Public Finance Blog

According to Simone Sinek, the New York Times best-selling author of “Start With Your Why,” people don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.  After reading these inspirational words, I realize that for 15 years of being a public finance recruiter, I’ve never really shared why I do this. In this blog, I’m going to give some personal insight about my “why.”

The Start: Sprint Or Crawl

Back in 1988, I started my investment banking career as a public finance banker. Passing series 7 and 63, I was off and running… actually, I would say crawling. My HP 12 C would become my new best friend and with the bond formulas taped to the back of the calculator, I was able to begin the process of understanding scales and other technical material around municipal bonds. I was also fortunate enough to be a non-practicing attorney, so I got to work closely with bond counsels and a lot of the legal work myself, writing Os’s, sunset agreements, goals, and policies, etc. 

Public Finance Banker Days

As a public finance banker, I love working with the issuers and the other municipal bond consultants while working on deals. The respect I had for this industry only continued to grow more and more as I started to do my own transactions.  I was a dirt bond banker.  Being in that limited field, I had no idea of the extensiveness in the world of public finance. It was only when I became a recruiter that I realized how vast a field this is.  My greatest enjoyment is talking to other public finance bankers and bond counsels and continuing to learn about the various financing mechanisms available today that I was never exposed to as a banker.

Passion For The Public Finance Industry As A Whole

Leaving the banking industry, I became a recruiter because I realized that there was a void in public finance recruiters that really understood the industry. Because of my vast knowledge of the field, I was able to reach out and have great conversations with bankers and bond counsels.   Over the last 16 years, understanding the role that you all play and the ability to communicate at your level is what I enjoy the most. Even now I continue to have conversations and learn more about public finance daily. You can actually say it must be in my blood because I will have conversations with anybody in our industry, whether I can help them or not.

The Why

So, what is my “why”?  The answer is my true enjoyment of speaking with other professionals in the field of public finance at a high level. As a recruiter, I can help influence candidates like yourself and change their employment course trajectory for the better.

Conclusion

You don’t need a resume to chat with us! If you would like to discuss your options, please reach out for a confidential conversation at 760-477-1284 or email at harlan@hfriedmansearch.com. He can also be reached on LinkedIn. Harlan publishes a blog every Thursday here. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter here, which is a compilation of our weekly blogs, so you never miss one. We have also been mentioned in this year’s Forbes, click HERE to read more.  

About Harlan Friedman, JD & Founding Member, H. Friedman Search LLC. Harlan is a thirty-year veteran Public Finance Banker turned recruiter who specializes in the placement of all levels Public Finance Bankers, Healthcare Bankers, Municipal Advisors, Compliance Officers, Issuers, and Bond Counsels.