FE fundinfo Career Development

In this fast-paced global work environment, new challenges are par for the course.  FE fundinfo recognises that staff must be properly equipped to negotiate and tackle obstacles through a continual cycle of learning, developing and growing. 

We believe that the health & wellbeing of staff is a key component of a wholesome workforce.  As well as gym subsidies and regular sporting events, ad hoc initiatives provide the opportunity for staff to explore and grow in this area.

Professional development takes place in different suiting different situations and will often be on-the-job and take on the form of knowledge sharing, mentoring, self-directed learning & online courses, longer-term courses, or many other forms.  Here are a couple of case studies of FE fundinfo staff.

UK Case Studies

Stefan Court, Team Leader - UK Data Relationship Managers

For a long time, I’d had an interest in data and finance and studied Economics at Surrey University.  After graduating I worked as a recruitment consultant for a couple of months before finding a much more fulfilling role at FE fundinfo; in 2011 I joined as a member of the Client Support team.

Client Support

Through solving a multitude of client queries I was exposed to many areas of the business which was great for building up my knowledge.  At the same time, I developed my client-facing skills via email and on the phone and saw the impact this had on building strong rapports with our customers.  I learnt so much from on-the-job training and from those around me in the team.  I also undertook more formal training, such as ITIL® which deepened my understanding of change management and was a useful part of my toolkit when guiding clients to the best solution for all parties.

Data Consultants

After a couple of years, I felt ready for a new challenge.  I’d seen the role I wanted and when the opportunity arose, I went for it.  In 2013 I became a Data Consultant, a role based in our London office, which felt like a change in pace.  This involved working closely with the sales team, in understanding our clients’ requirements and providing expertise on incoming and outgoing data for proposed solutions.   

This role increased my grasp of the commercial side and opened my eyes to how vast the world of finance is.  I undertook training in SQL to be able to more easily navigate the vast database and spent time in our Chennai office to expand my understanding of data ops.

Data Relationship Managers (DRMs)

We identified the benefits of a shift in the role of Data Consultants, focusing on the validation and automation of incoming data.  As a result, we combined efforts with the DRMs to lead the way in consulting with clients to help them understand the benefits that streamlining their data handling can have to their business (and ours). 

Leading the DRMs

In 2019 I embraced the opportunity to become the Team Leader of the UK DRMs and have undertaken a qualification to progress my knowledge and skills in management.  It’s been great to be involved in developing processes and in wider strategic decision making.  However, this is easily paralleled by the fulfilment that comes from working with great people, finding ways to help them to grow, develop and empower them to take ownership of tasks and projects. 

At FE fundinfo I’ve always felt a great sense of unity across our interconnected teams, working together to reach common goals.  It’s been a pleasure to be part of this to date and I’m looking forward to the next chapters.

Sophie Meatyard, UK Fund Analyst

I studied maths at the University of Manchester and wasn’t sure what I wanted to do beyond that. After graduating in 2015 I came across the brand-new FE graduate scheme, applied and got the job. As far as graduate schemes go the best thing is the chance to move around and learn about a company as a whole, it was this that helped guide me to my current role as a Fund Analyst.

Graduate Scheme

My first placement was working in one of the product teams as a Product Consultant in the Woking Office followed by a secondment in Distribution as a Relationship Manager in London, before joining the team I was most interested in, Research.

Precision Plus – Product Consultant

The first six months of my time at FE were spent getting to know the business and my place within it. I spent my time working on projects with other Product Consultants and dedicating a lot of time to understanding fund data terminology.  Here I undertook SCRUM training. I really enjoyed my time working with a great team and getting to know lots of different people working across all aspects of the business.

Distribution – Relationship Management

In my second placement, I joined the Distribution team as a Relationship Manager. This was perfect timing for me as I needed to build on my client-facing skills and confidence presenting. I learnt the ‘ins and outs’ of Analytics and FinXL as these were the main products our clients used. I mostly supported the Relationship Managers with client queries as well as going to meetings and presenting and providing training on Analytics and FinXL.

Research – Research Assistant

For my third placement, I joined the Research team as a Research Assistant and spent most of my time supporting the analysts with their research as well as writing our weekly market commentary, providing FE Investment clients with market insight from the week. This role had a steep learning curve as I spent a lot of time learning how to analyse funds and interview Fund Managers in order to complete a full due diligence report for funds of our FE Invest Approved List. I also studied for the Investment Management Certificate, IMC, completing it in October 2017.

Fund Analyst, Research

I became a Fund Analyst in April 2018 covering Global Funds and Responsible Investments. My coverage expanded to European and North American funds in June 2019. As the Investment Solutions offered by FE Investments has expanded, our responsibilities have increased, and each analyst now also has portfolio management duties. I’m studying for the Chartered Financial Analyst, CFA, exams to improve on my skills as an Analyst.

Zurich Case Studies

Daniel Devaud, IT Requirement & Test Engineer

“During my studies, I was working in a part-time position as a Data and Document Manager. With the flexibility provided by this part-time job, it was the perfect complement to the university life and gave me the opportunity to gain first insights into the working life. As the end of my Master-studies approached, I was offered a vacant position in the IT-Team. Having a degree in business administration, FE fundinfo helped me gain the technical knowledge I needed, for instance by contributing to a Diploma of Advanced Studies in software engineering. I am really grateful for the opportunity given and have never regretted since to have taken it”.

Roza Maliqi, Office Management Team Assistant

“I started my apprenticeship in 2016. Now the 3 years are over, and I have successfully passed my final exams. During my 3 years at FE fundinfo, I was able to help in the various departments and develop myself further. During my apprenticeship, I was always very well supported, and I felt very comfortable. I am looking forward to continuing to work for FE fundinfo”.