Sutton Trust

Alpha Joins The Panel of The Sutton Trust Pathways to Banking and Finance Conference 2019

Orla Lavery

2019 marks the second year that Alpha has joined the panel of the Sutton Trust’s annual ‘Pathways to Banking and Finance’ conference to inspire high-achieving young people from less advantaged backgrounds. Read more about our participation in the event below:

As part of our ongoing commitment to driving diversity through Culture and Social Mobility at Alpha, we are engaged with The Sutton Trust on a number of initiatives to champion high-attaining young people from lower income families. Two of our team took part in this year’s Pathways to Banking and Finance conference, helping to inspire and inform A-level students on career opportunities in the financial sector and consulting.

Beth Scaysbrook (Director, UK) and Orla Lavery (Consultant, UK) attended the Sutton Trust’s annual Pathways to Banking and Finance Conference at Warwick University this year. Beth was one of five senior panel experts invited to provide the students with an overview of their role in the industry and how they have achieved success in their career. Alongside senior representatives from Deutsche Bank, Barclays and NatWest Markets, Beth gave a summary of her career progression in consulting, graduating from being an Analyst at Alpha through to a Director in an impressive timescale. As the only consultancy representative on the panel, Beth played an important role in introducing many of the students to the career opportunities that lie in the intersect of the financial industry and consulting.

The panel later took the form of a Q&A session where Beth provided further valuable insights on how she progressed in management consulting, transitioning across industries and progressing to the role of Director at Alpha today. Discussing the day-to-day activities of a Director in the industry, she gave the students a tangible view of what they could aspire to if they chose to pursue a career in consulting. Beth’s presentation was met with many questions from the students and a definite spark in interest around the range of opportunities within the sector.

Following the morning’s panel discussion, Orla conducted two consulting ‘spotlight sessions’. The sessions provided the students with an introduction to consultancy, an overview of Alpha and life as a Consultant, as well as delivering a consulting-skills workshop aimed at providing the students with practical tools for applications and interviews. Both sessions were met with inquisitive and eager-to-learn students who are now better equipped to engage with the prospect of a career in management consulting. The students were excited to learn more about an aspect of the finance industry that they may not have otherwise considered. The day ended very successfully with the students volunteering lots of questions on applications, roles and opportunities in consulting. At the end of the two sessions, each of the students wrote down one action or step they would take in the coming days to tangibly improve their CV, application or interview skills.

The Sutton Trust’s Pathways to Banking and Finance conference is an annual programme that seeks to support aspirational students (aged 16-17) to explore career opportunities in finance and related sectors. The programme was established following research which revealed the narrow range of backgrounds from which many of those at the top echelons of these professions were drawn from. The programme aims to raise students’ prospects through skills workshops, mentoring, work experience and networking opportunities with industry professionals. Alpha is looking forward to further supporting the students and the Sutton Trust in our upcoming Consulting 101 Event this November.

 

 

About the Author

Orla Lavery
Consultant

Orla is a Consultant at Alpha with a range of experience across the Asset and Wealth Management industry. She has supported some of the industry's most significant digital transformation programmes in recent years and has experience in developing strategic FX initiatives for investment managers. Orla is closely involved with Alpha's D&I initiatives on Culture & Social Mobility, having worked in partnership with the Sutton Trust on a number of events for their Pathways to Banking and Finance programme.