On the Job

Subterms

    More stories

    • 138 Shares99 Views

      in Career Hacks

      How Citi is Paving the Way for African Americans in Finance

      by

      Ever since Maggie Lena Walker established and presided over the first bank to service black organizations, African Americans have been shaping the history of finance. 100 years later, people of color are still making contributions that leave everlasting impacts on the industry.

      Although a lot of progress has been made for people of color (POC) in the banking and finance space, they are still at a disadvantage. The facts of the matter are that POC are disproportionately represented in finance and face a harder time breaking into the industry than their caucasian counterparts.

      As a company that emphasizes the importance of diversity and inclusion, Citi identifies with these issues wholeheartedly. Citi also knows that if these trends continue, an entire legacy of future Maggie Walkers might cease to exist. Even worse, the ideas that these people of color would have contributed to the space would never see the light of day, slowing down the evolution of the finance world as we know it.

      In order to allow diverse mindsets to continue benefiting their company and the industry as a whole, Citi has made sure to create a space where people of color not only feel welcome but motivated to succeed as well. In order to do that, they have rolled out a series of initiatives that are paving the way for people of color in finance. The first of which has to do with their recruiting strategy.

      HBCU Recruiting and Presence

      In order to employ the brightest minds, first, you have to find them. That’s why Citi decided to set up an aggressive recruiting strategy at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). And we’re not just talking about free koozies and stickers. Citi is going to these campuses and doing presentations on diversity and inclusion, educating students about opportunities, and portraying itself as a company where people of color can really succeed.

      Here is what Global Banking Analyst Brianna Demming had to say about the impression Citi left when they visited Howard University during her time as an undergraduate.

      By continuing to establish meaningful relationships with students at HBCUs, Citi intends on building a workforce that includes both incredibly talented individuals and people from diverse backgrounds.

      HBCU Alumni Network

      By creating groups and communities that allow people from similar backgrounds to come together and share thoughts, companies can create new environments to help their employees thrive. That’s why Citi established the HBCU Alumni Network! As you might be able to infer, the HBCU Alumni Network is a group at Citi that allows alumni from different HBCUs to connect, network, and help one another grow. Which, for a lot of people, helped them succeed and learn in a lot of ways. 

      My involvement with the HBCU Alumni Network has taught me the importance of being proactive when you’re on a team. I was tasked to work alongside another team member to initiate contact with 19 schools. I hesitated on whether I should wait for him to reach out first since he has been employed at Citi longer than me but I ended up having the courage to set up the first meeting. He expressed how impressed he was that I took charge right away and set up a strong foundation for the work we’ll be completing together. That experience taught me to never doubt myself or my capabilities, even if I may be the youngest on the team, and if there is an opportunity to showcase your skills or leadership, you always jump at it! Brianna Demming, Global Consumer Banking Analyst

      Through her involvement with the HBCU Alumni Network, Brianna not only gained more experience and confidence in herself, but she also made a good impression on her colleague. All around wins.

      Black Heritage Network

      Similar to the HBCU Alumni Network is the Black Heritage Network affinity group at Citi. Within this group, people of color can come together, socialize, share their thoughts, seek out mentors, and essentially just share space with people who are similar to them.

      After you graduate, the number of groups and organizations you can join to socialize, grow yourself, and feel welcome gets cut in half. When these groups are no longer available, especially in the corporate world, some individuals face issues that diminish their productivity and most importantly, their self-worth. That’s why establishing affinity groups is so advantageous and why Citi chose to do it themselves.

      POC in Leadership Positions

      One very direct way to help people of color succeed in the finance realm is to place them in leadership and management positions. By doing so, you not only diversify the leadership on your team, but you also create mentors, idols, and individuals who people from similar backgrounds can identify with. As a result, students and job-seeking individuals become more inclined to apply for positions at the company.

