Burnout mounts as a third of banking and financial services plan to leave the industry due to high pressure

• One third (31%) of financial services and banking professionals are planning to leave the industry due to high pressure, with a further third (31%) planning to leave their current role but stay within the same industry
• A third (33%) of financial service and banking professionals state that working from home and hybrid working has increased burnout, with one in six (14%) stating it’s risen exponentially
• This study shows that nearly a quarter (23%) of financial service workers are concerned about their health or mental health

With burnout mounting, a further third (31%) of banking and finance professionals are also planning to leave their current role as a result of high pressure, but continue to stay within the same industry. The upcoming exodus from the industry risks valuable talent leaving the sector in record numbers, and stems from increasing levels of burnout, which has worsened for many since the pandemic and working from home, or hybrid model set up.

Some workers have experienced the positive benefits of hybrid working, and even decreased levels of burnout, but a third (33%) of financial services and banking professionals state levels of burnout has increased due to changes in work environment since the pandemic and working from home hybrid model. Within this, one in six (14%) state burnout has increased exponentially.

When uncovering why workers are planning to leave their positions in record numbers, the study by LemonEdge found that financial services and banking professionals state a heavy workload (42%) is the main contributor to feeling heightened pressure within their role. This is closely followed by manual processes (36%), long working hours (32%), tight deadlines (26%), and increasing demands from management (25%).

While some workers claim to be thriving in these conditions, much of the general workforce in banking and services are feeling the weight of burnout. These increased pressures are negatively impacting the mental well-being of financial service workers, as a quarter (26%) are feeling nervous about the future, whilst a further 23% are specifically worried about their health or mental health.

Overall, one in six (15%) financial services workers feel as though they can no longer continue, or have the desire to continue in their role within the industry, rising to 21% of males.  

In order to overcome burnout, a third (33%) of financial services professionals are in agreement that a reduced workload would reduce burnout. Other solutions include time off work (27%), more support from management (25%), and faster, more efficient technology (23%).

Gareth Hewitt, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at LemonEdge, comments: “An exodus of industry professionals is a sure sign that levels of burnout have reached an unacceptable scale. Any experience of  burnout is serious and with thousands of employees planning to leave the industry as a direct result of high pressure, it should be a clear warning to firms before they risk losing valuable talent.

“The risk of burnout to employers is huge, and there are simple measures firms can introduce to reduce the risk of burnout, making the lives of their employees' much simpler, easier, and with less stress. Firms need to be aware of the impact absenteeism and presenteeism will have on both their employees and business productivity. Just because you’re working from home, or in a hybrid model, doesn’t mean you can't enjoy time off. With one in four (23%) asking for faster or improved technology to eliminate manual processes, firms need to look at their approaches to improve the lives of their staff. In this day and age, technology, not only can but should, provide the automation and flexibility that can contribute to reduced stress, reduced working hours, and lower risk of burnout. At LemonEdge we are passionate about providing the tools and technology that enable financial services professionals to get home on time.”

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Methodology:

Study of 300 UK-based workers in banking and financial services, conducted April 2022.

Study conducted across banking and financial services, including investment banks, asset management, private equity, venture capital and more.

About LemonEdge

LemonEdge is the first and only low-code development platform for the complex accounting demands of the private equity and wider financial services industry. LemonEdge enables businesses to develop or customise solutions 20x faster than traditional approaches. LemonEdge’s private capital product provides asset managers and administrators with the core infrastructure for fund, portfolio, and LP-level accounting.  The platform has easy-to-use reporting and analysis capabilities, which can seamlessly handle scale and complexity. Clients can quickly integrate 3rd party systems, spreadsheets, and proprietary financial processes via LemonEdge’s low-code platform. This intuitive and highly customisable approach delivers on today's complex requirements for efficient fund management.

Combined with LemonEdge’s unique set of building blocks for financial services, from a multi-currency general ledger, auditing, risk management, to complex data handling and reporting, you can give your solutions the edge they need.

About our Team:

Gareth Hewitt, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at LemonEdge:

Gareth is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of LemonEdge. He is a technology professional with over 20 years of financial services software experience. After Edinburgh University, Gareth was responsible for developing alternative asset software at Accounting Frameworks and later at eFront. This experience became the foundation for launching a cloud- based configurable software solution in 2011. Gareth then co-founded Bridge Fund Solutions, which he later sold. His experience with the current legacy system approaches to data integration, customisability, modelling, complex accounting, and scalability solidified his belief that there is a deep-rooted need for a powerful modern development platform with integrated accounting in financial services.

Jamie Nascimento, Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer at LemonEdge:

Jamie is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of LemonEdge. He has 20 years of experience in marketing and sales and holds a degree in computer science and artificial intelligence. Jamie’s ability to combine logical thinking with a creative aptitude, while also developing insight strategies, has helped him deliver strong growth across numerous brands in the FMCG market. Jamie’s expertise from working in global, multi-tiered organisational structures to start-up and scale-up businesses has given him a uniquely structured and entrepreneurial approach.