Were the guys down gross? If for every dollar of commissions you generate, you lose 3 dollars in gross, you are probably going to get canned.
i was under the impression that worldco was very forgiving and patient toward its new traders.. what happened to allowing a trader the average 6 months to turn profitable? a member posted how he knows personally ppl who were canned after 2 months there.. and i heard the same from a friend whose two month team member also got canned. .. i'm scheduled to join the firm in two weeks.. shittin' in my pants! ~s~
With all this caning going on is this a good time to get in to management's office and demand a lower commission rate and higher payout. I guess being net positive makes you more valuable to the firm and especially now. It look's like it's time to milk the cow while the milk is good.
I will be at a team management meeting next week, by then I will have more answers. I am not surprised that we are finally doing some serious clean-ups, I am sure everyone who trade for a living know how tough this market is. It seems like someone hit the panic button yesterday after our firm had our second down day this year. Keep in mind for a firm of our size, with all the expenses, a break even day would transfer into a substantial loss. As I mentioned earlier in January, I am predicting a huge crack down on firms and traders, as nowadays it is incredibly difficult to put together huge numbers, and without those million dollar performers it will be harder and harder to attract new comers. Letting people go is nothing new, we do this at the end of every single quarter, it was just the scope of this round was beyond me. A friend of mine is up 35K gross down 15K net after 9 months here, he does excellent volume and his name was on the list of people getting cut, his team leader had to talk to our management to keep an excellent commission machine. I don't know who pushed the panic button as I can think of a lot other guys that are NOT as good as he is at this stage of the game. Then again, I can see how the management is thinking that he may quit trading (he missed quite a few games this month) and a new guy not putting up as much gross but down far less net is better for the firm. Still, I would rather flat this guy so he can continue to put up big commissions than recruiting a newbie who is going to start with 100 shares, I really don't understand firm's perspective here. That said, I also think a team's performance also has to do with trader's survival chance. In his case, there isn't a single net positive trader on his team, his very own team leader is getting called by risk management frequently. Versus my team with 4 net positive traders out of 9. Can you tell me how much were the traders down (gross / net) and if they had a good attendence rate, I am trying to figure out the logic here. Trade555: I am ok for now, as I just got everything lowered not long ago.
That's pretty harsh, no? I know a guy at Worldco who is up only 20k gross, down 15k net and hasn't gotten any "pink slip" calls (been there almost a year). I guess he survived the recent cuts. However, he tells me that over 200 guys at the firm are doing worse than he is (that's what management told him a few weeks ago...i guess to heighten his spirits a bit). Hitman, are you gross positive everyday?
Hitman, If there is an "edge" at the moment to getting them reduced, then why not ask anyway. Just because they were recently reduced does not mean they can't be reduced again. Every little bit helps. At worst, they'll just say no.
Hitman, How it is possible to be net down, if you are gross up? Because of commissions? I wouldn't believe so. You also said, that in your team there are just 4 profitable traders out of 9. Aren't there in prop's just really good and knowledgeble traders, who couldn't be in loss? Lojze