It’s bound to happen in every industry, especially in the days and weeks that follow historic layoffs like yesterday’s at Citigroup: young up-and-comers eager to snap up top jobs come to the painful realization that they couldn’t have chosen a worse time to enter their chosen career field.  And so the re-thinking, re-jigging and re-planning begins.

Just ask any MBA grad, who’s likely eying the carnage on Wall Street with a mix of dread and disbelief.  Analyst jobs are among the newest batch of casualties, experts says, as an ongoing flurry of consolidation is threatening to obliterate thousands of positions that are unlikely to return.

As a result, an increasing number of graduates are abandoning their dream of investment banking in lieu of careers in consulting and corporate finance until the market stabilizes, the Wall Street Journal reports.

But bad news for new graduates is good news for smaller investment firms that often struggle to attract top candidates. Says one recruiter: “We’re sort of like kids in a candy store right now.”

Granted, not everyone wants to wait it out until the tumult on Wall Street passes.  One banking veteran says she’s finally found stability in a career that’s guaranteed to keep her working. She’s a nurse.

Would you consider making a career switch if it meant more job stability? Share your thoughts below.

It’s a sad day in global finance when Deutsche Bank is poised to slash about 900 jobs and no one seems the least bit surprised. Granted, there’s stiff competition in the “shocking cutbacks” department these days. In the UK, the Lloyds/HBOS deal is inching ahead, and some expect a massive 40,000 jobs to be lost in the process.

But not everyone is on a firing spree. In fact, UBS — among those hit the hardest by the global credit meltdown — says it’s adding six senior executives to its wealth management division in Asia. True, six new jobs hardly seems like cause for celebration, but it signals an increasingly foreign concept of growth and expansion in time when contraction and cutbacks reign.

Meanwhile, State Bank of India is about to go on a hiring spree to the tune of 25,000 new jobs.  The bank is cashing in on the misfortune of its competitor ICICI, which suffered a major blow when jittery depositers yanked their money from the bank in favor or safer, state-run institutions.  Now State Bank stands to gain a huge slice of market share and plans to open a whopping 2,000 new branches in the coming year to keep up with its expanding customer base.

Does the latest hiring news offer a glimmer of hope? Share your thoughts below.

The following financial services industry appointments were announced on November 19, linked where possible to personal profiles on LinkedIn. To inform us of other job changes, please email moves@thomsonreuters.com.

CME GROUP INC

The derivatives exchange said it has named Michael O’Connell as managing director, clearing business development. O’Connell was previously at Northern Trust Corp, where he most recently was part of its global consulting team.

AMHERST HOLDINGS LLC

The holding company that owns a broker-deal focusing on mortgages said it hired Laurie Goodman as a senior managing director in charge of research, risk management, and business development, effective Dec. 8. Goodman headed global fixed-income research at UBS and ran the securitized products research group there.

GAMCO INVESTORS INC

The asset manager appointed Virgil Chan to open its Hong Kong office and coordinate merchant banking and research. Chan was with Symphony Capital Partners earlier.

EVOLUTION SECURITIES LTD

The investment bank, which is a part of British financial services firm Evolution Group Plc, named Gary Jenkins as head of Fixed Income Research. Jenkins was previously with Deutsche Bank.

CLOSE BROTHERS

The independent business unit of British investment bank Close Brothers Group appointed Luke MacKenzie as a director to its European Restructuring and Debt Advisory Group. He was earlier with CB Richard Ellis Real Estate Finance.

RAVEN RUSSIA

The British property firm focused on warehouses in Russia promoted Colin Smith as chief operating officer and executive director. He has been a senior executive of the company for a year and was appointed to the Board on Nov. 14. Prior to that, he was with BDO.

The following financial services industry appointments were announced on November 18, linked where possible to personal profiles on LinkedIn. To inform us of other job changes, please contact: moves@thomsonreuters.com.

FARMERS GROUP, INC.

Paul Hopkins has been named chairman of the board of Farmers Group, Inc., a Los Angeles-based subsidiary of Zurich Financial Services Group. Hopkins is currently the chief executive officer of the firm and will be replaced by Bob Woudstra, currently the president and chief operating officer for Farmers Group, Inc.

SUNWEST BANK

Chris Walsh has been named executive vice president and chief banking officer of the Tustin, California-based Sunwest Bank.

MORGAN STANLEY

Morgan Stanley has appointed Naresh Naik as an executive director and head of asset management for its Indian real estate unit.

