Discover the risk management profession

Risk management is quickly becoming a growth area as more firms discover the benefits of employing specialised staff.

Risk managers can now find employment in a whole host of sectors, ranging from day-to-day operations of retailers to overseeing multi-million infrastructure projects.

People are tempted into risk management because they feel it offers the chance to play a key role in an organisation by supporting corporate governance and adding value.

It has become increasingly common for businesses to employ professionals to assess risks involved with decisions concerning numerous options, such as new projects, mergers and expansion.

One of the main recruiters in the risk management profession is the financial services sector. Research by Barclays Simpson discovered the number of people employed across the City and the wider UK financial services industry has now surpassed the levels seen before the economic downturn and it is expected that numbers will increase over the next year.

Confidence is high within the sector, with 77 per cent of departments taking on new staff in the second-half of 2014, while only five per cent said they would probably not recruit in 2015 – compared to 31 per cent recorded in the previous year.

Graduates who display good numeracy skills and the ability to pay attention to detail tend to be well suited to the career path.

They are employed in a number of areas, including ensuring that financial services companies do not exceed their financial limits and operate within tight business limits and regulations.

Risk management professionals may also be concerned with assessing fraud, insurance levels, liquidity and health and safety.

It is expected that demand in 2015 will come within the business risk, governance and controls areas, while those with experience in banking credit analysis with corporate credit will be of particular interest to firms.

Financial rewards are attractive and tend to be in line with other areas of the financial services, with those employed in risk management and compliance enjoying strong benefits alongside their career progression.  

The average graduate/junior analyst within the corporate investment banking credit risk sector can expect to receive an average of £35,500, while managing directors in the field can earn around £200,000.

Employers usually look for graduates who have an industry-related degree – such as management, economics, law or business. It can also be advantageous to have some experience in the area of industry – often this can be obtained by work placements or taking an internship.

It is expected that demand during the next year or so will be for those with at least three years’ experience in the industry, but there remains lots of in-house opportunities for those trying to develop their skills.

The most common way of getting a foothold in the industry is to look at the numerous graduate schemes on offer. They tend to be general roles within large scale financial service firms, with the option to specialise later into the various areas of risk management.

Some firms are also becoming increasingly creative when it comes to recruiting, especially as recent times has seen a drop in suitable candidates, with companies looking to take on risk managers with transferable skills from other sectors to help fill any potential gaps.