      No one likes being the only spotted duck in the pond. It’s comforting to grow with and be trained by others who have similar experiences to you. They are the only ones who can truly understand what it takes to succeed in this business with a background similar to my own.

      As Chike said, it’s comforting to grow and be trained by people who are similar to you. When you can relate to these people, it makes the relationship better on all ends. Corporate Banking Analyst Brielle Self had a similar experience with her mentor during her time at Howard. 

      If it weren’t for Citi putting Brielle’s mentor into that Campus Ambassador position, it’s possible that Brielle may have never ended up at Citi. By creating this position and ones like it, Citi now has talent pipelines that will draw in some of the brightest minds in finance for years to come. Pipelines that might just end up finding you one day.

      What’s Next for Citi?

      While these initiatives may seem bold, Citi has no intention of slowing down anytime soon. Much like the Action for Racial Equity Initiative, a $1 billion+ commitment to help close the racial wealth gap and increase economic mobility in the United States, the ideas Citi is putting forth will have a substantial impact on the industry and the world for years to come. 

      If this is an endeavor that you would like to be a part of and contribute to, check out the positions Citi is currently hiring for. Who knows, in just a few years it could be you leading the change. More

    • 150 Shares189 Views

      in Career Hacks

      How ARISE Is Making Life Better For African American Employees at TCS

      by

      When you join a community, you want to know that you’re going to be getting more than a koozie and a drawstring bag out of it. Depending on who you are, you might join a community to make new friends, learn a new skill, discuss a certain topic, or support a certain cause. But when you join the ARISE community at TaTa Consultancy Services, you can expect to do all of the above.

      The ARISE community at TaTa Consultancy Services (TCS) is an African American employee resource group whose members work, socialize, interact, and grow with one another on a variety of levels. In order to get a better look at ARISE and all the benefits associated with being a member, we interviewed a few members of the group and even hosted a virtual event alongside members where prospects were invited to learn more about the community.

      After the virtual event and all the interviews were conducted, one thing that was emphasized repeatedly within the community was the sense of family that ARISE members felt. Interestingly enough, we found that this sense of family led to all sorts of other benefits for members such as an easier onboarding process for new hires, a stronger sense of community and belonging, and a flourishing system of resources for members to grow themselves with.

      An Easier, Warmer Welcome

      Joining a new company is never easy, especially if it’s your first job out of college. Throw in being a minority and your path gets even more complicated. Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a group of people who have similar backgrounds as you that you could rely on and ask questions? People who may have gone through similar hurdles and experiences as you?

      Well, that’s exactly what ARISE provides, and exactly why TCS introduces it to new hires early on.

      Although TCS makes sure every single new hire has the right resources necessary for an easy and seamless onboarding process, the ARISE community offers an extra lever for those new hires to lean on. Plus, sometimes specific questions and inquiries can be better answered by the same people who may have experienced those specific scenarios themselves.

      A Stronger Sense of Belonging

      In college, we had sports clubs, greek organizations, academic groups, and a plethora of other avenues to help us feel welcome and like we belonged. In the professional world, employee resource groups have taken the role of these collegiate communities which employees can use to feel more a part of the company they work for.

      In our conversations with members of the ARISE group at TCS, every single employee reiterated one phrase over and over again – “ it’s like a family.” They spoke about how their relationships with one another felt incredibly natural and close. As if they had known one another their whole lives. 

      Here is what Adele Ruffin had to say about her expectations coming into the company and how they were pleasantly fulfilled.

      When you know you belong somewhere, like your welcome, it makes it that much easier to succeed and be your best self. But when the same group that gives you that sense of belonging also has a system of resources deliberately intended to help you grow, your ability to achieve greatness triples, if not doubles.

      Resources to Help You Grow

      Now that ARISE has helped you get onboarded to the company and allowed you to establish a sense of belonging and friendship with colleagues, it’s time for the community to assist you in growing yourself professionally.

