JPMorgan has made an important hire from Goldman Sachs, and it hints at the future of trading
The bank has hired Debra Herschmann from Goldman Sachs as head of corporate and investment bank user experience. She will also CIB chief information officer Lori Beer's management team. At Goldman, she was global head of user experience in client platforms.
Her new role was announced to staff on Tuesday in a memo from David Hudson, who was appointed to the role of head of markets execution earlier in the year. The note set out the make-up of his new team, and a mission statement for the unit.
"In simple terms, Markets Execution will focus on providing clients with electronic distribution of markets products - in whatever way they choose - today and into the future," the note said.
"We will deliver this vision by leveraging leading-edge technology and design standards that will improve the user experience while lowering the cost of execution for our clients and for ourselves," the note added.
Herschmann is a little different to your average Wall Streeter. She's taught university classes in computer animation and interaction design, and her interactive installations have been on display at the Boston Computer Museum and the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. She also helped design probation management applications for the New York City Department of Corrections.
In her new role, she'll be responsible for making sure JPMorgan clients get a consistent, user-friendly experience on the bank's trading platforms. And her appointment hints at the changing nature of trading.
"You cannot dictate how the clients, some of you, will decide to execute your transactions. What we can do is create all the avenues for you not to have a reason not to execute with us and going somewhere else. And this is what it's about."
As more and more trading is conducted electronically, things like "user experience" and "design standards" will become a bigger and bigger part of the business of Wall Street.
Here are the other appointments announced in the memo:
- Richard James and Peter Ward will cohead markets execution for macro products, including futures and options and Neovest.
- Adam Shapiro will continue to head markets execution for spread products.
- Daniel Ciment will continue to head equity electronic client solutions.
- JPMorgan will soon name someone to "drive Markets Execution related product development for the Equity Derivatives business."
- John Roberts will continue to head electronic distribution of research.