For all of Wall Street's unexpected twists during the past year, the markets' upheaval did produce at least one predictable effect: a string of abrupt divorces between high-ranking executives and the firms they helped lead.

Many top bankers and traders have seen their careers stall amid mounting losses and accusations of managerial failure. The casualty list includes Merrill Lynch's Stanley O'Neal, Bear Stearns' Warren Spector, Zoe Cruz of Morgan Stanley and Citigroup's Tom Maheras.

Wall Street exiles should take heart, however. Compared with managers in other industries, their chances of landing on their feet, either at another bank or with a venture of their own design, are high. Moreover, a look at today's financial incumbents suggests that some of the recently departed may achieve even greater heights during the next phase of their career.

Fired a decade ago from his perch as president of Citigroup, Jamie Dimon today sits atop New York's financial services industry as chief executive of JPMorgan Chase. In avoiding many of the setbacks of the credit crisis, Mr Dimon's bank vaulted past Citigroup in market capitalisation, and this month won the downturn's biggest prize, the hobbled Bear Stearns, with an all-share offer valuing Bear at $1.2bn.

Frank Quattrone, the technology-sector banker derailed by obstruction of justice charges in 2004, has announced plans to open his own advisory firm. His overturned conviction paved the way for the former Credit Suisse star's return to an industry dotted with notable comebacks.

Sandy Weill, retired Citigroup chairman, Pete Peterson, Blackstone Group co-founder, and John Mack, two-time Morgan Stanley chieftain, also suffered defeat at the hands of colleagues during bitter power struggles earlier in their careers.

Michael Bloomberg, New York's mayor, and Jon Corzine, New Jersey governor, won the support of millions of voters in their quests for political office. Years earlier, each had lost the confidence of their partners at Salomon Brothers and Goldman Sachs, respectively.

Of course, executives in any industry can set a derailed career back on track. But vindication appears to come sooner and more easily in financial services.

"The financial sector is transaction-driven," says Andrew Ward, an assistant professor of business at the University of Georgia and the co-author of Firing Back: How Great Leaders Rebound After Career Disasters. "Some deals work out well, some don't work out well. Failure is accepted."

Wall Street's volatile nature often helps strengthen the deposed executive's case that they were not alone in making the mistakes that led to their departure.

"It's a lot easier to find the sunlight in the careers of financial players than it is for a guy who's working his way up the food or razor-blade industry," says Jim Drury, an executive recruiter who has sought candidates for companies such as United Airlines, Sara Lee and Quaker Oats. "Decisions don't happen as quickly, and the movements are slower in the broader industrial sectors. In financial services, reputations can be made or lost overnight, and then made again."

There is a relatively small pool of people with the experience and skill to run complex securities and banking businesses. Take Citigroup: its search for the ideal successor to chief executive Charles Prince, who resigned under pressure in November, proved fruitless. The bank eventually tapped Vikram Pandit, an investment banker who had joined Citi just five months earlier.

Most Wall Street executives retain their fame - and certainly their vast web of contacts - long after they have lost their jobs. And for those looking to open a hedge fund, private equity firm or advisory boutique, the barriers to entry and capital investment are lower than those required for an industrial concern of equivalent size.

Nevertheless, those who seek another opportunity to run a publicly traded company may struggle to persuade board members to overlook the abrupt end to their previous job. Some reasons, such as disagreements over company strategy, are easy to forgive, says Mr Drury. Others, such as a history of making poor or ethically questionable decisions, are impossible to ignore.

"You usually only get one chance to be a public company chief executive," Mr Drury says. "If you make the most of it, you may get another chance at a bigger or more complex company. Clients who want to recruit CEOs don't want to explain to shareholders why they're hiring someone who got fired from somewhere else."

A third of the chief executives ousted from top US companies came back to hold active management jobs, according to a study Mr Ward conducted in the 1990s. About 22 per cent slid into advisory or investment roles, a figure he says probably has increased with the growth of private equity.

Some executives who failed to fit in at one company may thrive in another. Robert Nardelli, the tough former General Electric executive known for his skill at operating industrial businesses, foundered as chief executive of hardware retailer Home Depot.

"I learned a lot," Mr Nardelli says of his stint at Home Depot. "We doubled the size of the business in five years, we almost tripled the earnings. Would you do some things different? If you had to do it over again, yeah. You're smarter, you've learned. So, yeah, you might approach it differently." He now runs Chrysler, the privately held US carmaker.

"Nardelli saw lots of ways he could improve Home Depot from an efficiency standpoint," Mr Ward says. "Yes, there was some backlash. But going somewhere like Chrysler, that's what they need."

When the markets rebound from their current malaise, banks and brokers will be eager to capitalise on the return of the world's appetite for risk. A recovery will also open doors for many of those held responsible for the downturn.

"Not all of one's decisions are going to be the right decisions," said Sandy Weill, the former American Express executive whose transformation of a moribund Baltimore-based consumer lender into Citigroup, the world's largest financial-services company, was arguably Wall Street's most remarkable second act.

"Learn from it and do even better," he added. "It happens a lot in this business."

