Consulting: currently 853 jobs.The latest job was posted on 21 Apr 18.
Consulting
Consulting in financial services can be divided into two main areas. Financial consultants provide advice to individuals about how best to manage their money, which can be particularly important to those who have recently experienced a significant change to their income or wealth. Consultancy services can also be provided to financial services companies like banks, where the skills of the consultants might help the firm to improve their processes, such as to better manage the risks it faces.
The primary way to become a financial consultant to individuals is through a bank, where you will usually have a number of clients at a time, and these may be short term relationships. In order to become a consultant to the industry, the route in is to work for one of the consultancy firms, where the assignments tend to be longer term for a single client and often involve working at the offices of the client rather than those of the consultancy firm.
Job Progression & Widening Opportunities
One of the attractions of consulting is that there is, within many organizations, a very definite hierarchy, which means there is a very structured ladder to climb. New graduates who enter the field as an analyst can reasonably expect to progress to associate, consultant, leader, manager, and so forth, assuming the right conditions are met. However, also be aware that this sort of hierarchy does tend to encourage specialization, and unless you are working for a small firm, you may find yourself as an expert in one or two areas rather than being a jack of all trades.
If you find that consultancy is for you, there are ways that you can expand your skills and knowledge, and make yourself more attractive to potential employers. For those wishing to move into financial consultancy for individuals, registering with the Institute of Financial Consultants will show that you adhere to standard practices within the industry, as well as demonstrating your interest in the field.