Mission Statement
To become a member of senior management in a leading investment management company by mastering both technical and fundamental tools and skills, and develop my brand name.
Objectives
My primary and secondary career objectives are provided below as SMART goals:
S = Specific
- To graduate with finance as my major.
- To attain a graduate training position in an investment bank.
- To pursue a part-time Masters’ degree in Finance from a reputable institution.
- To gain a professional qualification as a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).
- To achieve phenomenal career growth by being part of any of the esteemed investment management companies.
- To earn above average salary in the industry.
M = Measurable
- To have strong academic knowledge and understanding.
- To develop an ability to apply different financial modeling techniques and tools.
- To have a well-recognized and widely accepted professional qualification.
- To achieve a five or six-digit income level in the long run.
A = Attainable
- Currently pursuing an undergraduate degree with a major in finance.
- Performed an internship at JP Morgan and received positive feedback.
R = Relevant
- To have a career in Finance by completing Undergraduate Degree and Masters’s with majors in Finance.
- To have a long-term successful career in Finance by acquiring professional qualifications.
- To have a progressive career in finance by securing a position in a graduate training program at any reputable investment management company.
T = Time-Bound
- To achieve a graduate degree in the next 2 years and join a graduate training program.
- To achieve a Masters’s degree in the next 5 years.
- To attain CFA qualification in the next 7 years.
- To have a progressive career growth over the next 14-15 years to reach a senior management level position.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
I strongly believe that I have the following strengths, which could contribute positively to my long-term career goals in the field of finance. However, I acknowledge that I can continue improving certain skills and further strengthen my positioning to have a successful career in finance.
- I have a keen interest in economic and financial markets.
- I have a strong academic background with a clear understanding of the concepts of finance.
- I have excellent mathematical and analysis skills, which make me a strong candidate to pursue a career in finance.
- I have maintained a 2.1 grade in my degree till the present.
- I have knowledge and expertise in various statistical and financial modeling tools.
- I can work on an individual basis or in groups.
- I have strong communication skills both spoken and written.
- I have set higher goals for myself and I have proven that I can commit to them.
- I have a clear view of my career goals and what I have to do to achieve them.
- I have completed 2 months internship at JP Morgan and have received positive feedback from my supervisor.
- I can work under pressure and deal with issues by keeping an open view about them.
- I strongly feel that I am an excellent listener, which allows me to participate actively in discussions and grasp ideas, knowledge, and information that are shared by others.
Weaknesses
I am of the view that no one can succeed in life without knowing one’s weaknesses and then making efforts to overcome them. I have listed my weaknesses in the following and I am fully aware that I have to make additional efforts to subdue or eliminate them.
- I feel that I could have achieved a higher grade in my degree by putting in the extra effort.
- I feel that I am a perfectionist and this often affects my ability to complete work on time, which could affect my work.
- I feel that my technical expertise is much stronger than those required for descriptive analysis.
- I feel that at present I am not able to maintain a balance between my academic and social life as I dedicate more time to my academic activities.
Opportunities
I have a clear understanding that there are ample opportunities in the finance sector. I am of the view that if I can achieve my objectives as set out above I will be in a stronger position to avail these opportunities on the path to success.
- As the financial sector is on the road to recovery, new jobs are being created and thus new opportunities are available for fresh graduates.
- There is a regular demand for new talent and skills by financial institutions both locally and internationally.
- With a professional qualification in finance, there is greater access to opportunities in different sectors of the industry.
Threats
To pursue a career in finance, it is important to acknowledge threats that exist in the external environment, which can affect the opportunities highlighted in the previous section and an individual’s ability to achieve career objectives.
- A career in finance is quite demanding and to perform well in this field one has to be kept abreast of the market conditions and changes to make the contribution positive to the position held by the individual. However, it is difficult to manage such intake of information and thus it can allow competition to take over.
- The competition in the job market is at a high level and it makes it difficult to secure a position in the finance sector, which could threaten the achievement of set objectives.
- Another financial crisis in major economies across the globe can change the scenario in the job market. This could shrink opportunities for new graduates and even those who have years of experience in the finance sector.
Target Market
The target market based on my primary and secondary objectives includes investment banks and other investment management companies. Besides, this can include commercial banks, which are already providing asset management services to their clients. Some of the companies that I would be aiming to secure my career are presented in the following table:
The target market is considered difficult to make an entry at the graduate level. There is a large number of applicants every year and employers only select those candidates who can display great understanding, charisma, knowledge, and ability to fit in their challenging environment. I have already worked as an intern at JP Morgan Chase and received highly positive feedback from my immediate supervisor. I can, therefore, state that my primary interest is to pursue my career in one of the major investment management companies and banks located in the US.
Implementation
The first step of developing a personal strategy is to set out personal objectives, which have been provided in the previous section of this report. Since I am currently pursuing a degree with finance as my major, I have set out my objectives for the completion of my studies and also starting my career at a graduate entry-level. I have set out my objectives for short, medium, and long terms. Forgoing on to the next stage in my career, completion of the early objective is necessary. I will have to complete my undergraduate degree in finance to become eligible for the graduate training program at one of the leading financial institutions. Once I secure a job in one of the prestigious financial institutions, I will continue my academic endeavors to attain a Masters’s degree; most probably I will do a master’s in Business Administration with a major in Finance.
I have to make sure that I can complete my Masters’s degree from one of the most reputable business schools. In this way, I will be able to add value to my portfolio by learning about management skills and improving my analytical and technical expertise. Moreover, I aim to have a professional qualification, which is highly recognized in all industries. This would help me to build on my skills and knowledge and test out my learning at work. I also understand that the implementation of a personal marketing plan is not definite and changes are expected over time. However, I strongly believe that I have the will and ability to achieve what I have set out in my plan. Attainment of these objectives will allow me to achieve my absolute goal that is to become an investment banker and have a strong personal brand in the finance industry.
Evaluation
I understand that I have to evaluate my performance throughout my career plan. I have to ensure that I stay on track to achieving my objectives. My evaluation will, therefore, be based on the success that I can have with the attainment of my objectives. In case of my inability to attain my objectives, I will have to reconsider my approach and make efforts to ensure that I can recuperate and get back on the track that would help me achieve what I have aimed for. In addition to this, I have to take into consideration any feedback that I receive from those who are assessing my performance. This will be an important part of my assessment. Others are better judges or evaluators of one’s performance and their feedback would surely help me understand my weaknesses and I will be able to seek their guidance to make improvements in my approach. Continuous personal evaluation is important for the successful fulfillment of my plan.
Time Schedule
The following schedule provides an expected period required for achieving objectives set out in the previous section of this report. Please note that this schedule provides expected years of completion/achievement of my career objectives as set out in the previous section of this report.