Operations Summer Internship Edinburgh 2024

At abrdn, our purpose is to enable our clients to be better investors.

Clients worldwide trust us to find future-fit investment opportunities to deliver the outcomes they want. Our technology and insight help empower them to make better decisions, while the powerful partnerships we build help to enhance the expertise that we offer. And by enabling clients to invest responsibly, it helps us to build a better world.

About the internship programme

The opportunity to join us at abrdn as an intern is one that is unique, challenging and rewarding. We are a futurist business and we are currently looking for innovative and enthusiastic individuals to join our summer internship programme. The programme will run from June – August 2024 and successful candidates will work within our Investment Vector Chief Operating Office (‘COO’).

The COO is the engine that powers and enables the Investments Vector. We have unparalleled expertise, innovative ideas and dynamic ways of working. We invest in the future, take individual and collective responsibility, maximise collaboration and are proud to deliver a world class client service. On the internship you could be placed into any of the following departments;

• Strategy & Business Management - A highly connected team ensuring strategy alignment with the vector as a whole, robust financial management and colleague engagement
• Public Market Operations - Multidisciplinary operations team delivering industry leading investment enablement capabilities across data management, trade operations, transitions, proxy voting and performance analytics
• Alternative Operations – Specialist operations teams supporting our fund range focussed on asset classes such as Real Estate, Infrastructure, Hedge, and Private Credit
• Governance & Controls – Supporting the whole Investments business to ensure our key risks are understood and managed appropriately
• Information Provision – Several teams dedicated to ensuring accurate & timely client/fund data distribution to various external parties
• Commercial & Client Operations – Commercially oriented teams, seeking value from supplier & vendor relationships, and delivering best in class client onboarding, servicing, and fund accounting processes

From day one, you will play an active role is helping to drive forward the ambitions of the business, whilst developing your skills and knowledge. Over the 10 week summer placement you will be delivering varied work, with tangible outputs. Due to the broad span of activities carried out in COO you should finish the internship with a great understanding of the end to end value chain of our business; how clients are onboarded, how we manage their investments and their servicing needs in a controlled manner, then how we make sure they have the data & reporting they require to see their investments performance. Continuous improvement is core to the way we work at abrdn so you will be encouraged to bring your perspective to how we do things.

Given the breadth of activity carried out in the COO you may be asking what kind of person excels in the division;

• Enjoy analysing data to spot patterns and trends to make recommendations? Then come help us out.
• Do you thrive on helping other people and achieving common goals? You will fit right in within our Chief Operating Office.
• Are you great at managing lots of competing demands at university and prioritising the most important? Come and prove that to us..

During the 10 week internship programme you will build knowledge within the department you are in as well as having the opportunity to build a network with other interns and wider colleagues.

As well as on the job learning, you will have access to a wide range of e-learning courses and complete a structured development programme over 10 weeks that includes training, networking and gaining exposure to senior stakeholders across the business.

On completion of your summer internship you will be considered for a position on our 24-month rotational graduate programme starting in September 2025 within the Investment Vector Chief Operating Office. This programme gives graduates the chance to start their career in a highly supportive team environment, whilst gaining skills, experience along with support through further qualifications.

We are looking for undergraduates in their penultimate of study (to graduate in 2025) to join our summer internship programme

Application process

The application process is made up of four stages:

• CV & online application;
• Online tests;
• Pre-recorded video interview;
• Assessment centre (group activity, case study presentation, panel interview).

Our inclusive culture

We have a long-term commitment to building inclusive work environments; we value diversity in our workforce and welcome enquiries from everyone. You can find out more about our inclusive culture here.

We are proud to announce that we have officially become a Disability Confident Committed – Level One employer. Therefore, if you have a disability and would like to submit an application to one of our UK roles under the Disability Confident Scheme, please notify us by completing the relevant section in our candidate questionnaire and one of our team will reach out to support you through your application process.

Please contact us (abrdnearlycareers@abrdn.com) if you require reasonable accommodation to be made to any stage of the recruitment process. Our Early Careers team will be pleased to discuss your needs and ensure that these are accommodated.