EVERCORE PARTNERS INC

The U.S. merger advisory boutique named Jeff Maurer to lead its newly launched Evercore Wealth Management (EWM). It also appointed Fred Taylor as a senior adviser to EWM. Maurer was previously with Lehman Brothers. Prior to that, both were with U.S. Trust Corp.

MMV FINANCIAL INC

The specialty finance firm appointed April Young as senior vice president and managing director. She will be based in Reston, Virginia, and will join on Dec. 1. Young was earlier with Comerica Bank.

STATE STREET GLOBAL ADVISORS (SSgA)

The investment management arm of State Street Corp promoted Kelly Driscoll to head of SSgA Asia ex Japan. She will be based in Hong Kong.

RBC CAPITAL MARKETS

The corporate and investment banking arm of Royal Bank of Canada named Brian Jackson as senior strategist in its Global Emerging Markets Research team. Jackson, who will be based in Hong Kong, was previously with Drake Capital.

SKS MICROFINANCE

The Indian microfinance institution appointed Suresh Gurumani as chief executive. He was formerly with Barclays.

CARLTON PARTNERS LLP

The independent private merchant banking group hired Philip Swatman to its Advisory Board effective immediately. Swatman was previously with N M Rothschild & Sons.

The following financial services industry appointments were announced on November 17, linked where possible to personal profiles on LinkedIn. To inform us of other job changes, please e-mail moves@thomsonreuters.com.

STANDARD CHARTERED BANK

The Asia-focused British bank promoted four members of its transaction-banking leadership team. It promoted Neil Daswani to regional head, Transaction Banking, for North Asia and Jiten Arora to regional head, Transaction Banking, South Asia. Daswani was earlier global head of Securities Services, while Arora was global head, Client Access. The bank also promoted Giles Elliott to global product head, Securities Services, and Neal Livingston to global head, Client Access. Daswani will be based in Hong Kong while the rest will based in Singapore.

CARPATHIAN PLC

The Central and Eastern Europe-focused property investment company said it appointed Rory Macnamara as its new chairman with immediate effect, replacing Rupert Cottrell, who stepped down.

AQUILINE CAPITAL PARTNERS LLC

The private equity firm hired Mark Graf as an investment professional. Graf was previously with Barrett Ellman Stoddard Capital Partners.

AIS FUND ADMINISTRATION

The hedge-fund administrator appointed Dominic Newland as vice president, sales. Newland was previously with Matrix-IMS LLP. He will be based in London.

CNINSURE INC

The insurance-intermediary company operating in China named Feng Jin as chief operating officer, effective immediately. He is also chief information officer and vice president of the company.

MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP

The international law firm said Tony Grundy will join the firm’s Tokyo office as a partner, expanding its global capital markets practice. He was previously with Linklaters.

Goldman Sachs sent the business media abuzz this weekend with news that its top executives were voluntarily giving up their annual bonus in a gesture they hope will spread to the rest of the Street. The decision immediately won the praise of New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who hailed the move as a “step in the right direction”, while the firm’s spokesperson said, “They believe it’s the right thing to do.”

But don’t expect any applause just yet, at least not from Main Street. Taxpayers around the globe are still fuming about their respective government’s multibillion dollar bank rescue schemes, prompting no shortage of snarky editorials pointing to bloated paycheques and bankers’ cavalier actions for the financial meltdown.

At a time when most bankers are holding on to their jobs by a string — just ask any Citigroup employee how they’re feeling these days — editorialists are quick to point out that bonuses are just that: a bonus.

“The truth is, most of them are lucky to have a job at all and they know it,” writes the Wall Street Journal’s William Cohan.

Perhaps UBS is taking note. The Swiss bank recently axed bonuses for top executives and said it would introduce a more transparent pay system, in a sign that banks are finally acting to quell the public’s mistrust of the bonus culture.

Are the recent moves to cut bankers’ pay an encouraging sign, or is the damage already done? Share your thoughts below

“We’ve hardly felt the financial crisis.”

Now there’s a sentence you don’t expect to hear these days.  It comes from a headhunter for a temp agency in Germany, where apparently the financial sector is like Teflon: although German banks foresee some of the job cuts afflicting its peers  –  RBS among the most recent — there have been relatively few layoffs so far.

In a refreshing twist to a dire employment situation, headhunters in Germany are now scrambling to fill a slew of temporary banking jobs. Problem is, jittery bankers don’t want to switch firms in the middle of a crisis.

