Richard Spalton

Name: Richard Spalton
Job: Equity research associate
Employer: Fidelity Investment Managers
University: BA Economics, University of Cambridge (2008)

In the summer after my first year of university I got a job at a fund management firm in Edinburgh. This was my first introduction to the industry and I realised it was a career I would like to pursue. I followed this by applying to a variety of London-based investment management firms to do an internship. The work experience confirmed my interest in the industry and helped when it came to answering interview questions. I applied to the graduate schemes of a variety of firms in the autumn of my last year at university. I was looking for a company that had a good atmosphere and would encourage me to challenge myself.

My job

I was attracted to investment management because of the opportunity to analyse a wide variety of companies and business models. I work closely with the other analysts in my industry team, in my case the consumer team. I also work closely with the team of fund managers, suggesting ideas to them and discussing current investments. I cover a large number of companies across Europe so I have taken several trips to meet the management teams and visit their operations. We find it very useful to go and see the companies in their places of work as it can give you a great insight into the business. The major attribute that is essential in my job is a curiosity about business and how companies work. Creativity and an analytical approach are also very important.

Work/life balance

I typically get into the office at around 8.00 am and leave between 6.00 pm and 7.00 pm. I believe that the work/life balance is very good in investment management. I always feel I have the time to do the things I want to do in my personal life. I enjoy the day-to-day variety of the job: you can look at several entirely different companies through the course of the day. One of the major challenges in the job is coping with the large amount of information that is available in the market; I have had to learn to filter the important pieces in order to concentrate on the key factors affecting my stock recommendations.