Financial Software - The New Wave
Enigma works with the world's most successful companies to help solve their single biggest problem: the identification and attraction of outstanding talent.
In the current global job market, candidates working in financial software are faced with a dizzying choice of vendors when deciding on their next move. It seems that over the past couple of years barely a day has gone by without a sexy new product being launched or a vendor seemingly appearing out of nowhere with claims of being the "fastest", "lowest latency" and "newest technology". Much of this growth is being driven by more sophisticated trading techniques and ever more stringent risk management processes. This provides a unique technological challenge which these new entrants to the market are exploiting to great success.
In the past, there were a number of large vendors who dominated the financial software market. Almost every CV that crossed a recruiter's desk had the words SunGard or Misys on it and most sales people had long, reason- ably fruitful tenures at established vendors (10 years was certainly not unheard of). These days the market is very different. I have lost count of the number of CVs that I see where salespeople have worked in five positions in the last five years and at least three of those positions are for companies I have never heard of!!
Today there seems to be an unprecedented number of players operating in the Financial software market. If you look at a sub-sector within this market such as market data, you will see a perfect example of this. In days gone by Bloomberg and Reuters ruled the roost; today there are new entrants springing up all the time offer- ing "greater flexibility", "wider access to global markets" and "direct execution" services to name but a few key buzzwords. The trading technology market is a similar example where there are still a number of well estab- lished, successful vendors like Patsystems, TT and ORC. If however, you are a salesperson working in this space, the number of potential employers has risen dramatically over the past two years. This in turn begs the ques- tion; how many of the new wave will still be standing five years from now?
Some will undoubtedly be swallowed up by the likes of Reuters (as they did with Application Networks) or Fidessa (as per LatentZero - albeit LZ are maintaining their strong presence and branding in the buy-side com- munity) or GL Trade. Some may indeed have the legs to go the distance. SuperDerivatives for example is another company who seems to be growing in stature and numbers at a staggering rate - as are their competitors Markit and Reval. All are operating in the niche market of valuing OTC derivatives.
My advice to candidates trying to navigate their way through this maze is simple: look for longevity:
Ben Williams started his career selling software into banks and funds are is now head of the Financial Software practice at Enigma Exec. He can be contacted ny phoning +44 (0) 207-9282323 or emailing him at bwilliams@enigmaexec.com
Today there seems to be an unprecedented number of players operating in the Financial software market. If you look at a sub-sector within this market such as market data, you will see a perfect example of this. In days gone by Bloomberg and Reuters ruled the roost; today there are new entrants springing up all the time offer- ing "greater flexibility", "wider access to global markets" and "direct execution" services to name but a few key buzzwords. The trading technology market is a similar example where there are still a number of well estab- lished, successful vendors like Patsystems, TT and ORC. If however, you are a salesperson working in this space, the number of potential employers has risen dramatically over the past two years. This in turn begs the ques- tion; how many of the new wave will still be standing five years from now?
Some will undoubtedly be swallowed up by the likes of Reuters (as they did with Application Networks) or Fidessa (as per LatentZero - albeit LZ are maintaining their strong presence and branding in the buy-side com- munity) or GL Trade. Some may indeed have the legs to go the distance. SuperDerivatives for example is another company who seems to be growing in stature and numbers at a staggering rate - as are their competitors Markit and Reval. All are operating in the niche market of valuing OTC derivatives.
My advice to candidates trying to navigate their way through this maze is simple: look for longevity:
- A CV with five jobs in five years, where none of the companies are still around to tell the tale, makes grim reading for any potential employer
- Try not to be seduced by fancy new technology and buzz words. Look for longevity, customer base and a solid business plan for the next five years (not the next 12 months)
- Talk to people in the market. Many people who go to work for these smaller, newer vendors find them- selves back in the market within six months. The reason is often that there is "no infrastructure" or the products are "not ready to be sold". Taking vapourware into the market is an unfulfilling and largely unrewarding role for any salesperson who thrives on closing deals and spending their commission!
Ben Williams started his career selling software into banks and funds are is now head of the Financial Software practice at Enigma Exec. He can be contacted ny phoning +44 (0) 207-9282323 or emailing him at bwilliams@enigmaexec.com
