Compliance and Risk Management
On Thursday, the fourth day of my work experience, I was scheduled to meet the remaining members of the Wiltshire team. In the morning I met with Mark Futcher, compliance officer, who told me about both his role at Hartsfield and his career in the wider financial services industry. A summary of his role revealed a much wider range of responsibilities than I had originally anticipated: risk management, client outreach, building the Hartsfield intranet, sitting on the investment committee, as well as ensuring Hartsfield operates correctly and fully under the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) guidelines.
Hartsfield Investment
Afterwards, I met with Gareth Lewis, who manages Hartsfield’s investments. This was a meeting I was particularly looking forward to, since post-university I could see myself working in a similar area. The process of selecting funds to invest in based on the client’s appetite for risk, ethical choices and starting capital was complex but fascinating. It was also very useful to have an introduction to the software and platforms that are used for investing, and generating reports for clients: I got an introductory look at Novia, Fastrak and FE Analytics. Gareth also described the different roles he’s had during his career, which was a useful comparison of working in the financial services sector in urban and rural areas, big and small offices, and independent and multi-national companies.
Master of the CV
Later in the afternoon, Hartsfield had arranged for me to have a call with Joe Cowell, director of Capio Recruitment which specialises in the finance industry, which gave me some extremely useful tips on CV writing and interview techniques for the finance industry. Getting an insight into what employers look for when hiring in the financial sector, whether it be for a job or internship, will undoubtedly be incredibly useful going forward. Tomorrow is the last day of my work experience, and I am looking forward to learning about Hartsfield Trustee, evaluating and summarising my week here, and feeding back about my experience and what I’ve learned.