International opportunities

The world's your oyster

Michael Fraccaro, head of HR at HSBC, says: "Right now we have 24 staff members offshore - a lot given that our Australian offices are relatively small - and we regularly send people for short-term attachments overseas: three to 12 months. Australia is seen by HSBC as a fertile ground for exporting talent to other parts of the bank."

For some, working overseas is their only option. Simon Moylan at Hudson explains that up to 40% of Australian finance graduates are international and many do not have Australian residency status. For them, international opportunities are the only opportunities for long-term work, unless they find an Australian bank to sponsor them.

Where are the jobs?

Most graduates want to go to the UK or US, and it is likely that London will increasingly be the destination of choice, especially, says Matt Gowan of Hays recruiting, for people working in equities markets.

Mark Joiner, from the office of the CEO at National Australia Bank, says: "London is really on the rise in banking: there is a significant chance that it will replace New York for world capital markets."

While there is a constant stream of Australian bankers heading to the Old World, the biggest growth area is closer to home. Hudson's Moylan says: "Asia generally and China in particular are moving forward, but so is Vietnam. Hong Kong is, to a degree, but it is already an established market, and for the same reason there is little activity in either Singapore or Japan.

Gordon Kir, head of campus recruiting at Credit Suisse in Asia Pacific, says, "In Asia, we are growing quite hugely; there is high growth all over the region. Singapore, India and China are the biggest growth areas, but China is especially hot," he says.

From recruiters to the top echelon of banking executives, the story is the same: UBS Australia's CEO Brad Orgill says: "We are historically tied to the West, but Japan, Korea and China are Australia's top three trading partners and that is where our money flow is. It's where our best talent is going."

What sort of work is available?

Anything from exotic structured products to arranging compliance for commodities majors. In many cases, says Elizabeth Ong, head of recruiting at Deutsche Bank, all you have to do is put up your hand. "We lose up to 30% of our graduates offshore in their second or third years. We just have to hire more. If we can keep graduates by giving them placements overseas, we will."

But as often as not, you don't even have to ask: you get headhunted. Michael Le Lievre, head of graduate recruiting Asia Pacific at Morgan Stanley, says: "Our biggest attrition rates come from other banks offering fabulous opportunities. These are not necessarily pecuniary, but are always interesting jobs in appealing places."

Banks also actively seek people to place overseas. "We recruit many Australian graduates for Asia. Australian universities have a high Asian intake and these graduates have the language skills and local and cultural knowledge that enable them to work in Asia effectively. But we also hire Australian graduates who don't have those particular skills but who have others, for our Asian offices," says Credit Suisse's Kir.

Are there special skills you need to have?

You need to be good, says Victoria Biggs at recruiter Jon Michel. Simon Moylan at Hudson says the huge push into Asia means companies need people who are prepared to move and especially people with a second language. "In our recruitment for ANZ Bank, we are looking for 50% of our graduates to have a second language. Middle managers aren't really mobile, so our graduates are our pipeline in this push for language skills. It is very difficult for us to recruit locally in our Asian markets as we need people who know Australian compliance and regulatory requirements."

What are the benefits of an overseas job?

Hay's Gowan says entry-level jobs are not that interesting, so intelligent, motivated graduates often seek positions in the bigger UK and US markets to have exposure to much deeper and broader markets and to work on the biggest deals in the world.

For Joiner at National Australia Bank, the benefits are lifelong: "Any decent and ambitious Australian would benefit from two to 10 years overseas. They are exposed to the very best of the world's bankers and financial specialists, and they are paid probably double what they earn in Australia. But that means that after a few years they can come back, bringing that wisdom with them, and even the financial security to be able to do whatever they want on their return, including setting up on their own. They don't always slot back into the corporate world; they might set up their own hedge fund, or they might just slow down a bit."

What are the limitations?

The biggest limitation is visa requirements, says Hay's Gowan. "You can work in London for a year, and that can be extended. Visas are also pretty flexible for work in Dublin, but limited to about three months in Hong Kong."

In some cases, it is difficult to transfer internationally and you might have to resign locally before being employed overseas, even by the same employer. So it is wise to investigate the ease of transferring and whether you'll be supported through that move, Hudson's Moylan warns.

Longer term, the disadvantages can be onerous, says Ken Allen, senior adviser at UBS Australia: "You need to maintain your networks while you're away, or when you come back you will find your networks for getting a job have vanished and it's difficult for people from offshore to make the connect and be appointed."

But don't pack your bags just yet. Morgan Stanley's Le Lievre says that athough it is possible to be sent overseas in the early years of your career, it is much more likely you'll be an associate before you're sent to New York or London. "By that time, you've proven yourself and are really beginning to network," he says.