We would like to congratulate Kurt for securing a graduate role at Babcock in their finance team. We were delighted to catch up with him and hear about how he did it. Here are his insights.
Why did you choose the role at Babcock?
I chose the role because there was such a vast array of opportunities within the industry and the program gives me the chance to experience all base end accountancy practices before specialising in the area of most interest. In an industry that is fast paced and challenging, I felt the job suited my drive and consider it only the start of what I hope is an exciting career in finance. In the role you are given unconditional support from your 'buddy', supervisor and line manager such that you constantly have people looking after you and making sure you are both enjoying yourself and developing.
Babcock themselves were unbelievably helpful and nice: before, during and after the assessment centre. HR ring you several times to check you aren't struggling with preparation or to check with dietary requirements which told me I was always valued to them. The assessment centre was over 2 days with a meal and hotel completely covered by the firm and a chance to glean precious information from current grads and even FDs!! Interacting with people initially on an informal basis suited my skill set, which meant that when I came to interview the following day and the interviewer was someone I had chatted about football to just the night before - I was totally relaxed and felt I could express myself. The interview process was about finding out information from you but also a chance to know them and I did not feel under pressure at any point.
The financial director of aviation rang me under 48 hours later and invited me to join his team which I also felt was a very nice touch! They had the contract with me the next working day and everything has been extremely smooth since the offer. HR is just an email away and respond the same day so I always know I can ask for their help if need be. Babcock has a reputation for being a fantastic place to work as a graduate and they have certainly lived up to that during the recruitment process, so I am thoroughly looking forward to starting in September.
What was the toughest part of the application process?
We had to give a presentation to 2 financial controllers based on Babcock's 6 month account, which we were given 40 minutes to study, make notes, prepare your speech and design a presentation. This was hard as the document is extremely detailed with lots of facts and figures and you were expected to focus in on a particular aspect of your choice.
The presentation had to be between 5-10 minutes long and then you would be asked questions. It is quite daunting to pitch the company's accounts to industry leaders whilst they then ask you questions about what you learned but this was obviously the skill they were testing. It was about seeing if you could glean the most valuable information in a short space of time and had the confidence to deliver the speech well. The interviewers again placed no pressure on you but their questions were tough such as, 'using your macro-economic knowledge and everything you've learned would you invest in Babcock right now?' Whilst they did not pressure you, this was still the toughest part of the interview process!
Were you surprised by anything in the process?
The only thing I was surprised about was how nice everyone at Babcock was, and the lengths the company had gone to recruit the right people. Putting up 30 people in a hotel overnight and feeding them is not something many companies do. They also had a current Babcock employ for every person such that over dinner you had a chance to chat to someone and ask questions about the role. It is no coincidence the financial director who's team I am joining was the person I sat with at dinner because you get to know them on a personal level too and make the impression such that when it comes to choosing where successful candidates go, it's the people you've met that want you.
Over the drinks that evening I was approached several times by members of the Babcock team that had seen something of interest in my CV and wanted to ask informally about them. For example a financial controller asked me about my university football presidency because he had been a football president during his university, and then the following day the same guy was interviewing me so I was totally relaxed. Everyone at Babcock was so friendly it gave off the perfect vibe about the company and is one of the big factors in why I decided to join them over other companies.
What three top tips would you give your fellow Bright Network members?
1. DO NOT ACT A PART IN INTERVIEWS
It might sound cliche but genuinely being yourself is the best way to do interviews. I acted a role in my first few assessment centres because I thought I'd over egg certain skills that I thought they'd look for, and was unsuccessful in all of these. When I came to just relaxing and being myself in interviews I found myself not only giving much better answers but enjoying myself too, and then the offers began to come in. Interviews are a two way process and you will do much better by staying calm and being honest, not trying to please them because the interviewers are not stupid and see right through this.
2. MAKE SURE YOUR PREPARATION IS DONE AND DONE WELL
There is nothing worse than someone who crams a load of facts in the night before an interview and regurgitates them to interviewers. This relates to number 1 of just being yourself and no one likes to see someone just roll off facts about the company to try and impress. But making sure prep is done is still vital. Knowing how the company operate, potential future plans or how they will be affected by changes to legislation or the industry is not only good knowledge to have but makes for interesting questions to ask the interviewers. The look on their face when you ask a question that is interesting and topical is normally a sign that they're interested in you. If you know you're going to be quizzed on your industry knowledge or of competition in the sector then make sure this is done, because making stuff up on the spot is never going to look good. I normally did a few hours a couple of days before an assessment centre going over their website, looking at relevant articles such that I had a decent base for going into interviews. It also helped me think of intelligent questions to ask which can be a great way of distinguishing yourself from other candidates. Also included in your prep is to know yourself well, if you have done something worth mentioning make sure you think about what you want to say about it. Don't just say it because you can, think about what it taught you, what was tough about it and how you overcame this, who helped you, what have you done since etc. Knowing yourself and your CV inside out is just as vital as knowing the company and whilst don't rehearse answers, knowing roughly what to say about a particular thing when it comes up is advisable.
3. GET THERE ON TIME
Don't be that person who turns up 5 minutes late when everyone has sat down and looks at you as you find a seat. Not only does it put you behind the other candidates in terms of first impressions but it also makes you feel a bit more nervous and that's never a good start to an interview. You'll feel a lot more relaxed being 10 minutes early, shaking peoples hands and easing into the assessment day. That being said if for some reason you are late which can't be helped then do not panic as then you're already beaten. The interviewers are human and compassionate and if you have a genuine reason for being late they will understand. But it really doesn't hurt to get out of bed 15 minutes earlier to guarantee you're there on time, it does create a good first impression to not be rushing or late.
These 3 things are all super simple but that's the key for interviews. You'll quickly realise no assessment centre is the same so you can't just learn answers but by keeping things simple and staying calm you can be incredibly successful at interview. The best bit of advise I ever got was from my very first assessment centre which was, 'half way through the interview you were giving great answers, you were so relaxed and engaging, but at the start you were a bit nervous which is understandable. But it so powerful to an interviewer when someone is confident right from the start.' So just relax, stay calm and ease yourself into it, you'll find you know a lot more than you think so don't be nervous!
What was the toughest question you faced at interview?
What happens if you have to make a choice between work and your social life/sport?
