This is Nicole's story about finding new challenges in a diverse industry

“Nicole didn’t expect to work in banking, but she has found an interesting career path and an inclusive workplace at Barclays.

I hadn’t really considered a career in banking before I graduated – my undergraduate degree is in sociology and quantitative methods from the University of Warwick, and then I went on to do a Masters in quantitative social research, so I didn’t really have a finance background. This all changed for me when I was looking through different graduate programmes and the Barclays scheme stood out to me. At the time I was quite interested in data, so I could see opportunities to do that within a bank. Before then, I had a very different perception of what working in finance looks like – and I didn’t think I was the type of person who would pursue that sort of career. But I went onto LinkedIn and saw the different people who work within Barclays and realised it was quite diverse. I also spoke to a friend who worked at Barclays to get her opinion and it became clear that it might be a place where I actually want to work, so I applied for the graduate scheme. I was accepted and started working in August 2020.

We do four six-month rotations to experience different roles and products across the bank. I learned so much about my strengths and weaknesses, banking and finance, what I enjoyed and what I didn’t enjoy,and started to realise how many different things you can do in this industry. After I completed the graduate scheme, I became a product owner in the Next Generation Consumer Banking team. As a product owner, as the job title suggests, you own the product  end to end. This means if you want to implement a new feature on the product, you need to work out what it will look like, what impact it will have on customers and the business as a whole, and what the business benefits will be. You also have to engage with stakeholders about requirements, such as legal and regulatory compliance, and make sure it works for Barclays and the customer. Once a product goes live, you then have to track its performance and make sure the customers and business are happy.

Championing diversity

At Barclays, there is a real commitment to improving diversity and inclusion.This is why I am proud to be part of the Black Professionals Resource Group (BPRG). It is all about amplifying the experiences of Black colleagues within the bank. Allies can be members too – basically anybody who is interested in learning more about being Black within the workplace and wider society is welcome, just as I am a member of other groups, so I can learn more about the different groups that are represented at Barclays. Celebration and education are really important to BPRG. For Black History Month, we had events around mental health with Anton Ferdinand, conversations around Race with writer and broadcaster Afua Hirsch and talks about Motherhood with author and presenter Candice Brathwaite. I run the BPRG podcast. It’s called “Keeping It Real” and it is a great opportunity for colleagues and external guests to come together and share their experience on different topics in an open, candid, light-hearted way. We have talked about everything from food to wellbeing to music and culture.

BPRG looks at different ways to engage Black colleagues and potential colleagues, develop their talents and improve retention. It’s important that Black employees know they have a career path at Barclays and that we are visible, not just within the company but to the wider world. I want Black people to know there are great opportunities with the bank and their skills will be developed. As well as the graduate programme, there are schemes to develop branch employees for roles in head office. As for my future career plans, I am really happy where I am as a product owner, and look forward to progressing my career and climbing up the corporate ladder and getting more involved with the BPRG. The graduate programme and the BPRG have been excellent for my career development, but it’s also down to the individual to be willing to put in the work and make connections within the organisation. If you are proactive about networking and reaching out to people, you can make great progress in whatever direction you choose.

Article created by Vercida