Technologists are not yet convinced of the virtues of switching from banking to a financial tech vendor

Most technologists, traditionally, have started their careers honing their skills at a financial software vendor before making the move to a more lucrative role in an investment bank. Is there an argument for moving the other way?

The first thing to point out is that a lot of software vendors are hiring, as more banks buy software off-the-shelf, while the banks themselves have pulled back from IT recruitment more recently. This may not be enough persuade many techies to make the switch, however.

Perhaps the case of Dominic "Don" Trotta will help sway you. He was previously chief information officer at Barclays Capital head up SAP's financial services practice 18 months ago. He told Banking Technology magazine that he wished he'd made the move "years ago":

"Even in a large global bank that recognises the importance of technology and its place in their business, you are still in a supporting role, you are not really running the business. In the role I'm in now, I am the business, so I don't have to spend a lot of my time on understanding this or that project, or what some business guy wants."

One former head of recruitment a financial services technology vendor, who now works for an investment bank, says that the biggest hurdle was convincing technologists that a taking a pay cut - usually between 15-20% including bonus - was worth it.

"Once they made the move, most realised that the less stringent segregation and hierarchy is an advantage. It allows them to focus and develop their core skills, but also get involved in other areas of the business - including revenue generating divisions, which could ultimately prove more lucrative for them," he says.

So, have technologists working in investment banks started to realise the benefits of working for a software vendor? Sadly, the answer still appears to be no.

"There's the argument that the technology developed in a software vendor is more robust, because it has to be sellable, and therefore IT professionals working there gradually become more highly-skilled," says Paul Bennie, director of IT in finance headhunters Bennie McLean. "However, most technologists are more interested in building something for in-house use, and then helping the system evolve over time."

The bigger pay packets also help, of course.