The sun always shines on the righteous

As I sit here enjoying the tremendous weather—yes, before you ask, I’m away again, this time in Boston but it could just as well be London given the fact it’s 90 degrees and very sunny—the UK has had Andy Murray winning Wimbledon, Justin Rose winning the US Open, England taking a great lead in the Ashes series, the Lions winning in Australia, Chris Froome heading the Tour de France, and we still have the British Open Golf to come with a host of strong domestic contenders.

 How could things possibly improve on this, I hear you ask? Well, let me tell you—a buoyant jobs market, that’s what!

 For a time of year when hiring is traditionally at its quietest, we are experiencing a mini-boom for several reasons, with numerous roles being created and something of a scramble occurring with firms looking for fresh talent. Sales, in all of its guises—asset owners, asset managers, pension funds and alternatives—is the main focus of hiring, but we’re also seeing a return of some ‘old school’ relationship management roles that are actually focused  on client retention and satisfaction, not simply sales-by-another-title. Classic ops is quiet but offset by a strong rise in demand for project/change managers. Interestingly, the UK is as strong as, if not stronger than, Asia in respect of asset servicing opportunities for a change.

 The drivers for this refreshing state of affairs are several-fold. They include the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive rule changes on authorised corporate directors, which have given a new lease of life to the depository/trustee space, and the merger of securities services divisions into capital markets/investment banking areas, which has prompted wider reviews of the talent required to compete in the marketplace, as well as consistently positive improvements in market sentiment and a feeling that we might be ‘through the worst’.

 While it might be premature to start celebrating, it’s certainly the right time to start getting CVs dusted off and submitted.