尽管华尔街过去一年发生了出人意外的变故，但市场剧变至少带来了一个可预期的结果：高管与他们曾帮助领导过的公司之间一系列突然的分手。

在亏损不断增加并面临管理失误指责的情况下，许多高级银行家和交易员的职业生涯中断。其中包括美林(Merrill Lynch)的斯坦•奥尼尔(Stanley O'Neal)、贝尔斯登(Bear Stearns)的沃伦•斯别克特(Warren Spector)、摩根士丹利(Morgan Stanley)的佐伊•克鲁兹(Zoe Cruz)和花旗集团(Citigroup)的汤姆•马赫拉斯(Tom Maheras)。

不过，华尔街的这些被流放者应打起精神。与其它行业的管理者相比，通过在另一家银行任职或创办自己的企业，他们安然脱险的几率很高。另外，不妨看看如今金融界的在职者，你会发现，一些最近离职的管理者可能在其职业生涯的下一阶段达到甚至更高的高度。

10年前，时任花旗集团总裁的杰米•戴蒙(Jamie Dimon)被辞退，如今他却成为摩根大通(JPMorgan Chase)的首席执行官，站在了纽约金融服务业之巅。戴蒙率领摩根大通避开了信贷危机的多次打击，该行的市值已超过花旗集团，并在本月收获了此次市场低迷的最大猎物：陷入困境的贝尔斯登。此次全股票收购对贝尔斯登的估值为12亿美元。

2004年，科技行业银行家弗兰克•奎特隆(Frank Quattrone)因被控妨碍司法公正，影响了职业生涯。如今他已宣布，计划创办自己的咨询公司。他的指控被推翻，为这位瑞士信贷(Credit Suisse)前明星管理者重归一个满是东山再起例证的行业铺平了道路。

已退休的花旗前董事长桑迪•威尔(Sandy Weill)、百仕通集团(Blackstone Group)联席创始人皮特•彼得森(Pete Peterson)和两任摩根士丹利首席执行官的麦晋桁(John Mack)都曾在职业生涯早期经历过激烈的权力斗争，最终败在同事的手中。

纽约市长迈克尔•布隆伯格(Michael Bloomberg)和新泽西州州长乔恩•科尔辛(Jon Corzine)谋求政职时赢得了数百万选民的支持。数年前，他们分别失去了所罗门兄弟(Salomon Brothers)和高盛(Goldman Sachs)合伙人的信任。

当然，任何一个行业的高管都能让脱轨的职业生涯重入正轨。但在金融服务业，这个过程可能更快，也更为容易。

"金融业是由交易推动的，"乔治亚大学(University of Georgia)商科助理教授安德鲁•沃德(Andrew Ward)表示。"一些交易完成得很出色，一些交易则不然。失败是可以接受的。"沃德是《重返英雄战场》(Firing Back: How Great Leaders Rebound After Career Disasters)一书的作者之一。

华尔街动荡的本质常常有助于增强被免高管的理由：他们并非唯一因为犯错而离职的人。

"相对于在食品或剃须刀行业打拼的人，金融业参与者更容易看到职场阳光，"一位高管猎头吉姆•德鲁里(Jim Drury)表示。"在更为广泛的工业领域，决策不会很快，行动也更为缓慢。在金融服务业，人们可能在一夜之间名声大起抑或名誉扫地，然后再重建自己的名誉。"德鲁里曾为联合航空(United Airlines,)、莎莉(Sara Lee)和桂格(Quaker Oats)等公司搜罗人才。

具备管理复杂证券和银行业务经验和技能的人才相对较少。以花旗为例：该公司寻找接替首席执行官查尔斯•普林斯(Charles Prince)的理想人选的努力毫无结果。普林斯去年11月份因压力而辞职。该行最终选择了5个月前才加盟花旗的投资银行家潘伟迪(Vikram Pandit)。

多数华尔街高管在丢掉工作后的很长时间都能保住自己的名誉，当然还有他们巨大的人脉。对于那些希望创办一家对冲基金、私人股本公司或精品咨询公司的人而言，这些领域的准入和资金门槛都低于相同规模的工业企业。

然而，那些寻求另一次机会以管理一家上市公司的人，可能难以说服董事会成员忽略自己前一份工作的突然中断。德鲁里表示，有些原因很容易得到原谅，例如不赞成公司战略。其它则不太可能忽视，例如曾做出糟糕或有道德问题的决策。

"你通常只能获得一次成为上市公司首席执行官的机会，"德鲁里表示。"如果你能充分利用这次机会，你可能会获得另一个在更大或更复杂公司任职的机会。那些希望聘用首席执行官的客户不希望向股东解释，他们为什么要聘用一位之前曾被解雇的人。"

沃德在上世纪90年代进行的一份调查发现，在顶尖美国公司解雇的首席执行官中，有三分之一的人再次担任了活跃管理职位。约22%的人流向了咨询或投资职位，他表示，随着私人股本的发展，这一比例可能已有所上升。

一些不适应某家公司的高管可能会在另一家公司获得长足发展。通用电气(GE)前高管罗伯特•纳德利(Robert Nardelli)曾在担任家具建材零售商家得宝(Home Depot)首席执行官时遭到挫折。这位风格强硬的高管曾以在管理工业企业方面的技能而闻名。

"我学到了很多，"纳德利在谈到自己在家得宝的工作时表示。"我们在5年内把业务规模翻了一番，我们的收益几乎增长了两倍。你会做不同的事情吗？如果你必须重新来过，那么是的。你会变得更聪明，因为你学到了东西。因此，你可能以不同的方式达到这点。"他如今管理着私人持股的美国汽车制造商克莱斯勒(Chrysler)。

"纳德利发现了许多从效率方面改善家得宝的方法，"沃德表示。"是的，会有一些反对意见。但对于克莱斯勒等其它公司，这正是他们所需要的。"

如果市场从目前的萎靡状态反弹，银行和经纪公司将热衷于利用全球风险兴趣回升的特点。复苏还将为许多为市场低迷付出代价的人敞开大门。

美国运通(American Express)前高管桑迪•威尔表示："一个人的决定并非全是正确的。"威尔将一家垂死的总部位于巴尔的摩的消费者贷款机构，转型为全球最大的金融服务公司--花旗集团，可以说这是华尔街最引人注目的第二幕演出。

"从中汲取教训，然后做得甚至更好，"他补充称。"在这个行业，这种情况多的是。"
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