ABOUT

Tell us who you are!

Hi, my name is Mohammed Darvesh and I'm a rotational graduate at St James's Place Wealth Management.

I've just started my 3rd 6-month rotation in the programme. Previously, I studied BSc Mathematics at Lancaster University and MSc Investment and Wealth Management at Imperial Business School.

So what do you actually do?

I've had three roles so far:

1. Partner finance operations - creating and managing MI dashboards for the different ops teams.

2. Goals Based Planning - assisting partners with cashflow tools (OPAL & Voyant) that help them create a detailed financial plans for their clients.

3. Partner Proposition - aligning different business areas together so we can bring together an improved single operating model.

What has your career path been?

I underachieved and missed my target grades for A-levels.

Originally I was going to study Economics, but I ended up going through clearing and choosing Maths - a subject I've been strong at. It took some deep reflection to understand why I had underachieved and I used my learnings to propel me forward and understand the changes I needed to make.

During my job search, it was very tough to land a role. Graduate opportunities are highly competitive and I would wake up to rejection emails on a daily basis. I kept persevering and believed in myself, even though it was difficult to do so, to finally land the opportunity I did.

What is the best part of your job?

The rotational aspect of the programme means I get to try different roles and work with managers that have different styles.

This really helps develop my understanding of how a business works and improves my relationship building skills.

My favourite part right now is bringing out a whiteboard and brainstorming our plans!

Why do you do your job?

I really enjoy learning and this role brings many development opportunities and new challenges. I'm focused on building my commercial skills to lead to a strong future in the wealth management industry.

One piece of advice for someone starting in your role?

Be social and get to know people! It's really important to have strong relationships and awareness of people in your team or even other teams. Coffee catch-ups are really good for this.

Any parting words?

Just remember we're all people at the end of the day so never be intimidated by anything!

DAY IN THE LIFE

I usually try to get to the office at 8.30am to say hi to people, or just for checking my emails and planning my day if I'm working from home.

My days are very different, some may involve many meetings whilst others require completing projects, tasks or doing some thinking.

After reviewing my current projects/tasks. I'll set out to structure my day by setting reminders or blocking out time for certain things. I try to think proactively about any future meetings that may be required so I can set them up in advance. 

Some of my tasks may involve writing some emails, content or creating some material to be uploaded onto a site. I usually get these done early so I can review them with the stakeholder and make relevant changes.

Other tasks can involve brainstorming and project planning which I'll typically aim to do face to face. This sometimes involves me travelling to London or Birmingham to meet up with people. 

At the end of the day, I like reviewing my objectives and planning my days ahead. For example, if I need to travel to a different location or if there is a deadline looming. Each of my rotations have been slight alterations of the above. Some had more general repetitive tasks that I would need to complete whilst others like my current one are more flexible.