

Ask HN: General distaste of working in Financial companies? - justlearning

Yesterday, we had this question "Am i making too much?" -<p>http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1754154<p>Among the discussions, few mentioned the finance as a no-no. I tend to not think of it as a HN bias(pro startups/boo-java).<p>to quote a few from the recent post:
" I work in finance.... but I hate it everyday"; "I am avoiding the financial sector as well as larger institutions like the plague"
"I would stay the hell away from them though, personally"
"The jobs that pay significantly more (such as hard core finance) tend to pay a lot more because the work is life-shortening, specialized, and reputation-based"<p>I have read few comments in the past too which mirror similar emotions.
So my curiosity was piqued..
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fakelvis
I feel that one of the causes of this bias is that startups are often thought
of as the antithesis of "big finance". Because of this, disgruntled
(ex)finance people come here looking for a change and a challenge in something
completely different (possibly naively thinking that "completely different"
means "something I'll enjoy because I don't enjoy what I'm doing now").

The core problems with finance, as I see them (from the inside):

\- Many in the financial sector work in companies with 100,000+ colleagues.
Depending on the role/department/team/company, it can feel like you don't make
a difference.

\- Many of these companies are far from 'lean' and are slow moving behemoths.

\- Many people get into the sector for the reasons 'staunch' said: quick
money.

\- The technology is archaic and 'usability' and 'experience' are words that
are seldom even known outside of new recruits.

However, most disgruntled financial employees are the victim of circumstance.

I work in finance and love it. My team is small and crucial to the company's
core business -- I am made to feel like I make a difference… and I do. Those
huge, lumbering systems are fantastic when trying to figure out how to get
things working and how to improve them. Dealing constantly with legal
constraints can be great fun if you think of them as constraints rather than
just "a pain in the ass". The opportunities for learning are near endless.
Legacy systems are the most fascinating bit of history I've seen and
occasionally I'll spend my morning among COBOL, my afternoon with C and my
evening with JSPs.

To conclude: If you're in the right place, finance is fascinating and hugely
enjoyable. If you're in the wrong place, it can be frustrating and boring
beyond imagination. What type are going to be on HN, mostly? Those who were
caught in the last group and are looking for the polar opposite experience to
see if this is what works.

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rosariom
I have to agree both with fakelvis and staunch.

To fakelvis's point, IT in finance could be fantastic if you get into a good
area (I believe they are far and few). You will be working on cutting edge
stuff and decommissioning legacy apps at every opportunity that presents
itself for a re-ramp of the app. At my previous employer, I was lucky to join
a team with tons of legacy that worked and was problematic. Mandates came down
from management and the business users to rewrite and re-platform the old
stuff to accomodate new requirements. We were given the green light to build
the new platform in whatever way we saw fit. We were free to choose languages,
design, and architecture of our liking to accomplish the task. The new
platform was strategic in nature as well and was meant to be put in place for
a long time. This was a great experience for me and gave me as a developer,
the rare opportunity to work on an app from scratch. My user base was great
and very knowledgeable in the finance space so I learned alot as well.

To staunch's point, the finance culture is broken and full of megalomania.
Tons of developers and finance people with delusions of grandeur. The one
thing I hate about the finance industry is how IT is treated and viewed by
some parts of the business. We are viewed as nothing more than a utility. Too
often I hear developers talking about 'moving up' and by this they mean
leaving this creative craft of software development to be on the 'fun' side,
i.e. the business end. This, to say the least, is demoralizing to the people
that want to build systems for a living when you constantly have to hear this.
Given this reality, I think the life of an developer in finance is short-
lived. Burnout rates are high and job satisfaction is low. I have yet to meet
developers that are excited about career prospects in finance.

I created a blog that will start talking about this and other things I see
here: <http://techjobsspace.blogspot.com>

Anyway, these are my 2-cents. I am also looking to start something up on the
side and get out of this dungeon.

~~~
fakelvis
I can't agree with every point you've made more.

When I first started in the sector I was confronted with this 'IT is a
utility' mindset from 'the business'. It was demoralising.

Luckily, a new CEO came in following an acquisition and the first thing he
said in a company-wide conference was how the company needed to value and
respect IT more (as we knew more about the company and the systems than anyone
else, he said). Overnight, almost everyone in the department came to love
their job.

Saying that, three years later and people are starting to worry about their
prospects (and rightly so, it seems).

I'm similarly interested in pursuing things on the side (as a serious project
rather than a means to 'get out'). If you fancy it, reach out (email in
profile).

As for your blog -- the first post is great, keep it up.

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staunch
The problem with the financial industry is cultural. It's endemically toxic.
Every jackass has seen Wall Street and half of them want to be Gordon Gekko.

The only good reason to work in the financial industry is if you want to have
the best odds of making the most money as quickly as possible. You just have
to not care about almost anything else to do that.

You also have to work with people that made that choice.

