www.efinancialcareers.com/students | Careers in Financial Markets 2014
can expect S$60-110k ($48-87k), according to recruiters Robert Walters, rising to S$90-140k ($71-110k) at the more senior end.
If you work in development, being in a front-office role means more money. Java developers earn £60-80k ($92-123k) with financial product knowledge after a few years, which increases to £80-105k ($123-160k) at the upper end, while C++/Unix developers bring in £50-75k ($77-115k), but can earn £80-110k ($123-70k) with more experience. If you work in trading floor support, expect £50-70k ($77-108k) at analyst/ associate level, rising to £70-80k ($108-123k) with more experience.
Skills sought
In IT, the majority of successful applicants will have a computer science degree, and those who don’t tend to come from a maths, physics or engineering background. However, for less technical roles, such as business analysis or project management, banks will consider other degree disciplines.
“A successful technology professional will be self-motivated, organised and thorough, possessing strong analytical and logic skills,” says Gavin Jackson, head of rates tactical quant development at BNP Paribas. “They will want to learn quickly and be able to apply experiences to their work. They will be innovative but cost- aware, autonomous but collaborative: somebody that we can easily work alongside.”
If you want to move into a development role, experience with programming languages such as Java, C++ or C# is important. However, you don’t need to be a whizz kid at entry level.
Soft skills are valuable for business analyst or project management roles. Business analysts, for example, have to be able to explain the benefits and pitfalls behind a potential technology investment, without leaving non-IT people swimming in a sea of jargon.
Project managers have to be able to act as a central coordinator for disparate groups with differing interests in a particular endeavour.
More than anything, though, technologists need to be adaptable and not just survive, but thrive in, a changing environment. “The great thing about a career in technology, especially one in a fast-paced, dynamic industry like investment banking, is that if I answer a question, it’ll change in six months’ time,” says William Mitchell, head of domain-trade lifecycle, Deutsche Bank Global Technology, Cary Technology Center in the US. “Adaptability, listening and an ability to climb a learning curve are key skills for success.”
“In this ‘digital age’ there is no escaping the sheer rate of change and progress, and constantly challenging how these new developments can improve your industry,” adds RBS’s Brown.
Stereotypical IT nerds also need not apply. Banks want their technologists to be both technically proficient and to understand how their work is going to affect the bottom line. Technology is getting closer to the business of investment banking, so business acumen will help accelerate your career.
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eric lee
Head of global market operations technology, Asia-Pacific, Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Eric has a degree in computer science from Columbia University. He joined BAML in 2006.
It’s also important not just to be interested in technology, but also to have a passion for financial markets – whether this is through personal investing or following world events.
If you work for a large organisation, the ability to navigate the many groups involved in getting the work done is integral to succeeding in your career. I’ve been able to work in several locations in the world, and across many business areas, which has allowed me to think about the trading process holistically. It has also given me exposure to different ways of working in both the head office and a regional one.
My current role involves oversight of the support and development of the technology used by the global markets operations group – which provides operational support for our global markets, treasury and investments divisions – in the Asia region. This means I need to understand the technology architectures used to support data processing for operations and software
development as well as managing the financial elements of both people and the technology infrastructure used by the group.
While technical skills are important, any role in IT also requires softer qualities such as good communication. I also believe that my listening ability has served me well in my career – my nature is to take different bits of feedback and form a picture of a situation versus making an upfront judgement. Although I do have an instinct and opinion, I do like to supplement my view with the thoughts of others.
It’s also important not just to be interested in technology, but also to have a passion for financial markets – whether this is through personal investing or following world events, and an interest in the financial sector in order to understand the context of your work.
There is a tendency for those working in investment banking to be attracted to trading or sales, but the industry offers many areas that are critical to the workings of a bank and technology is one of those.
Developing a broad picture is a great stepping stone for people looking to advance their careers.
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