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BofA Faces Monumental Integration Task
CIO Chairs Rotate In Financial Services Sector
By Mel Duvall
The financial meltdown on Wall Street this week will no doubt have severe consequences for many of the IT staff at the affected firms. But few will be feeling the heat as much as the man responsible for technology at Lehman Brothers.
Ian Lowitt serves as the chief financial officer and co-chief administrative officer for Lehman Brothers, and has been at the heart of negotiations taking place this week following the firm's bankruptcy filing. In addition to his duties as CFO, however, Lowitt also has responsibility for the global oversight of corporate real estate, risk management and technology.
It is not unusual for the CFO at a financial institution to also assume oversight for technology operations, but given the nature of the crisis, Lowitt may certainly be wishing fewer responsibilities were on his shoulders. Lowitt joined Lehman Brothers in 1994 from McKinsey & Co. where he served as an engagement manager advising clients in a number of industries, including financial services, electronics and information technology.
The seat may be just as hot for the head of IT at Merrill Lynch, the other Wall Street brokerage that fell victim to the financial crisis this week. Merrill Lynch is being acquired—it might be more appropriate to say rescued—by Bank of America for about $50 billion.
The head of technology at Merrill Lynch is Tom Sanzone, who only assumed the role a few months ago. Sanzone was the CIO at Credit Suisse until late February when he packed up his bags and moved down the street to Merrill Lynch to assume the new title of executive vice president and chief administrative officer. As part of that role, Sanzone was handed responsibility for all of the firm's technology, operations and corporate services. He oversees a multi-billion dollar budget and roughly 15,000 employees.
Sanzone left Credit Suisse not long after the company announced an unexpected write-down of $2.8 billion on Feb. 19. As part of his three year term at Credit Suisse he led a massive "OneBank" integration project to bring together the firm's investment banking, private banking and asset management divisions.
Those integration skills could come in handy at Bank of America, which will not only have to digest Merrill Lynch, but is also in the early stages of integrating the operations of Countrywide Financial.
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