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With the decorations up, the last order date for Amazon nigh and most of us looking forward to at least a few days break, it’s always a good time to take stock of what’s been achieved over the last 12 months.
 
For AlgoMe this has been another exciting year.
 
January started in style with the launch of the AlgoMe Careers mobile app – giving professionals the opportunity to find their next career opportunity on the move.
 
Then in July we released our Industry Pulse Report – a check on what the industry was thinking about key topics such as Brexit, Pay Gap Reporting, MiFiD II and GDPR. Unfortunately it seems that the uncertainty that the industry was feeling due to Brexit is unlikely to have receded in the intervening period, but it’s good to see progress starting to be made in other areas such as gender and diversity.
 
In September we launched AlgoMe Community – a place for the Investment / Asset Management industry to come together, providing professionals with ways to grow their knowledge, profile and network. We’d like to say a big thank you to all of the members that have joined and contributed and look forward to continuing growth in 2019.
 
In November AlgoMe joined the Investment Association, becoming a Fintech member and working closely with Velocity, the Association’s new Fintech accelerator. This is a really exciting initiative and we’re looking forward to doing more with Velocity in the near future.
 
We also launched our Mentoring matching service in November – designed to help AlgoMe Community members connect with the best individuals within the community to help them to reach their career goals using a simple but intelligent process. If you haven’t already signed up to be a mentor or a mentee, please do spend 5 minutes now and tick off a New Year’s Resolution early.
 
As we go into the end of the year, we have also launched our survey on Investment Management, Fintech and the future of careers. The impact of Fintech on the industry is going to accelerate rapidly in 2019, but what has been less well documented is the impact on individuals, their careers and the skills they’ll need to succeed in a more digitised environment. We really value the input of our community members, so please spend a couple of minutes filling out the survey and we’ll make sure you’re the first to hear the results early next year.
 
From me and the AlgoMe team, I wish you all a very happy holiday season and look forward to another year of exciting announcements and change in 2019.
 
Rob
 

I have always struggled to see a fair reason why employers should be allowed to ask about a potential hire’s current remuneration, other than to give them an advantage in pay negotiations.
It’s something which can only exacerbate existing pay inequalities and  it’s abolishment can surely only be a positive thing.
Here the Guardian argues specifically about its impact with regards to the gender pay gap:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/23/gender-pay-gap-current-salary-question
I believe this has already been outlawed in some US states?
@Jonathan Max - would be interesting to hear the view from HR. 

The Investment Association recently gave the industry a boost when it announced the launch of Velocity, its FinTech accelerator.  Designed to identify, develop and accelerate best in class firms with innovative solutions, Velocity will champion and facilitate the wider adoption of technology across the industry.
 
And AlgoMe will be involved in this too, which is why I’m excited to announce we are now a member organisation of the Investment Association as an official FinTech member and have been named a "company to watch" by Velocity.
 
Challenging Times
The Investment Management industry faces major challenges and opportunities from forces such as digital technology, pressure on fees and increased regulation, while at the same time there are widespread changes in the workforce and their expectations.
 
To date, Investment Management has both been fairly insulated from the challenges posed by agile FinTech competitors, but also distant from the opportunities offered by the new technologies and ways of thinking that such companies bring.
 
Bringing FinTech closer
Velocity is a fantastic step towards accelerating the adoption of FinTech. It has received support and endorsements from both inside and outside the industry, including from the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Phillip Hammond, who was enthusiastic about the initiative at a recent City event.
 
To drive change and innovation, the industry needs to connect across different disciplines and areas of expertise, driving new ways of thinking and fostering cultural change.
 
Without the benefit of emerging FinTechs and their external expertise, it will be hard for incumbents to harness the benefits of emerging technologies such as Straight Through deal Processing (STP), Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in areas such as risk and compliance, securities trading and investment decision making.
 
Our Mission
AlgoMe's mission is to connect the Investment Management industry and empower professionals to manage their careers. Our new product, AlgoMe Community, is placed to become the hub for the discussion between FinTechs and the companies and professionals in the wider Investment Management ecosystem.
 
Join AlgoMe Community today
 
AlgoMe Community - community.algome.com