Original post by alexkatosure thing I'll send over. in a way its anonymousied so I can share. its not great I catch some mistakes after sending it but here it goes:
"While working as an investment bank trader assistant, I had the chance to put in practice and advance my skills to communicate and influence effectively in order to have my day-to-day job done in an efficient and timely manner. My role was to trade capture, inputting in the various systems accurately, and troubleshooting any issues related to those trades. Clear and concise communication was vital, as often to solve problems, it was required to being in contact with various internal and external stakeholders and coordinate actions between ourselves via digital, telephone, face to face approaches. Influencing was also crucial to complete issues resolution in a timely manner in fast-paced working environment.
The issues ranged from simple prices, quantity, product mismatches to complex technical systems issues. One of the ways I demonstrated effective communication, for example, while investigating washbook breaks (account book where over-the-counter trades are matched with their prospective financial hedges), it was important to contact various counterparts to establish which information was correct, and amend myself or have others to amend their side to match ours. Often times, it required obtaining trade confirmation from traders or compliance team, find out where the mismatch was, and take action accordingly. It was crucial to have clear and concise explanation of the issue in writing, usually over email then followed by a telephone call, and send for amendment authorisation or requesting amendments to match confirmation. And keep track and follow up on those to resolution. As a result, the washbook breaks backlog was cleared and were kept to minimum.
After listening attentively, and understanding each of my contact, I was able to adapt my communication style based on their individual characteristic. Working in a pressured environment, where everyone is busy with their own workload, having your issues raised and resolved quickly required knowing your usual contact and their work style. Some required a direct approach, while others a diplomatic one. An example of it was when I was assigned to do UAT (User Acceptance Testing) on one of the trading platforms upgrades. I was able learn all aspects of the newly developed software from the trade capture end-use prospective, inclusive fast ways to book trades in bulk by preparing the upload file and uploading into the new system and trained the rest of the team on the new platform.
In summary, whether it is understanding client’s needs, or problem solving, my role as a trader assistant has taught me communication and influence effectively go hand in hand and these skills are also about listening, understanding, guiding, and motivating others towards a common goal. In a high-pressured working environment, I was able to learn to keep calm and deal with situations as it happened relaying on training and experience to make effective decisions."