An alumnus of Grenoble Ecole de Management, a leading French business school, he has profited from the sweeping changes to the financial services industry, and the rise of the compliance officer.
New regulation has put a premium on specialist knowledge and experience – two things that he has gained through a full-time MBA program delivered in the UK.
The personal and leadership development focus of the MBA has helped him to land a managerial role at Barclays’ investment bank, where he works in the City of London.
Prior to the MBA he worked at Credit Suisse, the Swiss bank, as a development manager, before gaining promotion to a managerial post for IT within the fixed income division of the bank’s European operation.
During the Grenoble MBA, delivered via the London School of Business & Finance, he became a project manager in the front office of Credit Suisse in London.
After five years in that role he transitioned into Marsh, a leading insurance broker, where he worked as a program manager, before joining Barclays in March last year.
In a twist the banker hopes to launch an entrepreneurial venture later in 2015, joining a swelling number of MBAs looking outside of traditional careers and instead turning to start-ups.
Why did you decide to begin an MBA degree?
It was a big step and commitment, as for other professionals working full-time.
I chose the MBA over other masters programs for one reason: employers usually look favourably on the MBA because the format promotes knowledge and skills that are applicable to any organisation, regardless of the sector.
And this was positively reflected in my next job interview, and gave me added advantage over other candidates with similar profiles and experience.
How helpful was the MBA in securing your current job?
MBA degrees are looked upon as a first step towards management roles. As MBAs are designed to allow people to progress further in their careers, it helped me to move up from being an analyst to a manager.
Experience plays a vital role in managerial positions but candidates with an MBA and experience are sought after by employers.
The personal development and leadership modules of the MBA helped me to present myself, and got me the management position I had been looking for years before I started my MBA.
How have you been able to utilize your business school network?
I haven’t been able to utilize the business school network as much as I should have due to my working hours and commitment to the projects I’ve been working on.
Nonetheless, I’ve managed to attend a few of my school’s network meetings and they prove to be very effective in expanding reach. Your reach can grow exponentially through your school network.
I’m looking forward to using my business school network for my new endeavour flugBook.com, which I’m planning to start by mid-2015.
What is your biggest lesson learnt?
My biggest lesson was that I was a little late in choosing the MBA as an option for my career progression. I believe we should make this decision within five to eight years of starting our first jobs. This will shape our careers early enough to achieve more. However, it is still not too late to join an MBA – even after 10 years of job experience.
What advice would you give to MBA students who are about to graduate from business school?
My advice to MBA students is not to wait until graduation day. You have already taken the first step of your plan by choosing an MBA – you are one step ahead of other managers.
Line up your contacts for internships if you are opting for a change in career, and start networking by talking to people in the same boat – alumni of your university or school.
Try and join some free seminars offered by financial institutes. Regularly visit investment banks’ websites, where they list free seminars for graduates. Join them even if it is not what you are looking for in the long run. Sometimes roles that look dry and unattractive from a distance become your target jobs after seminars.
Setup career alert emails for all prospective companies you would like to work for – you will get alerts of any associate jobs a company has to offer, and you get to know from the profile what the hiring manager is looking for.
What are your future career plans?
Just like every MBA graduate I too want to be an entrepreneur. I have started working on an idea, which I got from a mother flying with her kids across the Atlantic. I can't give away anymore of the details yet.
Compliance has seen growth in employment since the financial crisis. Do you anticipate further demand, and which skills have been most valuable to you in your role at Barclays?
Since the financial crisis organisations have been required to manage a multitude of challenges. Risk, control and compliance are what every institute is focusing on.
No firm is exempt from the need for constant change and renewal. Failure to adapt to the changing regulatory requirements could have serious impacts for firms, both in their client relationships and reputations, not to mention the hit to their balance sheets.
While the number of regulatory disciplinary cases initiated by the FSA [now split into the Prudential Regulation Authority and The Financial Conduct Authority] has increased over recent years, there is a massive demand and in my view there will be a constant demand in control, risk and compliance for the foreseeable future.
So if any MBA graduates are looking to work in these challenging areas then I would recommend them to get onto some short courses offered by the CISI [Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment] along with their MBA program.
In my previous experience of working on compliance projects, the leadership skills learned during the MBA and the seminars attended on risk and compliance were the most valuable [assets] in securing and performing in my role at Barclays.
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