Demi Adetiba

Graduated with an MSc in Communications Systems and Digital Signal Processing from Bristol University, 2006
Currently: Associate, Technology

I always saw investment banking as an option, but by background I'm an engineer. I didn't really see where an engineer would sit in a bank and so I decided to do an internship and see if it really was for me. Because of my degree subject I applied for the Lehman Brothers IPF technology intern programme in 2007. In fact, if I had known then what I know now, I may well have applied for something different - the Global Markets program fascinates me for example. That's one thing I didn't know before I joined - there are so many different roles in the bank and so many different skill sets and backgrounds. You certainly don't need a finance degree. 

Nomura offers an excellent training programme which comprises of online resources, classroom based technical and product training and a soft skills curriculum. Before we had even joined the firm we were able to access Intuition, an online learning library, which then became invaluable once I joined my team. The two weeks of intensive training delivered by 7City when we joined offered a comprehensive introduction to banking in general, along with financial products and concepts – and allowed us all to see where our technical strengths and areas of development lay. Throughout the graduate programme we have been able to attend soft skills training covering topics such as effective communication, workload management and presentation skills, all delivered by an engaging and knowledgeable trainer.

I am currently in the connectivity team, which is responsible for the management of applications through which all business areas within Nomura trade. We also manage the connections to all EMEA exchanges and Brokers, which Nomura uses.

On a typical day, I spend half my time resolving application or trade queries from the business and other technical teams. The other half of my time is spent co-ordinating and planning exchange or broker upgrades, scheduling new exchange, broker or client on-boarding and finding areas of improvement and opportunities for added functionality in our existing systems and applications. I was given a lot of responsibility early on and successfully completed an exchange upgrade singlehandedly within weeks of joining the team.

If you're thinking about joining investment banking, I think this is the time. There's so much going on at the moment - the industry as a whole is being shaken up. What that means in reality is lots of opportunity. As the regulatory landscape changes and the way the markets operate alters, we are able to create new products. The Nomura culture is more entrepreneurial, which encourages innovation, personal growth and development. I feel lucky to have joined the firm when I did.