      One of the most valuable aspects of being involved with ARISE is the access you have to other employees that you might not normally come across in your typical day-to-day at the company. These fellow members could belong to different departments who you could discuss new opportunities with or they could be superiors or executives who you get a chance to impress.

      This open-door environment is perhaps one of the biggest contributing factors to growing within a company. You can only get so much from reading a job description. When you’re actually able to meet someone who is responsible for a particular role, have lunch with them, get mentored by them, or just introduce yourself, you increase both your understanding of that role and your chances of one day fulfilling that role. 

      Regardless of what your career path is, building significant relationships in a group like ARISE will contribute to the proliferation of your professional life in one way or another.

      Outside Looking In

      As the WayUp interviewer covering the deep dive into the ARISE program, I did not come away from my interaction with the group unaffected. Having spent hours conversing with members like Jamar, Brianna, Bridget, and Joe, cracking jokes, talking about what drives them and the group, and coming to understand them not only as individuals but as a community as well, really made me see the big picture.

      In its simplest form, ARISE was created to help African Americans at TCS win. The beautiful cycle that’s occurring at ARISE starts with someone making the most of the program, using all the resources that are available to them to boost their life personally and professionally, and then paying it forward to the next new member.

      Will you be the next new member to reap the benefits of this incredible program? Browse current openings at TCS and start the cycle to greatness! More

    • 75 Shares189 Views

      in Career Hacks

      Top 5 Tools for Digital Marketing

      by

      When it comes to digital marketing, few things are as important as the tools digital marketers rely on to get their jobs done. These include everything from social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram to analytics tools like Google Analytics. Allowing marketers to create, test and measure the performance of their campaigns, digital marketing tools ensure that marketers can launch and test campaigns quickly and effectively.

      Here are the five common digital marketing tools.

      1. Social media platforms

      A common part of any integrated marketing strategy, social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat are a great way for marketers to engage with their audiences and generate buzz around their brand. In addition to the standard features these platforms offer, there are also some features that are designed specifically for marketing. These include Facebook Ads Manager, which allows marketers to run ads and track ad performance. As an added bonus, social media management tools like Buffer and Hootsuite also integrate well with these platforms, making it easy to schedule social posts and measure engagement.

      2. Design tools

      Another key part of digital marketing is design and this is especially common when it comes to creating ads and content like social media posts and blog posts. Because digital marketing is such a design heavy field, doing it effectively wouldn’t be possible without design tools like Canva and Photoshop, programs that allow those without extensive graphic design skills to add dynamic images to their content.

      3. Analytics tools

      Another set of helpful tools for digital marketers are analytics tools. These include everything from Google Analytics (designed to track stats for web traffic to a particular site) to social media analytics tools like Facebook Insights and Twitter Analytics which provide metrics related to engagement and help marketers optimize their campaigns. For measuring stats on the backend of a site (particularly related to conversions, sales and user demographics), there are also tools like Periscope that track user data, site searches and conversion metrics.

      4. Content marketing tools

      For marketers who are more focused on content marketing, tools like CoSchedule and Hubspot are a big help when it comes to content creation and curation. They can help marketers identify content opportunities and craft engaging blog and social media posts that will resonate with their audience. And since Buffer also offers the ability to see what fans are talking about on social media, that content is almost guaranteed to be impactful and to generate attention for a specific event or news story.

      5. Email marketing tools

      The final set of tools in a digital marketer’s toolbox are email marketing marketing tools. These help marketers create email campaigns that amplify their content and encourage their users to become more engaged with their brand — taking additional steps like signing up for events and buying products. Common email marketing tools include email marketing platforms like MailChimp, Iterable, and Hunter which allow marketers to build email lists and automate their email campaigns. These platforms also provide analytics for every email campaign, making testing and optimization quick and easy.

      Working in digital marketing involves a unique blend of passion, strategy and media savvy. In order to maximize the impact of your various campaigns, it helps to have the best tools at your disposal.

