Where did you grow up? Important stages of your life (school, education, experience abroad, jobs etc.)

I grew up in a small town outside of Hamilton, New Zealand and went to university in Auckland. 

How did you get to your current job position? For how long have you had it? 

My first role with Bloomberg was in Hong Kong for three years helping Analytics Support prior to my move to Sydney for the New Zealand Account Manger role.

How did you choose your specialisation (compared to others)? / Were you weighing up any other alternatives before choosing this specialisation?

I wanted exposure to a qualification which had a broad application. Business seemed to be a good fit combined with my interests in finance and sport. I started off with the general Analytics programme where most graduates begin at Bloomberg. After the initial two months of training, we got to specialize in various asset classes that help support the product. I focused on equity, foreign exchange and portfolio management tools. 

What was your interview process like? What kind of questions were you asked?

I had one phone interview followed by three rounds of interviews via conference call. I still remember having my final interview in a group library room on a rainy Friday evening. Questions ranged from the nature of the role, my experience with facing diverse client types and most importantly, why I was interested in working at Bloomberg. 

What does your employer do? 

Provide technology solutions from software, data and analytics for the financial industry.

What are your areas of responsibility? 

Strategically manage accounts by identifying effective methods to apply tools and uncover opportunities for growing the community of users.

Can you describe a typical workday? What was the last thing you worked on?

As our Oceania headquarters are based in Sydney, I travel to New Zealand two to three times a month. When in Sydney, I make regular calls to clients and organize appointments with a varied agenda. This could range from software development updates, identifying technology architecture solutions and how we can scale with their business growth. My recent projects involved discussions around electronic trading and performance management. Understanding how firms would like to automate information and simplify the output. No two conversations are identical.

What are the career prospects with your job? / Where could you or others in your position go from here? 

Given the global size and reach, there are many opportunities between countries, regions, products and leadership roles among others. It depends on how one chooses to pivot, build relevant knowledge and a solid foundation of transferable soft skills. In fact, as I write this, I’m about to embark on another exciting career move next month. Currently, in Account Management, the nature of my new role is an Implementations Specialist. I will assist on project managing the implementation of an order management system. An example of tasks includes the setup of organizational structures, process testing and stakeholder engagement to name a few. 

Could someone with a different background do your job? 

Diversity is a cultural value at Bloomberg and I think one of the most important qualities is having the right attitude. This will influence the potential for learning, reflection and development.

What would your career be if you weren’t doing what you’re doing now? 

This is an interesting question. I didn’t originally plan for a career within financial technology but the journey has been a diverse one with a lot more experiences to be had. I also learned more about what I enjoyed and wanted. The internal interactions such as teamwork amongst colleagues and mentorship from my managers have been inspiring. The impact of helping external users no matter how large or small is satisfying and the growth I have reflected on are all reasons to why momentum is picking up.

What do you love the most about your job? Which kind of task do you enjoy the most? 

Meeting with clients and the satisfaction of seeing the real impact from helping them with the smallest suggestions to an enterprise-wide change. All the little steps matter. 

What’s the biggest limitation of your job? Do you bear a lot of responsibility? Do you have to work on weekends? Are stress levels high?

I found balancing work and life tricky when travelling so regularly. Focusing on the little wins, persistence and resilience are important traits to maintaining momentum.

Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student? They don’t necessarily have to be related to your role or even be career-focused. 

• There are countless career possibilities. Identify what makes you feel good about what you do and make it your own.
• Positivity goes a long way. 
• There will always be challenges. Find like-minded people that want you to win and win together.