A Day in the Life of a Salestrader

Like a research salesperson, a salestrader's day starts early. They receive the morning call's research via email or in hardcopy and have a separate trading meeting at 7:30. Talk about early. The people that distribute the research are there long before 7:30. There is a review of the yesterday's activities: how many shares were traded, what stocks were particularly active and any other market color. Then the position traders will inform them of any large blocks of stock in the firm's inventory that can be traded. They will be notified of any IPO's coming up.

Salestraders are a firm's filter for their research ideas but the focus is on short term trading. The buy side uses these ideas in hopes of making a quick profit. After the daily call, the salestraders hit the phones with their clients; putting in orders before the market opens. When it opens, there is a frenzy of activity as these orders are executed. 9:30 - 10:30 is the busiest hour of the day. When the investment bank is the lead bookrunner of an IPO, the entire first day is busy as the firm has to make a market in the new security. At other specific times, there will be a burst of trading such as after any Federal Reserve Board meetings or unemployment reports. The last 30 minutes of the trading day are also hectic.

During the day, the salestraders will be in constant contact with his clients - on the phone, through email or instant messages. They will be executing their client's trades at the best price possible. Most of the time the buy side initiates them. At this point there may be conflicts with the position traders. In order to get the best price for their clients, the position traders' p/l statement will be hit. They and management will also approve or deny requests for capital commitment on their client's trades.

After the market closes, there are client reviews and team meetings to attend. Salestraders may have a client dinner or event after the end of the work day. Again, their purpose is to build relationships with their buy side counterparts.