What is your day to day job?

My functional title is team leader for the North American Corporate desk and we typically cover Canadian corporations and American and Japanese subsidiaries. As team leader, one's roles are both diverse and varied - leading and being responsible for the activities, which occur within my team. I am responsible for the team's marketing strategy/execution, creation of the team's yearly budgets and credit correspondence.

I coach two team members, a relationship manager and a credit analyst and also have a number of clients whose accounts and interests I manage and direct personally. Internal administration dealings are also a highly significant part of this position.

The role of team leader is managerial in all senses of the word and thus one of the most important factors is the relationship aspect - developing good relations with my clients and, of course, within the team/bank itself.

What are the main attractions of this position?

I very much enjoy dealing with people, nurturing and developing relationships both externally (i.e. from a client and prospective client perspective) and internally. I am fascinated by the business world; observing which firms are merging, the state of the markets, times of great and then slow economic activity. I like watching big deals unfold; seeing them being set up and then being closed, and part of my job involves this: developing client relationships, structuring and closing transactions and cross selling all aspects of BNP Paribas.

What is your academic and professional background?

I have a Bachelors degree in Computer Science and also completed two business programs through the Institute of Canadian Bankers (MBA equivalency). Having a Financial degree and/or an MBA (or its equivalent) is essential, to succeed in this milieu in my opinion. From that employment entry point, one can progress and evolve accordingly. Although I have been with BNP Paribas for a few years, I have spent nearly all of my professional life, working in the financial sector, specifically corporate banking. My career started off in administration, moving into Corporate Banking and then team leadership.

With the BNP Paribas group, I started as a senior relationship manager and then progressed to team leader. Despite having remained principally in the North American continent, I have nearly always worked for European banks. The reason for this is that I see European banks as tending to be more relationship oriented (my preference), in contrast to more transactional oriented North American counterparts.

What qualities are required for this position?

First and foremost, a financial or business qualification (an MBA or its equivalent) is imperative in order to have a working knowledge of the business/financial/credit markets. Also imperative, are personal characteristics and training required to develop strong leadership and people management skills. As a team leader, this is quite essential. Day to day, a keen entrepreneurial flair and the ability to work well under pressure are equally important. Of course, well-developed verbal and written communication skills are also necessary.

Are there any particular trends you have noticed throughout your career in the financial and banking sector?

As the financial world becomes increasingly competitive, banks are looking to recruit the best-educated and most highly qualified people. Banks must upgrade their skill levels because competition is fierce on every level. Small banks are finding it hard to compete and this is the reason why we have seen a great number of mergers and acquisitions amongst investment banks, merchant banks, commercial banks and other financial institutions within the last several years.

Banks want to broaden their product capabilities in order to more effectively leverage client relationships relative to competitors. As a result, the financial world has become highly complex and often very technical, requiring higher educational levels in order to compete and survive. Entry requirements to a top bank in the corporate/investment banking and credit streams usually require at least a MBA level and sometimes even higher/broader qualifications.

The majority of employees in corporate/investment banking begin their banking careers as a Credit Analyst. This is an excellent starting position, as there is no better place to really learn the business. This is the heart of the corporate/investment banking sector because one is exposed to various credit products and how they come together; you are immersed in the financial world. After a number of years your talents begin to emerge. In effect you shape your own career, depending upon your personality, your interests and your ambition.

If you are people oriented you may evolve into a marketing role, relationship manager role, more senior relationship manager role or a product specific marketing role. Alternatively, if one is more technically/academic oriented, that person may evolve into a different career such as a credit/risk management specialist in a particular field. Indeed after the initial few years, your career often evolves to suit your skills and personality, and this is why recognising and developing the potential of employees is so hugely important.

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