Careers City Rising Star Rebecca O’Reilly takes some time out of her busy day as a Senior Consultant at Capco, to share with us her career and current role.
Rebecca is a Senior Consultant in Capco’s Banking Domain. She works within Customer Experience in their London office. Aside from her client work, she constructed and runs the global training and development programme for Capco’s bespoke internal professional networking platform, CapInTouch.
We truly support one another in coming up with new ideas, encouraging everyone to be themselves and valuing diversity. Our 2014 initiative of #beyourselfatwork has been highlighted in various forms of social media and I really believe we practice what we preach.
Day to day life?
What I like about my job is that a day in the life is sometimes hard to categorise as they tend to differ week to week and project to project. I love the fact that there are always new challenges. Working in the Banking Domain has been incredibly satisfying, particularly because there is a sense of tangibility for the end customer and making their lives a little bit easier through the work we do with our clients. Talking to customers about how they engage with financial services and what they enjoy and what they would like to see change is incredibly enlightening and interesting because it is so easy to identify with them; all of us are customers, after all.
Generally my projects have required me to engage with clients and understand what they want help with and how we can help. Thinking differently about how objectives can be achieved is central to how Capco both works in and fosters an environment of innovation.
Most of my work has been in London, however, I’ve had the opportunity to work as far afield as Lisbon, Madrid, Milan and across the UK. I think working away from home has given me the opportunity to get to know many of my colleagues and build friendships and strong working partnerships that I will always value throughout my life and career.
What did you study or what experiences helped prepare you?
I studied History and Fine Arts at the University of Waterloo in Canada. Following that I did a Master’s in History from the University of Guelph and then trained to become a teacher. I moved to the UK teaching secondary school in 2008 and after a few years, decided I wanted a different type of challenge. I joined Capco in 2010 as a part of our Associate Talent Programme and found the training and support to be incredible. Although teaching and consulting seem incredibly different, and in many ways are, I think my degrees taught me rigid research and writing practices and teaching tested my communication skills to no end. Empathy, listening and tailoring your message to your audience are invaluable things to master when working with people, no matter who they may be.
What do I enjoy most about my role?
I love working as a part of a team. I love speaking to people and finding common ground, even when it seems difficult to pinpoint at first. As I mentioned, no two projects, and sometimes, no two days are the same and this keeps me excited and interested. Even if there are tasks involved in getting something done that I might not always enjoy, the satisfaction of working as a part of a group for something bigger is the carrot at the end of the stick for me.
Within my internal role, working on our professional/social networking platform CapInTouch, I have loved watching it grow from one person’s idea into a global tool and helping people learn how to use it effectively. Focusing on new functionalities, testing and releasing these keeps it fresh and challenging for the team and I.
Why I like working at Capco?
I love working for Capco because of the sense of empowerment I feel in the firm. We truly support one another in coming up with new ideas, encouraging everyone to be themselves and valuing diversity. Our 2014 initiative of #beyourselfatwork has been highlighted in various forms of social media and I really believe we practice what we preach.
Networking?
I have been working with a group on social enterprises called FreePint, recently writing some articles and hosting webinars on the work I’ve done on our networking platform. I’ve also been involved in User Experience groups and am very interested in corporate social responsibility within Capco. We are supporting Room to Read this year to help build schools in developing countries; equal access to education is something I’m very passionate about.
Career aspirations?
I have been very happy with my career path to date and I think the mix of client work and internal contribution has been a great balance for me. I was promoted late last year and I’m hoping to continue on this path within Capco, particularly focusing on Innovation, Customer and User Experience.
Advice?
My advice for someone looking to get into financial services consultancy is to understand what types of engagements different organisations are involved in and how those roles may differ. Really try to get to know the culture of a firm and when you find one that fits who you think you are, go for it. Be prepared to be flexible, but expect rewarding challenges and to meet a lot of interesting and talented people. I think for me, the culture of Capco has been outstanding and that’s why I feel at home here, which has given me a great foundation for success. The rest is up to me.
