eFinancialCareers

Research from international recruiter Robert Walters reveals middle office specialists in Australia are hot to trot in 2008. The report says product control is in red hot demand and that a Sydney-based product accountant/controller with three to five years’ experience can earn AU$125k, compared with AU$105k last year. Likewise, financial accountants can currently earn AU$125k, compared with AU$100k in 2007. Neil Dyball, associate director of the banking division at Robert... Read more

Australia hasn’t lived up to its promise for ANZ’s ex-group managing director, Steve Targett. How common is it for immigrant bankers to come unstuck? In the case of Targett, the stakes are high and getting higher. Last month, he upped his damages claim from AU$2.1m to a hefty AU$57m, according to a report in the Australian Financial Review. Targett, a former banker with Lloyds TSB, claims he left his well-paid job... Read more

The experience bean-counters gain from working for a Big Four accounting firm is proving invaluable when cashed up i-banks and asset managers come calling for their services. Cameron Heaney, managing director, Imagine Accounting and Finance Resourcing, says chartered accountants offer an appealing skill set. “The Big Four firms lead in controls and compliance. Today, more so than five to 10 years ago, controls and compliance are much higher on... Read more

Bank of Ireland has opened a project finance office in Sydney and is looking to create more jobs in the city, according to Tom Hayes, chief executive of the firm’s corporate banking division. “Over the next 12 to 18 months, we see significant opportunities in a number of key market areas, including the electricity market (particularly generation), oil and gas plus infrastructure/PPP,” says Hayes. “We have a solid pipeline of... Read more

It’s left the finances of some of Australia’s biggest local governments in poor shape, but Lehman Brothers is adamant the Grange Securities fiasco and the credit squeeze won’t force an early exit from the domestic market. The global i-bank has grown its Australian staff by 50-60 over the past 12 months, according to Michelle Sprod, head of marketing at Lehmans. “We will continue to grow as the market dictates and... Read more

It’s created grim consequences for many bankers, but ironically the credit squeeze is proving a boon for quality credit analysts, says a Sydney-based recruiter. Patrick Everest, partner at Jon Michel Executive Search, says credit risk professionals are now in higher demand than at any time over the last 12 to 18 months. “Both the institutional teams at the domestic banks as well as the global investment banks are looking for talent,”... Read more

Don’t be shy about showing off your extra-curricular experience on your CV – it may just set you apart from the candidate pack in today’s tough employment market. Jon Michel, principal of Jon Michel Executive Search, says including all-around abilities indicates that a candidate can work hard, play hard and is therefore robust enough to cope with the long hours in the banking sector. “Successful candidates will ideally be good... Read more

It's not looking good if you fancy landing a job in the Australian financial services market. The Aussie banking sector job market is floundering, according to the most recent monthly instalment of the Olivier Job Index. Report author Bob Olivier, a director of recruiter Olivier Group, attributes the poor results – down 5.12% in February – to the credit crunch, interest rate rises and the stock market sell-off. “Sub-prime write-offs have hurt... Read more

Could it be banks have failed in their 30-year crusade against insider trading? Yes, according to one senior banker. Last month, Caliburn chairman Peter Hunt was reported in the Melbourne Age as saying, “Unusual price movements ahead of takeover announcements and capital raisings in this market are frustratingly commonplace.” Hunt’s frank comments follow hot on the heels of the SocGen fiasco and trader suspensions at Credit Suisse. Will banks now rush... Read more

Collapsing stock markets and tightening credit are bad news for most investment bankers. Restructuring specialists are the exception. If, as looks increasingly likely, the US economy lurches into recession, one senior economist warns that it’s only a matter of time before local defaults start to hot up. Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy and chief economist at AMP Capital Investors, says, “I would expect that if the US goes into recession... Read more

Don’t look now: there are some signs that the US sub-prime mortgage malaise has spread to the Australian market for financial services jobs. Private equity firms and corporate advisers were hit hard with a 9% fall in job advertisements during September, according to the Olivier Internet Job Index. The index also showed ads on the Internet for banking jobs fell by 10.5% in September. Report author Bob Olivier, a director at the Olivier... Read more

If you’re looking for a crunch-immune sector of the hiring market, financial planning may be it. Count Financial has slapped a freeze on head-office recruitment, yet the dealer group is still hunting for financial planning talent, according to chief executive Marianne Perkovic. Demand is focused on people who can bring clients with them. “They need to have experience of dealing with clients face-to-face,” Perkovic says. Melbourne-based executive recruiter... Read more

The hiring market for hedge funds is due for a lean patch as potential industry consolidation and the short-selling ban hit home. Spencer Young, chief executive of Australian-based fund HFA Holdings, reckons the number of funds worldwide is set to fall as a result of consolidation caused by market volatility. (Investor Daily) What will be the impact in Australia? Hans Kunnen, head of investments market research at Colonial First... Read more

The financial crisis and the prospect of a regulatory crackdown mean derivatives jobs are in short supply in Australia. Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy at AMP Capital Investors, expects the derivatives market to soon be subjected to increased government regulation. “This will have an impact on job opportunities in the financial sector,” he adds. Derivatives traders are feeling the pinch of relatively weak balance sheets, says John Coles, CEO,... Read more

In the wake of the global financial crisis, a leading headhunter has described the Australian banking recruitment market as “two-speed”. John Coles, CEO of Executive Group International, says global banks are in limbo as they wait for direction from new owners and/or overseas masters. Meanwhile, Australia’s comparatively strong economic growth and its mining industry are helping to hold up local commercial banks with minimal exposure to sub-prime calamities. “The... Read more

The potential Westpac/St George merger, which would create the country’s biggest lender by market value, is set to edge Sydney slightly further in front of Melbourne as Australia’s premier banking hub. Both Westpac and St George are Sydney-based, so the newly combined bank would also be headquartered in the harbour city. Mary Grant, principal consultant in recruitment firm Hudson's banking and finance division, comments: “Westpac’s Sydney headquarters is not... Read more

Its CEO and chairman are gone, its share price has hit a new low, and it’s battling for its very survival. But the news is not all bad for the embattled staff of Babcock & Brown – the international banks are keen to take on B&B refugees who jump ship or get laid off. Recruiter John Coles, chief executive of Executive Group International, says Babcock employees are hot commodities.... Read more

The bad news for banking jobs has continued with the latest release of the Oliver Job Index. The monthly report says total banking and finance job advertisements fell 3.8% in July and 13.92% over the previous 12 months. The year-on-year decline was the worst of any sector. Report author Bob Olivier, director of recruiter Olivier Group says retail banking jobs were hardest hit, while i-banking job ads were down 2.9% for... Read more