Welsh Financial Services Graduate Case Study: Simon Hurley
• Simon Hurley, 25.
• BSc Business Management (Cardiff University).
• Principality Building Society.
• Capital & Liquidity Reporting.
• Cardiff.
What appealed to me most about the WFSGP was the vast array of employers forming the consortium and the differing roles being offered in very different industries. Graduating from Cardiff University, I left without really knowing what it was I wanted to build my career on which is why the programme has been so rewarding for me.
The range of placements at national and internationally based organisations helped me understand more about the industry and what I found interesting. I had always considered working within the tertiary sector but yet had a limited knowledge of what really was suited towards my skills and knowledge. I am currently within my fourth rotation and my experiences up to date have been highly rewarding as well as consistently challenging. Certain skills from my degree are applicable to utilise on the scheme, whether it be financial or ratio analysis, monthly reporting or developing further my commercial awareness.
As a result of participating on the Programme, I have secured a full time position at the Principality Building Society looking to qualify as a certified chartered accountant upon completion of my ACCA qualification.
The scheme allowed me to identify my passion in working within Finance and I hope to utilise all the skills I have acquired over the last two years into my latest role, this function of the WFSGP is perhaps its best attribute.
Having the ability to witness what goes on in these organisations in such different industries is a fantastic experience. My first rotation was with Atradius within their commercial department analysing broker MI, then going on to Finance Wales and gaining a brilliant insight into SME commercial lending, gaining a unique perception into how deals are structured and the variables analysed. This breadth of experience has really helped me develop into a more rounded financial graduate with a greater commercial awareness.
My advice for those who are lucky enough to experience what the scheme has to offer would be to undertake all four rotations. The placements allowed me to gain an invaluable insight into financial services as well as giving me the opportunity to network with an abundance of financial professionals from many different industries.