Mark Selby, chief operating officer – retail bank, Abbey

Why financial services?

In financial services you can start dealing with very large amounts of money early on in your career. The opportunity to help people manage that money and then to build teams that are able to assist even more people is compelling.

The biggest influence on my career…

… I once worked for a director called Ambrose McGinn. Ambrose gave me my first big break at the bank and showed real faith in me by taking a bit of risk. He taught me the power of showing confidence in people.

'Graduates need to be numerate and have a reasonable understanding of how the business works. Equally important is the ability to build successful relationships with people.'

Key skills and advice for graduates

Graduates need to be numerate and have a reasonable understanding of how the business works as well as what’s required to grow that business. Equally important is the ability to build successful relationships with people – whether that’s your team or your customers.

My general advice on careers is to be very clear about what you enjoy and where your strengths lie (they’re often the same). Building a career around those things is the best way to achieve sustainable success and satisfaction. Aim to train with the best people in the market, learn how the business works and how people can be motivated in different ways to reach the same objective.