Less than a decade ago, top talent was flocking to Wall Street — not just for the high salaries and lucrative bonuses, but also for the opportunity to work in a dynamic and fast-growing environment.
But now the tech industry, with its double digit growth, is setting a new standard on what the ultimate dream job looks like, with its tales of young entrepreneurs-turned-millionaires overnight — and of game rooms and lounges alongside brainstorming corners and innovation workshops.
Tech companies have become the new desirable destination, not only for top programmers but for leading Wall Street executives, too. And with successful IPOs from the likes of Twitter (TWTR), Facebook (FB), and LinkedIn (LNKD), Silicon Valley has created giant companies with the resources to pursue and retain top Wall Street talent.
Headline Hires in M&A Land
When Marissa Mayer became Yahoo’s (YHOO) chief executive in 2012, she hired Jacqueline D. Reses, a former Goldman banker, as the company’s chief development officer. Since then, the brain drain from finance has become apparent. Examples abound:
The investment in these hires makes sense from the tech giants’ perspective, since acquiring other companies and expanding into new geographies has become their core growth strategy. And we’re seeing an acqui-hire trend in tech, where giants acquire startups for the sake of raiding their talent. As these complex executions (along with post-merger integration and constant sourcing of deal flow for potential acquisitions) become inherent to their business, tech giants require the expertise of high caliber in-house financial professionals.
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