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What it takes to succeed as an external consultant in the finance industry

Lee Blackburn – PM Manager, emagine

The financial services sector has a reputation for being a fast-paced and challenging environment, with tight timeframes and rapidly evolving customer demands. The sector is broad, covering all manner of roles and specialisms, often – though not always - technology-focused, involving advanced software. Meticulous attention to detail is essential when dealing with matters such as complex financial transactions, data analysis and compliance requirements – there is no room for error.

There is an ethos, and a need, for continuous learning and professional development to keep up with the pace of change in the sector and employees are expected to meet a high ethical standard and conduct themselves with integrity and in a professional manner.

So what does this mean for a consultant working in this sector?

It follows that you have to match these qualities and skills and exceed them. But for those experts who make it through to becoming one of emagine’s consultants, hired from the top 10%, there are also some unique advantages.

 

For example, being resilient and able to bounce back from setbacks and adapt to changing circumstances is an invaluable skill. Equally, having a strong awareness of risk and the ability to manage it can be an important trait in the sector.

Lee Blackburn

 

What personality type is best suited to success in financial services?

At emagine, we don’t believe that there is a ‘fixed’ personality type that is best suited to the financial services sector. The industry spans a wide range of roles and specialist areas and success can be achieved through a combination of different personality traits and strengths, combined with the motivation to excel. No two financial institutions, or teams, are the same and so it’s important we have the right consultants to suit each and every client and project. Teams are stronger with diversity, but we do link to certain core values that our consultants need to demonstrate, which include being dedicated, responsible, confident and genuine.

However, those in the industry will recognise that – given the working environment described above - there are certain traits and characteristics that can set an ambitious employee in good stead for success.

For example, being resilient and able to bounce back from setbacks and adapt to changing circumstances is an invaluable skill. Equally, having a strong awareness of risk and the ability to manage it can be an important trait in the sector.

Many roles are technologically-driven, involving advanced financial software, data analytics tools and digital banking systems, so for these it would be essential to feel comfortable with technology and embrace new digital advancements.

Alongside these traits and technical skills, anyone working in the sector needs a certain level of confidence, as well as the drive and dedication to go the extra mile, whilst staying calm under pressure. Being the kind of person who is motivated to keep learning is essential for staying on top of new regulations, technologies and market trends.

Refined soft skills are also vital, such as building strong working relationships and being able to communicate complex financial concepts clearly and concisely with clients and colleagues.

 

For example, there are hundreds of portfolios of regulations or technologies used across various platforms in the sector, and amongst our consultants there are experts who have found their niche in each of them.

Lee Blackburn

 

What sets emagine consultants in the financial services sector apart?

Becoming a top-tier consultant in the financial sector takes time, experience, and continuous improvement. At emagine, we hire the top financial services experts. In practice, this means we hire those highly skilled and motivated individuals described above on their journey to becoming subject matter experts (SMEs).

To be considered an SME, our consultants usually have between 10 to 15 years of specialised experience in a particular field across various domains, including change and transformation, agile and risk, regulatory and compliance and our development practice. For example, there are hundreds of portfolios of regulations or technologies used across various platforms in the sector, and amongst our consultants there are experts who have found their niche in each of them.

There are unique benefits to being a consultant at emagine, such as the variety of work across all our clients, and due to projects often being temporary in nature, there are plenty of opportunities to move between these different environments and cultures, with consultants carefully matched with clients.

For those who make it through to our interview process with the technical skills we expect, it’s important to us to recruit people who are also a cultural fit, because we hire people ‘for the journey’ and we invest in their development and wellbeing to help them thrive in their finance careers.

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