leave, make a decent amount more money, improve your work environment, and still work normal hours.

Just in case some misconception of private sector life is holding you back.

Comp is not THAT much higher at cushy private sector jobs.

Comp is way higher at law firms, but then yes a huge hit to work-life balance.

- former GS-15 (not SEC) who went to an F500 in-house

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those who are saying it would take double or triple, you should know that the private sector isn't all 60+ hr work weeks, high turnover, and stressful environments. You can leave, make a decent amount more money, improve your work environment, and still work normal hours.

Just in case some misconception of private sector life is holding you back.

Switched from the private sector to another finreg. For me, the quality of the work, relative flexibility, and generous pension are what keep me from entertaining offers to return to private. I know the work can be “normal”, but it’s rarely as impactful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Making about the same at a different fin reg, and it would take triple.

Same.

Big factor to me is that we already own our “forever home” in a good school district.

If this weren’t the case, I’d be more willing to leave for 2-3x the pay.

Not sure what the extra money would afford me. We are on track for retirement and have plenty of money for luxury vacations. Suppose a second home but how would I spend time there if I’m always working?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those who are saying it would take double or triple, you should know that the private sector isn't all 60+ hr work weeks, high turnover, and stressful environments. You can leave, make a decent amount more money, improve your work environment, and still work normal hours.

Just in case some misconception of private sector life is holding you back.

Some biglaw gigs are fairly cushy but most suck and you can’t know what you’re going to get when you lateral in. The other option is in-house, but the comp difference isn’t necessarily worth the boring nature of the work and the loss of job security. A federal salary of $260k is something you can hold until you’re 65 or even 75 if you really want without any concerns, whereas in the private sector you have to be prepared for the possibility of a career-ending layoff at 50+.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those who are saying it would take double or triple, you should know that the private sector isn't all 60+ hr work weeks, high turnover, and stressful environments. You can leave, make a decent amount more money, improve your work environment, and still work normal hours.

Just in case some misconception of private sector life is holding you back.

er. I guess it all depends. I did several rounds in tech before ending up in a finreg, so I think my eyes are pretty open as to the work-life balance tradeoffs. Obviously, I'm not a lawyer, and was interviewing at a FAANG, but I think I was being pretty realistic at estimating 2-3x current income being needed. My layoff risk will only increase from here on out, and it's a safe bet that finding a new job could take up to a year if laid off. So that first year would be a lot of stress to both perform AND build-up the layoff fund. Sure, it would be great if I could guarantee it would last 5+ years, but I'm pretty sure it wouldn't. The worst risk I run these days is that congress can't get their act together and my pay might be delayed for a month.

[Anonymous]

Retired as SK-16. No private sector for me. Not worth it. I'm 59, who knows how long I'll live?