Graduate Investment Consultant Apprentice 2021

We are an award-winning Pensions Consultancy with over 1300 staff in 15 locations across the UK.

We provide a positive working environment with an emphasis on training and development and we put relationships at the very heart of our business. You can expect an exciting and fulfilling career in a growing business and an industry that provides a consistent challenge.

This role will be based/attached to one of the below offices however, flexible working arrangements for this role will be considered and can be discussed at interview. You can find out further information here.

• Birmingham
• Bristol
• Edinburgh
• Guildford
• Leeds
• London
• Manchester
• Reading

The role

Our mission is to help our clients effectively manage their risk. Communication is at the heart of what we do. We are proactive, strategic, knowledgeable, and innovative.

XPS Investment is an area of rapid growth for XPS. We are very ambitious and want to continue growing strongly. We provide independent investment advice to defined benefit and defined contribution institutional pension schemes.  We do not offer fiduciary management and are not tied to any platforms or fund managers.  Our independence is critical to being able to provide well thought through investment advice to our clients.

In addition to studying for and take CFA or IFoA exams, you will assist clients solve their challenges and best meet their objectives including but not limited to:

• Drafting written advice to clients on a wide range of topics
• Effectively delivering that advice to clients in meetings
• Regular liaising and communicating within the team, other departments in XPS, investment managers and clients
• Helping to monitor funds, managers and their performance
• Risk analysis and modelling to help our clients better understand and manage risks relative to their return and other objectives
• Assisting with implementing investment strategies including asset transitions support alongside our specialist asset transitions team. (Note: we do not manage any money for our clients or undertake any trading.)
• Contributing to the continuous debate about how we do an even better job for our clients (e.g. new investment ideas or ways to communicate investment concepts).
• Working as part of a team, initially to assist consulting leads but progressing to checking and communicating directly with clients at the appropriate time for you
• Involved in manager and fund research in an area which interests you
• Opportunity to be further involved in other areas of personal interest (e.g. Environmental Social and Governance / modelling)

The person

We are looking for an Assistant Consultant that will excel in this advisory role. This requires excellent communication skills, a passion about investments together with drive and enthusiasm.

We want someone who is unafraid to express a view and can express their view clearly, thereby contributing to the investment ideas we rely on to achieve our aims.

We want to help you reach your potential and be the best that you can be. By joining XPS you will be involved in a wide variety of work. You’ll be supported by on-the-job training, resulting in you developing your knowledge and abilities quickly.

In addition, you’ll want to be, or already studying for the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exams or actuarial (IFoA) exams or recently qualified. We know that it’s a real challenge completing professional qualifications whilst progressing in a new job, so we’ll help you every step of the way - we’ll equip you with study materials and time to study.

About the Business Area/Department

Our mission is to help our clients manage the complex issues which impact their pension scheme in a pragmatic and understandable way. Communication is a key part of this.

We advise Trustees and Corporate clients on a wide range of actuarial-related areas, including:

• Helping them to understand the risks within their pension schemes and how they can manage this;
• Supporting clients and their members through the life cycle of the pension scheme. This runs from scheme set up and benefit design through to eventual scheme wind-up;
• Providing tailored advice on a variety of aspects including funding and member options ;
• Analyse new and changing legislation, regulation and guidance to help clients understand what it means for their scheme and what actions they need to take;
• Supporting the governance of the pension scheme to ensure it is effectively and efficiently run for the ultimate benefit of the members; and
• Advising Corporates on the pensions elements of their statutory accounts.

We are very ambitious and want to continue our strong growth. As part of this we are committed to developing market leading tools and approaches for our clients. For example, our online funding software ‘Radar’ has been awarded Actuarial Software of the Year for the last two years.

We offer an attractive reward package, including:

• Competitive salary
• Participation in Discretionary Bonus Scheme
• A set of core benefits including pension plan, life assurance, employee assistance programme, 25 days holiday per year and access to a qualified, practising GP 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
• A comprehensive range of voluntary benefits to suit your age and lifestyle including holiday trading, tech scheme, cycle to work scheme, dental cover, healthcare cash plan, critical illness cover, private medical cover for self and family, travel insurance and a broad range of discounts at hundreds of retailers.

The working week is Monday to Friday from 9am until 5.15pm (36.25) with 1 hour off for lunch.

The successful candidate will need to demonstrate the following requirements:

• Right to Work confirmation
• DBS Disclosure check
• Employment or educational references covering five years
• Satisfactory credit check

XPS Pensions Group is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages application from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief.