Careers in finance span from small sole trader financial planners to finance lawyers working for large international law firms – this leaves a wide avenue for different roles within the industry. Almost anyone can find a useful niche to fill within the world of finance as money, and money-saving, is on everyone’s mind in the modern day.
Where can you as an individual find your place in the financial sector? Well, thankfully there are a wide variety of opportunities out there, you just need to find somewhere that caters to your own personal skills, knowledge, and experience. To help you out, we’re going to touch on three different types of modern role people play in the finance industry. With a knowledge of who does what, you will be that much more confident in pursuing a career in whatever direction suits you.
Consumer Financial Services
Consumer financial services are all about what companies like banks, credit unions, and accountancy firms can do for their customers – be this B2B or B2C services. The movement and handling of capital requires dedicated people who know exactly what they are doing and how to do it. You would be handling other people’s own money, after all, so you’d need a reliable and analytical mindset.
Law firms seem to be the premier place to form a career when it comes to consumer financial services at the moment, especially when it comes to the legal ins and outs of how capital and assets are managed. You can look to corporate law firms like Goodwin to climb this particular career ladder; firms like these recruit from all over the world so this makes these types of positions more accessible in some ways.
Accountancy
The reason accountancy is such a popular direction to go for when looking for work in the financial sector is because of two main things. Firstly, the role of an accountant is well-established and has been for decades. Secondly, the route to beginning in accountancy is more well-paved than some other less defined roles – most often you graduate with a bachelor’s degree and then take an entry-level role as a junior accountant.
What’s also great about working as an accountant in the financial sector is that, in the UK at least, there are a vast number of accountancy firms which, generally speaking, are held up to high standards. More and more are moving into the digital age of handling things like tax, like Tax Kings based in Glasgow, which is great news for today’s young people.
Banking, Credit, & Building Societies
The useful services we all use, and probably won’t ever stop using, that banks and the like provide are a solid area for the budding financial services careerist to get involved in. With the advent of the digital information age and rolling out of blockchain technology, this area of finance is due a serious shift in how it interacts and provides for its customers. There’s simply never been a better time to get your foot in the door with these organisations.
A graduate, or even better a postgraduate, can often find junior or entry-level roles in banks, credit unions, and building societies to gain some extremely valuable experience in the field. They can then work their way up the ladder to top positions which involve decisions that can have a large influence on the country’s economy. It’s a lot of pressure but a rewarding career for the right person.
Find the Perfect Financial Sector Career Ladder for You
Finding the right role or position for you isn’t always easy, especially in such a competitive field. However, we hope this short overview of just some available roles within this industry has helped you get a better idea of what to do with your future.
