When an industry hits the skids, as high tech did in 2001, a spike in executive management turnover usually ensues. Following that logic, you’d think IT executives would be leaving mortgage, construction and real estate companies in droves, what with the housing market experiencing its deepest and most protracted slump in years. But they’re not. For all intents and purposes, management inside the housing industry has remained relatively stable. “There has been a slight trend upward [in management churn] in the mortgage industry, but it’s not been as big as one would have expected at this point,” says Richard Jacovitz, senior VP and research director at Liberum Research, a provider of investment research focused on management change. “It may be that the shakeout hasn’t wheeled its way through the personnel end.” It may also be that many of the subprime lenders hit hardest by the slump have already gone out of business: New Century Financial filed for Chapter 11 in April (its former CIO-turned-COO Joseph Eckroth found a new home with Hertz as its CIO in June). Mortgage Lenders Network discontinued its wholesale lending operation in January, a month after Ownit Mortgage Solutions closed up shop. Jim Bond, managing director and head of technology practice with executive search firm Horton International, advises CIOs in the housing industry to begin looking for new jobs elsewhere now. Ironically, Bond sees a lot of opportunities for CIOs with high-tech startups, whose investors are seeking experienced CIOs to build the companies’ infrastructures for growth. “CIOs I talk to are getting lots of calls from the venture capital community,” he says. That may mean going from one boom and bust industry to another. Related content feature Red Hat embraces hybrid cloud for internal IT The maker of OpenShift has leveraged its own open container offering to migrate business-critical apps to AWS as part of a strategy to move beyond facilitating hybrid cloud for others and capitalize on the model for itself. By Paula Rooney May 29, 2023 5 mins CIO 100 Technology Industry Hybrid Cloud feature 10 most popular IT certifications for 2023 Certifications are a great way to show employers you have the right IT skills and specializations for the job. These 10 certs are the ones IT pros are most likely to pursue, according to data from Dice. By Sarah K. White May 26, 2023 8 mins Certifications Careers interview Stepping up to the challenge of a global conglomerate CIO role Dr. Amrut Urkude became CIO of Reliance Polyester after his company was acquired by Reliance Industries. He discusses challenges IT leaders face while transitioning from a small company to a large multinational enterprise, and how to overcome them. By Yashvendra Singh May 26, 2023 7 mins Digital Transformation Careers brandpost With the new financial year looming, now is a good time to review your Microsoft 365 licenses By Veronica Lew May 25, 2023 5 mins Lenovo Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe