Digital literacy and skills have never been more important and the need for tech proficiency and expertise has never been greater.
To stay relevant and competitive in this technology oriented climate, it’s essential that you have the technical knowledge of the powerful specialist software platforms and data resources that are used across all finance-related roles. Companies are looking to upskill their current employees or looking for tech savvy individuals who can meet the growing demands of the expanding pool of technology.
As a candidate, having a knowledgeable grasp on the relevant technologies will distinguish you from competing candidates. Whether Excel, AI, Data Analytic tools or cloud technologies, having a strong understanding and proficiency in these technologies will boost your chances of success in your job hunt.
Business Intelligence Tools
Business intelligence tools such as Microsoft Excel generate deeper and actionable insights, allow you to monitor competitors, analyse your market and customer behaviour. They are incredibly important to master, and they increase operational efficiency across all organisations.
Mastering Excel
Perhaps the most important and relevant of all the softwares is Microsoft Excel. It’s widely used across all areas of the Finance industry and is the foundation of all financial models used for financial analytics, including cash flow forecasting, regression analysis and data analysis. If you can learn and leverage advanced Excel skills, you will move to the top of the candidate list.
Cloud-Based Technologies
Cloud-based technologies are taking over the technological space and tools such as Power BI allow the Finance industry to generate insights, monitor real-time data and visualisations and let you work with data, data flows, data warehousing and data sorting. Tools like Power BI bring together KPIs, charts and financial statements meaning you can perform financial analysis and analytical reporting. Proficiency and understanding of cloud technologies is a highly valued skill to have for employers.
Data, AI & Analytics
Tying in with the previous two points, knowing how to manipulate AI and Analytics will make your CV stand out. If you know AI and Analytics, that means you can deal with financial data, understand it, analyse it and use it in your role to help you make data-driven decisions that help you pick out top strategic priorities and increase efficiency across your role and business. A good example of this is Customer Relationship Managements (CRM) programmes such as salesforce which provides data and insights on your customers and company.
Bloomberg
Not so much a technology, more so a provider, familiarity with Bloomberg is important to have if you are looking for a career in Finance. Bloomberg provides data on the financial markets, trading news and tools and insights that are most relevant to Finance. Knowledge of Bloomberg is a must-have in the Finance Sector.
Programming Software
Not as widely talked about, coding is very relevant in the Finance world. With it you can create financial modelling, improve efficiency of analytics, do data analysis and build financial tools. It’s also used for pricing, risk management, trade and asset management and to prove derivatives. As it’s not an as common skill it's a greatly sought after skill to have that can be used across all financial roles.
Summary
Understanding or having proficiency in all or some of the above will almost guarantee you a job in Finance. They can be indisputably used across all roles in Finance and an employer would be far more likely to invite you to an interview stage or take you through assessments if they could see this in your CV.
At IN2 Consult we support our candidates by assessing the technical skills they have and tailoring our job search to align those skills to specific companies and roles.
We understand the importance of technological knowledge in the Finance industry and try to match our candidates to the roles our clients are looking to fill. We only match candidates to clients if we’ve had a thorough screening call, video or met in person to ensure they have the skillset our clients are looking for.