Nikki Sehmi

Transcript

Did you do an internship before joining?
I did an internship at UBS in equities research in the mining and commodities division.

Why did you join Barclays Wealth?
I visited what was then Barclays Capital on a number of occasions for different banking events and I met lots of different employees who would tell me about how they’re going to launch a new brand Barclays Wealth under its own umbrella and they really interested me in the journey and the opportunity. And it was great to meet them, they were very enthusiastic, very welcoming, and that’s what made Barclays Wealth appeal to me over any other company.

What have you been doing since you joined?
We started on the graduate programme last September. We had eight weeks of initial training and straight after that we took our IMC exam. After completing the exam and the training we were placed into our first team. I was placed into the affluent part of the bank where I was for four months. I have now been put into the high net worth division of the bank and I am here for a total of six months. We have also just completed our CFA Level one.

What support and training have you received?
In the beginning of the graduate programme we had our eight weeks of initial training and it was very intense. We had to learn a lot very quickly about the bank, products, and the industry. Since then, well since we joined our teams, the great thing is we also have the opportunity to attend various training events throughout the year. We always get emails to invite us for ‘lunch and learn’ sessions where we can go along and learn new things about new products, get updates on what’s happening in the markets and its great because then we can make sure we are giving our clients up to date information.

Can you describe what your current role entails?
In my current team in the high net worth of the bank I am working very closely with the private bankers. I get to attend meetings with them, which is great because I get to see first hand how they interact with clients. I also am set various tasks and projects for them to complete. My projects include research on clients or into products. I also tend to draft a lot of the investment letters for clients and I get involved in very numerical and technical things such as calculating rates of return if they need to open an investment. The great thing is that every day is varied and I am constantly being challenged with new things to do.

What are some of the most interesting projects you have been involved with?
One of the most interesting products I have been involved in is actually quite recent is I was asked to help write the next case study for the assessment centre when they interview new interns and potential graduates. And that has been great as I’ve had the chance to do something new and work alongside HR and some members of my team. We also had the opportunity to visit a school on a community project. We went to a school in a relatively deprived area and we helped teach and coach GCSE children on CV skills, interview skills and we just taught them a bit about the wealth management industry and introduced them to Barclays Wealth.

What did you do yesterday?
Yesterday, first thing in the morning, I got in and wrote a market summary for the team which I then email around. That is actually something that I do every day based on what’s happened to the markets over night, what’s happened in the morning, what the main news stories are. After this I then helped one of the bankers with an investment letter to a client and that involved researching new products and services that I hadn’t come across before. Towards the end of the day I was then researching the Israeli investment market for one of our clients.

What will you be doing next?
When I finish my current placement in the next two months I will then be going onto the products office where I will work within a specialist product area, for example, alternatives, structural products, and that will be for six months. After that next year I then have the opportunity to go abroad for six months where I have the opportunity to work in a client facing role.

What qualities do you need to work here?
I think being adaptable is very important. Because Barclays Wealth is relatively new and it’s growing they need people to be flexible and be able to adapt to the business needs. Secondly I would say resourceful, you need to think quickly on your feet and use your initiative. And finally, probably, be resilient because they are growing so fast, they need to make sure they have the best people to help them achieve their goals so it means a lot of hard work, commitment and focus.

What’s it like working here?
It’s definitely been very challenging because you have to learn very quickly but at the same time it has been very rewarding. It’s great when you receive good feedback and it’s very exciting to be part of the organisation.

Why should someone come and work at Barclays Wealth?
I would say because Barclays Wealth is growing at such a fast pace, its great to come and be part of the challenge rather than work for a firm that’s fully grown, established, and is quite sluggish. If you come along to Barclays Wealth you can stretch yourself and really grow as the organisation grows.

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