SEB: Allowing employees to take on responsibility, with all the support they need

Describe what work you do and how you ended up where you are today?

“I work as an Associate with the Corporate Finance Team in Oslo at SEB. As an Associate, my role is to assist with execution and project coordination when we do transactions connected to mergers and acquisitions and equity capital markets. Together with my team, we create presentations where we analyse various businesses and situations and give our clients advice on how to maximise their potential. I help out with creating the presentation and excel materials we need to conduct good advisory services and discuss with my senior colleagues how to move projects forward.”

“I did my Master’s in Finance at the Norwegian School of Economics, and right after graduating, I applied for and got a job at SEB as an Analyst. After just about 3 years, I got a promotion to my current position.”

What does a day in your life look like?

“My job is very diverse. No day is the same as another. Normally it’s a lot of project management, responding to questions from clients and colleagues regarding “live” projects, as well as weekly update calls on those projects. Another important part is the pitch work we do to get new mandates in the future. That involves preparing the pitch presentation, rehearsing, and then presenting to potential new clients. With regards to social activities, we often train together at the gym in the office and have dinner, so it’s really social as well.”

In what way does SEB encourage you to develop in your career?

“SEB is a very ambitious company in general, and I find the corporate finance department especially forward leaning. They give us a lot of responsibility very quickly but also the support we need. I learned through trying new things, presenting to clients, and being given the confidence to make analyses I’ve never done before.”

What development opportunities are there at SEB?

“There is continuous focus on getting to the next level. For example, next week I have a training program in Stockholm with the other Associates in the company on how to become a better associate and improve ways of working within my role. There are various tasks within my department that we can take responsibility for, like helping out with recruitment, and it’s been really fun to be a part of that even while being quite junior in the team. Because SEB is such a large organisation, there are many opportunities in other departments or countries if you reach for them. I feel very supported in trying to get to the next point in my career here.”

How does SEB work with equality and inclusion?

“SEB has a huge focus on being inclusive, especially within front-end finance, which has historically been quite uniform across the industry. The goal of recruiting a broad and diverse mix of people is very much integrated into our culture. We have close to a 50/50 share of men and women in the Corporate Finance team in Oslo which is really unique within our field. It is impacting both the culture and results positively, and seeing senior management following through on the goal has been inspiring.”

Why should young female talents start working for SEB?

“I think firstly, we have top level clients, and there is a lot of opportunity here for talented people to make an impact. Secondly, it’s important to have a good culture at work where you have flexibility, and you feel your wants and needs are being heard. That’s something I’ve experienced here at SEB. Lastly, the focus on diversity and equal opportunities for everyone is very strong here, and I would highly recommend it for anyone with a passion for the world of finance.”