But it’s a different ballgame in London, where there the number people chasing jobs has doubled from last year in what one job expert calls “one of the most difficult periods in decades.” To top it off, the city once poised to replace New York as the financial center of the world is being blamed for the greed that sparked the financial crisis.

Back on Wall Street, Citibank is readying to slash another 10,000 jobs worldwide and trim its compensation budget as its shares skid.

On a bright note, some good news for women seeking a corner office in the finance sector: Japan’s Michiko Achilles recently became the first female director of Aozora Bank in what she calls a “new experience” for her male peers.

Is the job situation going to get worse before it gets better? Share your thoughts below.

The following financial services industry appointments were announced on November 13, linked where possible to personal profiles on LinkedIn. To inform us of other job changes, please e-mail moves@thomsonreuters.com.

EVOLUTION SECURITIES LTD

The U.K.-based independent investment bank hired Guy Cornelius, formerly a managing director of Lehman Brothers International as head of Fixed Income.

CORDEA SAVILLS

The UK-based property fund manager named three key appointments as part of expansion of its Italian investment and operations teams based in Milan. David Cunnington as managing director of Cordea Savills SGR and has overall responsibility for corporate finance and fund operations across Cordea Savills and has been with company since 2004. Salvatore Ruoppolo has been appointed head of Investment, with responsibility for the investment and asset management team in Italy. Previously he worked for Pirelli Real Estate S.p.A.Paola Fiorini has been appointed chief operating officer of Cordea Savills SGR, with overall responsibility for the business  infrastructure. She joined Cordea Savills in July 2008 after leaving Babcock and Brown SGR S.p.A. where she was CFO.

DUKE STREET

The mid-market private equity group hired Miles Cresswell-Turner as partner, specialising in Financial Services. He joins from Palamon Capital Partners.

The following financial services industry appointments were announced on Nov. 12, linked where possible to personal profiles on LinkedIn. To inform us of other job changes, please e-mail moves@thomsonreuters.com.

BREWIN DOLPHIN INVESTMENT BANKING

The investment manager appointed Nick Owen as the head of Corporate Broking, Michael Parkinson as head of Research; David Green as head of Sales and Trading, Matt Davis as deputy head of Corporate Finance and Jock Maxwell-Macdonald as deputy head of Sales. The company also promoted Jamie Cumming to Deputy Head of Investment Banking.

MERRILL LYNCH GLOBAL WEALTH MANAGEMENT

The U.S.-based investment bank’s wealth management arm named Andrew Keating as a financial advisor focusing on the U.K. and Ireland. Prior to joining Merrill Lynch, he was a financial advisor at Prudential-Bache International.

 CONFORTO FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

The fee-based independent financial advisor appointed Peter Klauber, a former Ernst & Young senior partner, as its chairman.

AXIS BANK 

IDFC Asset Management’s head of investments, Rajiv Anand, is likely to join private Indian lender Axis Bank’s planned mutual fund unit as chief executive, two financial services industry sources said.

In the 1987 cult classic movie “Wall Street“, Michael Douglas plays a ruthless stockbroker desperate to cash in on a seemingly endless supply of wealth and swanky perks lavished on hot-shot traders.

Ahhh, the 80s…

More than twenty years later, most would agree that corporate greed still exists — but the perks may be dwindling.

Executives speaking at the Reuters Global Finance Summit say their cash-strapped firms are ushering in a new approach to corporate spending.  Gone are the days when flying business class was deemed a necessity, when the soda in the fridge was free and no expenses were spared. Reining in spending is the new trend sweeping Wall Street as firms struggle to stay afloat in tough times.  To hear some experts tell it, there’s no other choice.

“To watch the financial industry change as radically as it’s changed, to see the economy changing as radically as it’s changing, you’d be offensively imprudent if you didn’t change your spending,” says banking analyst Meredith Whitney.

In Germany, finance experts are already doing their part in cutting costs with a plan that limits top executives’ payout and may even curb the salaries of those working at government-owned companies.  In the U.S., the Treasury is reportedly mulling a new requirement that puts firms on the hook to raise private capital if they want to qualify for government money.

Of course, all this belt-tightening is sure to cause some uneasy feelings — so what’s a worried banker to do? Perhaps a little hypnosis will help. The Wall Street Journal reports that bad market karma is driving harried Wall Street-types to seek the help of hypnotists to ease their markets-induced pain.

Do you think Wall Street is doing enough to reign in spending? Share your thoughts below.