Evolution of project prioritization and management in US investment banks

In the last eleven years, investment banks have seen a surge in the hiring of project and portfolio managers of varying levels of seniority, especially in the technologically focused markets division. The main reason has been the inability of existing governing entities within business and technology to simultaneously control timing, scope and cost of complex technological and even non-technological initiatives, in an ever-evolving technological landscape. The rapid evolution of financial regulations over the first seven years, followed by a change of focus in the last four years on major growth initiatives within investment banks, vis-à-vis diminishing technology budgets have contributed to a rise in complexity of project management and prioritization.