Remember James Elgeti, the Bath University undergraduate who, in his efforts to land a job in the City, took to the streets of London’s financial districts wearing a sandwich board with the slogan “You have the ability to kick-start my career in banking. Talk to me.”?
Well, it seems persistence and innovation are still rewarded in the financial industry, so many congratulations to Elgeti, who is set to start at Royal Bank of Scotland after landing a spot on the group’s graduate programme for corporate banking, a unit that employed 13,100 staff and generated £1.5bn in operating profits in the UK last year.
Elgeti told Financial News by email that his unusual approach of appearing in Canary Wharf and Bank in January wearing the sandwich board, which garnered him several business cards and emails from potential employers at the time, had paid off in a “tough” graduate jobs market.
“I’m glad I was able to come up with an unusual approach to differentiate myself. However, this was only a foot in the door, meaning I still had to pass all the tests and assessment centres.”
After winning a job offer from RBS, Elgeti said he was “excited” at the forthcoming challenge, adding: “It is exactly the role I’m looking for right now, and although it is just a first step in my career, I’m sure it’s a solid one.”
The RBS role will not be Elgeti’s first in the finance industry: the business administration graduate won a three-month internship in the summer with the depositary receipts business of Bank of New York Mellon.
BNY Mellon was one of the firms Elgeti was interviewed by after his sandwich board stunt, according to Canary Wharf weekly The Wharf in January.
Elgeti said the internship provided the opportunity to meet “fantastic professionals who have provided crucial support and advice”.
Source: Vivek Ahuja, efinancialnews.com, Wednesday 7th September 2011
Jobsbody provides a dynamic forum in which businesses can view and connect with graduates.
No comments:
Post a Comment