GUEST COMMENT: I am a front office banker who wants to work in the back office

In my 15 years as a front office banker, I saw a lot of (often acrimonious) desk moves. However, while we happily kicked compliance off to the sixth floor, one small team of middle office/support staff were never moved far away from the credit traders they supported.

This was because they were seen by all the traders they worked with, and especially by the head of desk, as vital to the running of his business. Yes, there were squabbles and there was lots of finger pointing, but the closeness and resulting efficiency, mutual respect and dependency came down to having support staff sitting on the floor, getting to know the business, the clients and the people they were supporting.

It is entirely with this in mind that I am considering moving into a back office role. Having had a few conversations with recruiters, it seems I may have something to offer. I know, for example, of the ways in which the front office subvert the back by running their own budget spreadsheets, managing headcount in access databases, or resisting and pushing back on back office management information requirements.

A friend of mine has just made the front to back move and says it has its ups and downs.

She feels that her front office experience helps enormously, but that the number of, what she describes as, 'circular conversations' (I have removed the expletives) within the back office teams, especially within management, is very frustrating.

She also says, and I have heard the same point made by others, that it is easier to hide in the back office but it is also easier to shine.

There is clearly significant room for change in both the front and back office. It's a shame that the most significant difference, as illustrated by the ongoing 'us and them' nature of any discussion, is pay. Bonuses, and bonus expectations continue to be based entirely on whether you are in the front or back office, and not on your impact on the business overall.

While the front office breathe a small sigh of relief, uncertainty also seems to be ongoing in the back office, with offshoring to cheaper (ie. non-London) locations still a real threat. In the worst case scenario, I would therefore end up both poorer and less secure in the back office, which makes it seem less appealing after all.