      Next, get more career tips for internships and entry-level jobs such as Career Opportunities for Marketing Majors and find answers to common interview questions such as What Other Companies Are You Interviewing With? More

    • 163 Shares169 Views

      in Career Hacks

      Scoping Startups and Building Brands: At Insight Partners, You Can Do It All

      by

      Although a fair amount of overlap exists between venture capital, private equity, and investment banking, all three sectors differ in significant and unique ways – some of which include the roles and responsibilities bestowed upon employees. If you were to pursue a career in investment banking, you might find yourself working on trades, mergers, and acquisitions; advising in the sale of new stocks and bonds; or connecting buyers and sellers of companies. In venture capital and private equity, you could be doing anything from identifying promising new startups to evaluating a company’s marketing strategy for post-investment growth.

      Although private equity providers, venture capital investors, and investment bankers may all be incentivized to sell stakes at one point or another, private equity and venture capital firms concentrate more on building and growing the companies they invest in. This, coupled with the fact that private equity and venture capital analysts evaluate companies on different factors than investment bankers, leads to some exciting opportunities for people who want to work in the field.

      Recently, we sat in on a virtual event with global venture capital and private equity firm Insight Partners to learn more about some of the open roles that the firm is currently looking to fill. The two positions we ended up identifying as the most engaging and exciting opportunities are the Investment Analyst and the Onsite Diligence and Growth Strategy (DGS) Analyst.

      Scouting for the Next Big Thing: Investment Analyst

      If you’ve ever heard of a company called Shopify, then you already know of one company that an Insight analyst identified and helped scale for success. One of the most exciting parts of being an Investment Analyst is knowing that the companies you’re sourcing and evaluating could be the next big brand or household name that’s going to shake the markets. And, you could be the one who discovers them.

      At Insight, you don’t have to be a partner or executive to get your hands in the mix. The firm is known for its world-class analyst program, which gets junior-level analysts and associates directly involved in deals with the most senior investors on the team.

      Investment Analysts Abhi Srinivas and Nisha Rangarajan attended our virtual seminar with Insight Partners and spoke about their experience on the job with passion and pride. While listening to them speak, it was evident that they love what they do and the company they work for. 

      Post-Investment Prowess – Onsite Diligence & Growth Strategy Analyst

      So Insight decided to invest in a company that an Investment Analyst sourced – what’s next? In come the Onsite DGS Analysts. Insight Onsite is the VC industry’s largest software-focused operations team, which works alongside Insight’s portfolio companies to help executives identify key opportunities for growth. While Investment Analysts are responsible for identifying and making initial contact with the target company, it’s the responsibility of the Onsite DGS Analysts to help the company scale and succeed post-investment.

      The Onsite team is what really drew Ruth Park to Insight. In the post-investment phase, Ruth may be sinking her teeth into the marketing strategy of a company or making recommendations to company leaders on how to put their newly acquired funding to the best use.

      Ruth’s point is that it doesn’t really matter where you come from – Insight is looking for minds from every walk of life and every school of thought to fill its ranks. 

      If you’re interested in being an Investment Analyst or an Onsite DGS Analyst who works with some of the most fascinating growth-stage technology, software, and Internet companies in the world, Insight Partners is for you.

      Check out Insight Partners’ WayUp profile page to learn more about the firm and apply for open roles. More

    • 125 Shares109 Views

      in Career Hacks

      How to Turn Your Summer Internship Into a Full-Time Job

      by

      So you landed a summer internship – congratulations! Now that you’ve made the obligatory Facebook/LinkedIn post and changed that status to employed, you may be thinking about what you can do to make a lasting impression at one of your first big jobs. 

      And no, it doesn’t have to do with what you’re going to wear on your first day of work. At least not entirely…

      As a job marketplace, we at WayUp have seen internships of all shapes and sizes. And after witnessing so many talented minds crush their summer internships and secure full-time jobs, we have identified five key factors that contributed to their success.

