POWER BROKERS OF FINANCE: HR chiefs reveal how to get hired at Goldman Sachs, Citi, BlackRock, and other top companies

The question you'll have to answer if you interview with him

Tell me about a time you took a contrarian viewpoint and convinced a large group to approach a problem in a different way.

The best question he was ever asked as a job candidate

Walk me through the most challenging conversation you had with a high-performing team member that you were directly managing. Knowing what you know now, how would you have handled it differently?

The mindset you need to work at Blackstone

We pride ourselves on maintaining our entrepreneurial culture and want people who share that mindset.

The best way to get noticed and promoted, besides working hard

We want people who are nice and willing to collaborate. We want our people to enjoy working together. It is important to find ways to network across the various businesses and collaborate with groups across the firm.

The one skill you absolutely must have to get hired at Bank of America

Judgment. There are many things that we can and do teach our hires about their job, a particular task, or the company. But sometimes a situation can arise where the new hire needs to know how to operate in the gray and make a decision on something.

Having the judgment to know when to escalate a situation or when to contact people to gather further information, make an assessment, and reach the right decision is key.

The most impressive question someone has asked her in a job interview

Once, at the end of an interview with a summer intern candidate, I asked, "Do you have any other questions?" The intern's response was, "No other questions about the bank, but is there anything else I can tell you to help you decide on my candidacy, and to know that I am fully interested in this opportunity?"

I was very impressed by that question — not only was the candidate ensuring I had all the information I needed, but significantly, it was a way of reiterating interest in an internship with us.

The attitude you absolutely must have to get hired at BlackRock

We look for people who come to work every day thinking about what they can do to serve our clients. People who are passionate about learning, growing, and innovating. Strong collaborators driven and motivated by contributing to something greater than ourselves.

The first thing he tells employees who are frustrated at work

If you're feeling unfulfilled, you should have an open conversation with your manager focused on your interests and career aspirations. We have an internal mobility policy so our employees can pursue different opportunities at the firm, which keeps people engaged and shares the talent across different teams.

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We recently launched two initiatives to support ongoing learning and mobility: the Transform Program helps employees build technical skills to transition to full-stack developer roles and the Growing More Great Investors initiative drives diversity, inclusion, and development across our investment teams.

The traits you need to get hired at Point72

SPEICHER: You have to be intellectually curious and strive for greatness. But you should also have a growth mindset and see the opportunity in failure. The markets are tough and the odds are challenging, so you have to have the courage and resilience to stick with it.

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FRIEDMAN: Grit and persistence. Having great ideas is one thing, but implementation is another. The ability to stick with a project, look deeper than the competition, and not give up easily. This is important in research, but also in other domains. We want to hire people who will take on responsibility and initiative to solve problems.

A pro tip for employees who are feeling unfulfilled

FRIEDMAN: If you put in the effort, you can learn and challenge yourself in any role at any institution. Don't wait for it to come to you. It's important to speak up. I like to ask: What are your favorite projects? When do you feel the most energized? I tell my team all the time that I want to design a job that is too good to leave.

The only type of people she hires

People who are successful at Citi have the ability to make things happen. We need doers.

The most important piece of advice she gives new managers

I have to remind new managers to ask for help along the way. No one expects you to be able to do it all, and somehow people can forget that when they start to manage people. We all succeed together.

The first question she asks employees who are feeling unmotivated

I ask them what they have done about it. Much of the time when people are stuck they don't take action to help themselves, but when you call them out they do! When someone takes the reins on their own professional development, it makes it easier for others around them to take action and respond to their needs as well.