Reply to: Meaning of 'Must have banking/finance experience'

[Peter Loew]

Jobserve is littered with these roles

Jobserve's littered with 'must have finance/banking/IB/insurance' experience. It's all I am really getting in my inbox. There must be extremely high demand in these areas, or the attrition rate is grossly high. I don't have any direct experience in these sectors, but I can feel a CV doctoring coming on as I could well do with around 600+ p/d.

[kevpuk]

"Tell me is it honestly all held together with string or is that some kind of joke?" Expereince in the sector will tell you that Yes, it really is that bad.

Haha ^^ I spent about 5yrs in IB, and can concur! That's not to say I wouldn't go back

[NickNick]

Now that I'm inside the heady world of banking, it's been my experience that the reason this is asked for is so that you don't spend your first period of time on site wandering around going "Tell me is it honestly all held together with string or is that some kind of joke?" Expereince in the sector will tell you that Yes, it really is that bad.

[DieScum]

DieScum has most likely passed the first test and most likely has the training experience
Does having experience in Finance and Banking actually relate to what you need for your training material/class?

What training will you actually be providing?

The only thing I've been able to get out of the agent is that it's "systems training" with the first change that some software has had in 10 years.

So I assume there is a bespoke banking application that users need to migrate to.

I'm not 100% sure if what I have done in banking/finance really matches that. I've mainly been going in running vendor training classes geared at the techy team. So I'm going to focus on the roles I've had where I have been training non-technical users in things like CMS systems, etc.

The agent is really strong on this "banking/finance" experience but when pressed all he can come up with is "oh they mean that they want someone who has experience working in banks or finance"... which I have but it feels like I'm being asked whether I have experience driving a black car... I mean, yes I do, but what is the reason behind that? Do they need someone who has driven a hearse, a black cab... just having driven a black car seems kind of pointless.

[Brussels Slumdog]

I'd rather know if the applicant had training experience, that's much more relevant.

DieScum has most likely passed the first test and most likely has the training experience
Does having experience in Finance and Banking actually relate to what you need for your training material/class?

What training will you actually be providing?

[MyUserName]

Got an interview for an interesting training role coming up. The agent is telling me that client will be looking at my banking/financial experience.

I've done gigs at various banks and accountants over the years... but they have been no different to anywhere else tbh.

So what are clients looking for when they request banking experience?

- knowledge of specific software or at least general awareness? (SWIFT, IBAN, Reuters)
- knowledge of banking/trading terminology?

Wondering if there is something I can brush up on before going for the interview. Really appreciate any feedback from anyone who had this kind of question asked in an interview.

Normally it seems to be a way of filtering CVs.

I have worked for a couple of banks etc. I have only been asked about finance a couple of times in the interview and once you are in you rarely need to know anything unless you are in the front office with very tight timelines and traders who think that drunkenly slurring something on your VM is a detailed spec. Once I managed to make a spectacular fool of myself when asked what a swap was and I gave a detailed desciption of a forward ... did not get that one!

Although, I suppose this does vary by roll. I have seem requirements where they specifically want you to have SWIFT knowledge because you will be working on a SWIFT processing system.

[BlasterBates]

Well if the training is in the context of how to use whatever is they´re learning about for some sort of financial application, then it would be relevant. Like "so how do we use this application to calculate compound interest". Or for example they may want to know how to implement their QA to satisfy banking regulations.

If they just wanted someone who has worked in a bank so they feel that he´s up to their general standards I can´t see they would want to look into the background, they would just ask for a reference.

Having worked in banks, my experience is that if banking knowledge isn´t required they don´t test it, they just focus on your technical knowledge.

There are lots of roles in banks that don´t require banking knowledge, but there are plenty that do.

[cojak]

I'd rather know if the applicant had training experience, that's much more relevant.

[Bluenose]

Its just agents being lazy and useless...

I have bounced around lots of vertical markets and never had a problem, apart from getting past the gatekeepers (the agents)... If you can produce success you can produce success.

Mostly most systems and processes have lots of similarities across verticals.

Sometimes the incumbent teams have prejudice against anyone from outside their industry too but rarely with any merit.

Is there anything you can revise? Not really. And once you have been there a while you will know more than many who have been there for years anyways.

Its all bluff and counter bluff.

Part of the reason the whole industry is in trouble is the fake qualifications, experiences, and salesy bulltulip having so much prominance

etc

WHS

[BolshieBastard]

I've worked solidly for some blue chip banking clients in the last 10 years. Not once have they asked if I know my way around a P&L sheet, how compound interest is calculated etc, etc.

IME, must have banking experience just means you've worked for banking clients, have a professional outlook and appearance, dont have a dodgey past and produces quality, accurate results.

[mos]

It's useful to understand what people are talking about in all the meetings - this is my favourite book for that sort of thing.

All You Need to Know About the City 2011: Who Does What and Why in London's Financial Markets (All You Need to Know Guides):Amazon:Books

Edit: Jesus, just seen the price! There must be a newer, cheaper version out...

LOL! someone clearly does not want to part with this book. 2011 is the last vintage ... is this the year the City finally died ?

[Antman]

My tuppence, the agents put it in to filter CVs to a reasonable level.

My reasoning being that there was a thread here about someone needed for a role in the city and the person who posted it and was leaving said that the only requirement was good at VBA/excel (if memory serves). There are too many CVs to analyse if someone actually can do the core competency, putting "financial experience reqd" gets the CVs from 100 to 50.

I wouldn't worry about it.

[Moscow Mule]

It's useful to understand what people are talking about in all the meetings - this is my favourite book for that sort of thing.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/0955...dir_mdp_mobile

Edit: Jesus, just seen the price! There must be a newer, cheaper version out...

[GB9]

In 13 years contracting I have found the culture to be similar across a few sectors. There are extremes at either end and I agree with NLUK that IBs and the NHS (public sector in general) don't mix. Not insurmountable, but I have found the public sector to be very slow at decision making and risk averse (which strangely sometimes is a greater risk) than financials where you are more likely to be told to JFDI.

Is it a retail bank you are going to? If so then expect fairly dull standard office stuff. I have yet to see anything exceptional in a retail bank. As for specific knowledge, it depends what role you are going for. There is generic stuff such as TCF and AML which goes across the board in banking, but also more specific stuff such as SOX and Basel.

Even in the City the only time I have seen any slightly 'odd' behaviour was in the Private Client team at a very large insurer. They had a tendency to act as if they were the clients and had a bit of a taste for champagne.

If you know your core stuff (IT) you should be fine.

[northernladuk]

Cheers, northernlad.

Question for you and anyone else. Anything specific about banking culture I should be aware of and maybe bring up at interview?

I've done stints ranging from 1 year all the way to many short 1-2 week training delivery gigs at about 20 or so banks and accountants over the last ten years.

I'm struggling a bit as where I've been there hasn't been huge differences but I am going to need to come up with summat intelligent to say. So let's see culture wise -

- more need for compliance and risk management
- need for risk management can create hostile attitude to change and pace of change is slow
- can be very spread out - from large HQs to small branches

Hmmm...

Problem is if you try too hard to bring something up and it is irrelevant or you get it wrong you are going to prove to them you are not the guy for the job. When I interviewed for the banks I don't actually remember there being any questions like that related to the culture. It's a funny situation. They want the experience but you don't actually get asked on it or asked to prove it I don't think. I certainly didn't. Not having it doesn't mean you won't get the gig by any means so I wouldn't fret too much.

Might want to read up on Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) though. I was asked if I knew what SOX was and if I had any experience. I did advise I am aware of what it is but not details of how it was implemented or anything which was fine for them. Just an awareness of what it is will do.