As we all know, the banking industry has been through a bit of a rough patch the past few years, and the financial crisis revealed a lot of dastardly characters working within its ranks. But Morgan Stanley’s new recruitment video, Futures and Options, provides a heartwarming glimpse at the wholesome, young Bankers of the Future. Made by the advertising agency The Margin in a candid Real World style that recalls the work of the Ben Stiller character in Reality Bites, the video introduces us to a handful of hip, sexy real-life Morgan employees as they go about their days, from shaving and making coffee (Sour milk! Oh no!) to the office, where high-fives are exchanged, Ping-Pong is played, and “big dates” are discussed in between, of course, very fulfilling and exciting work. “We wanted to do something cutting-edge, that reflects the experience of working at the firm,” a Morgan spokeswoman tells us, adding that they plan to show the video at universities to entice students. “One year out of college, I was able to be advising people, and for them to be taking me seriously,” one young capital-markets associate informs the camera. Some outside the industry might actually find that alarming, but as one of the video titles reminds us, even if you screw up, it all shakes out if you’re in banking: “In the financial world, some days, fortunes will be made. Other days, history will.”