      1. Engage, But Don’t Overwhelm

      One very common mindset you might have going into your summer internship, especially if it’s one of your first professional experiences, is to engage and chat with as many people as possible. And while this is true, to a certain extent, you have to do so mindfully

      If you are preparing to introduce yourself to someone or speak up, make sure you’re not doing so on impulse. Think it through and ask yourself if it’s really worth saying. Upper management doesn’t want someone around who is constantly asking questions or always contributing their two cents. So make sure what you’re saying really carries weight.

      Think – does what you have to say contribute to the task at hand? Are you presenting a new angle or perspective? At the end of the day, people will judge you more on the quality of your thoughts rather than the quantity.

      2. Dress to Impress

      This next suggestion is really obvious when it comes to summer internships yet gets overlooked in so many ways. Depending on the company you’re interning for, what you are expected to wear will vary. So when you’re starting out don’t be afraid to ask your hiring manager what they expect you to wear and take note of what fellow colleagues are wearing to guide your wardrobe choices.

      Another important rule to remember is not to let your wardrobe slack just because you’re remote or virtually employed. It is easy (and really nice) to go throughout the day wearing PJs but putting that extra effort into your attire, even in less than formal video conferences, will make a lasting impression on the people you work with during your summer internship.

      Alongside a proper wardrobe, you should also strive to maintain proper hygiene. And it’s just the simple things! Brush your teeth, take a shower, and wear deodorant. No one wants to work with someone who smells bad. Plus, it might make it hard to get invited to the company happy hour.

      3. Observe Like a Hawk

      During your summer internship, you will be learning an incredible amount of information in an incredibly short amount of time. This being the case, you have to observe and digest every single piece of information and stimuli you see. 

      Is there a certain way your manager likes to receive deliverables? Make that your bible. Notice a certain employee receiving a lot of praise? Study what they’re doing and replicate it. Did you overhear the CEO’s assistant saying they only drink one type of super rare coffee from Peru? Go find some and secure your future job!

      The faster you are able to pick up on things in your summer internship and adapt to your new working environment the more you will show your employer that you deserve a permanent position. 

      4. Volunteer for Everything

      It doesn’t matter if it’s to pick up lunch, lead a new project, or squash a bug, if you volunteer for everything you not only become someone people can rely on but someone with experience as well, bug-related or otherwise.

      Every time you take up a new task you get the chance to show someone that you can do something right. Naturally, responsibilities will grow and tasks will get more important as long as you’re doing them well. Eventually, those tasks could become recurring and make your importance at the company increase.

      5. Send Authentic Follow-Ups

      Depending on the size of your internship class, your manager and the active employees at the company you worked with are bound to get tons of follow-ups from former interns who want a job. So you’re going to have to make sure what you say really resonates with who you’re saying it to. 

      Maybe you have a certain memory of them you wanted to recount. Or something they taught you that you wanted to thank them for. Or maybe you just wanted to ask them for more advice. Whatever you’re doing, make sure it doesn’t sound like a copy and paste message.

      It can be strategic to think of this while participating in your summer internship as it can lead to a more genuine and organic follow-up later on. So make sure you’re taking the time to form meaningful connections with the people around you.

      Rinse & Repeat

      Before you get that corner office, you need to get a full-time job, and before you get that full-time job, you’re going to need to make a lasting impression during your summer internship. So if you want to make sure you make it through try-outs, keep this list handy and read it before your first night of work.

      Haven’t found a summer internship to show off how great you are just yet? Browse all our current openings here! More

    • 238 Shares109 Views

      in Career Hacks

      I Started Out As An Accountant, And Now I’m A Developer (And Other Non-Traditional Paths Into Finance & Tech)

      by

      Not every story in the fintech world is the same. Even though most people who work in finance roles generally studied something like accounting, economics, or business, it doesn’t mean everyone did. In fact, some of the best people in the field are polymaths, with interests in both finance and technology. Prudential—a financial services leader […] More