Helen Ryan, Nationwide

Helen Ryan is a credit card services project manager for Nationwide Building Society. She has a degree in modern European languages from the University of Durham and an MA in translation studies from the University of Leeds.

How did you get from a language degree to retail banking?

I worked part time as a cashier in a bank during my studies. I really enjoyed this and it led me to decide to join a bank or building society graduate scheme. I felt that the career prospects would be excellent, with lots of opportunities for promotion, so I was very keen to get into this particular sector.

What do you do as part of your day to day graduate role?

As a project manager in the credit card team, my daily responsibilities vary depending on the projects we have running. Something I’ve recently been involved with is planning the opening of our new contact centre in Coventry – my biggest challenge, and highlight, so far. I learned a lot about my own retail specialism, as well as the other areas of the business. Putting everything into place also taught me about working with third party suppliers. The absolute highlight was being in the new centre when they took the first customer call and realising that all the hard work had paid off – the worst thing was that it was at 2.00 am!

'I was very keen to get into credit card services because I felt that the career prospects would be excellent with lots of opportunities for promotion.'

Alongside my day-to-day tasks, I’m also working towards a qualification with the Institute of Financial Services. It is hard work but I am given some time off before exams and I can choose whether to work towards one or two modules at a time so it is possible to study as well as work, especially with the support of my employer. 

Who do you work with the most?

In my role I mainly work with other members of the credit card area, but have a great deal of contact with our third party suppliers and the call centre, as well as other internal departments. I particularly enjoy the operational side as I like working with our contact centre staff to design and improve the way they work.

What advice do you have for graduates who want to be successful finance project managers?

It’s important to be flexible. My role comes with a good work/life balance as I don’t normally need to work evenings or weekends, although I do if I’m needed. I also moved from Manchester to Leicester for my first placement and then moved down to Swindon a few months later.

You need to be ready and willing to learn from other members of your team and to take responsibility for your own career and development.