Business 16 East Monthly East Anglian Daily Times Tuesday, October 17, 2017 www.eadt.co.uk Sector skills report: Finance and business Opportunities in the finance In partnership with Suffolk County Council, Business East Monthly is running a series of reports aimed at informing young people about the career opportunities that exist in the region and the skills required to make the most of these openings. This month we provide an overview of the finance and business sector featuring interviews with employers, employees and education experts. Q&A – SUE BARNES, DIRECTOR, UK RETAIL, WILLIS TOWERS WATSON ‘We are a people-centred business and excellent interpersonal skills are essential’ Willis Towers Watson is a global willingness to learn… so quite a lot! multinational risk management, insurance brokerage and advisory How do you recruit this talent? company that operates in 140 countries We have a mixed approach to and has a major office in Ipswich. recruitment, taking on school leavers and graduates alongside targeted What is the current state of the recruitment of more experienced finance sector in East Anglia? individuals. This is a growing sector locally with We have invested heavily in growing recognised locational centres and our own talent over a number of years knowledge sectors, combined with and work closely with our internal improving communication recruiters who support us with this. infrastructure. We see individuals We also utilise specialist recruitment relocating into this area and, as there agencies to ensure we attract the right is a market here, it encourages further mix of talent so that our skill sets growth. continue to meet the demands of our Our local universities are focusing growing business. more on sector-related degrees and recent surveys show Ipswich is the best What initiatives do you have in place in the UK for SME businesses; place? Norwich is recognised as the best We recently recruited our first batch of place to live and Cambridge is the best apprentices in September, which has place for technology companies and fed directly off the back of our previous highly qualified staff. All very successful school leavers initiatives. encouraging to support growth within Our original target was 23, however our locality. our intake has increased to 39 due to increased business demand, which in What roles are you looking to fill? itself shows the value placed on this. We continue to recruit into all areas of Examples of the breadth of the our business in roles that interact scheme include HR, business analyst, directly with clients and markets at all sales degree, workplace pensions levels. Colleagues in our Ipswich administrator, insurance professional, location play a pivotal role in directly actuarial and electro-technical servicing our clients, as well as installation electrician performing traditional broking apprenticeships. activities. We also have close relationships with Their activities are not just within our local universities with the relevant the local area but also extend to alumni within Willis Towers Watson London and the global markets. assisting to attract talent into our We also have large teams based here Ipswich location. Their activities providing human resources, IT and include attending careers fairs, finance capabilities. holding insight days and arranging internships - all of which feed our What specific skills are you looking recruitment pipeline. for? ■ Visit the Willis Towers Watson team We are a people-centred and at the Suffolk Skills Show at Trinity relationship-focused business and Park on October 18 therefore excellent interpersonal skills are absolutely essential. Equally important is a sound knowledge of all the component parts of insurance placement, structure and risk transfer mechanisms. Balance these with analytical ability, IT capability, digital agility, an enquiring mind, and a Willis Towers Watson’s new apprentices. Picture: GREGG BROWN East Anglian Daily Times Tuesday, October 17, 2017 BusinessEast Monthly 17 www.eadt.co.uk and business sector Q&A - RICHARD NORRINGTON, CEO, IPSWICH BUILDING SOCIETY ‘Our employees need to genuinely care about the communities in which we operate...’ Ipswich Building Society plays a big part in decision attitudes and behaviours – we internships - this summer we employs 135 staff in nine making. want our staff to demonstrate hosted a student from the branches across Suffolk with Around half of our the Ipswich Building Society University of Suffolk Business headquarters in Ipswich employees work within our brand. They need to deliver School. branch network, staffing our great service, both to members In addition, we work with What is the current state of nine locations within Suffolk. and colleagues, and genuinely local schools for work the finance sector in East The remainder are based at our care about the communities in experience, career fairs and Ipswich head office, based on which we operate. also under the Enterprise Anglia? Ransomes Europark, and carry We also have more technical Adviser Network we have With recent headlines and a out all of our back office skills which we look for, such members of staff actively Which? report about closing operations, from mortgage as industry experience and / or engaging with school bank branches you’d be underwriting to HR. qualifications, depending on leadership teams to increase forgiven for thinking the East the role on offer. opportunities for young people. Anglian finance sector is One area we do focus on is What roles are you looking declining. And, although How do you recruit this our well-established financial there might be a reduced to fill and why? education programme for presence of financial services The majority of our job talent? primary and secondary We believe the utopia is a mix on the high streets, at the vacancies tend to be within our schools, which teaches vital life of beginners, intermediates Ipswich Building Society we’re branch network, due to the skills. We believe financial and experts – a blend of bucking the trend and number of staff we need to keep independence is one of the most employees who have experience investing in improved our nine branches running. important things to grasp from and skills, but also fresh premises for two of our branch We are often recruiting to fill an early age. thinking and enthusiasm. locations – Ipswich town centre Saturday vacancies, usually on and Woodbridge. an annual basis when our ■ Find out more about In general consumers are latest youth cohort go off to What initiatives do you have Ipswich Building Society at increasingly ethically aware university. in place? www.icanbea.org.uk and seeking out ‘locally We have appointed apprentices sourced’ options, which we’ve What specific skills are you in many areas, both in also seen within our sector. branches and head office. At Looking back to the 2007 looking for in the long to head office this has included financial crises, there is now medium term? roles in finance, marketing, more awareness of business Generally, we look for support services and IT. Richard Norrington, chief executive officer at practices and the trust factor employees who have the right We have also offered Ipswich Building Society. The apprentice ‘They were looking for someone with enthusiasm and personality...’ Darren Norman, 24, joined would be better going into work. a wide range of tasks such as a good interview. My manager services and all aspects of Ipswich Building Society over My first jobs were in retail, a looking after the building and the said that the skills required for mortgage practice three years ago as an apprentice sector I worked in for a couple of mailing and post area, and the job could be taught but what I’ve also recently obtained my with the Support Services team. years, but I had always wanted an contacting suppliers for lighting they were looking for was underwriting mandate, which On completion of the office-based role and when I saw and plumbing if there were any someone with enthusiasm and means I can approve a mortgage apprenticeship he was offered a the Ipswich Building Society issues. personality – and that I had sold loan to a certain amount. full time role within the team and apprenticeship opportunity I myself in the interview. At the moment, I am just keen has since been successful in his applied and was lucky enough to How has your career I have been a trainee mortgage to hone my knowledge. It’s a very application for the position be successful. progressed? underwriter now for a year and big industry and is likely to of trainee mortgage I joined Ipswich Building After completion of my half, and in that time I have involve continuous learning underwriter. Society as an apprentice in April apprenticeship I stayed in a learnt a lot of things. throughout my career. 2014. It was an apprenticeship in support services role for about a I started off working in the How did get your first support services administration, year, but I knew that at some administration and processing Any advice for young people job with Ipswich which also gave me an NVQ point I would like to move into a department and gained looking to get in the finance Building Society? Level 2 in business and more financial role. knowledge of the various stages of sector? Before joining Ipswich administration where I would I saw the position of trainee a mortgage application- where it I would say that you don’t always Building Society, I learn on the job and an mortgage underwriter advertised starts and ends. have to go to university to secure took A-levels at assessor would come internally and decided to apply. I I’ve also learnt about lending a good job. There are Suffolk One. I into see me from time had no knowledge of the mortgage policies and am studying towards opportunities out there but in originally to time.