Three months in on Dividends:

For the past three months I have been working on the dividends team, specifically dealing with unit trust. It is my team’s job to process the money that is paid from shares bought under the Rathbones name (known as a nominee) to our clients that we have bought the shares on behalf of. Dividends are paid out yearly, semi-annually, quarterly and even monthly, which means that there is a constant stream of work for us to deal with and so we are always busy!

Since I have been here for three months now, I am dealing with more advanced areas of my job, such as reinvested sales on dividends and queries from other teams. Although I am actually doing them instead of simply observing my colleagues, I still receive help when it’s needed and everyone is always more than willing to assist me (thankfully!)

Along with my usual job of processing dividends to clients and various other tasks across the team, I was also given the opportunity to chair a team meeting so that I could use this as evidence for my NVQ qualification. This included organising and booking the room, inviting the team, providing the agenda, addressing the team at the meeting and also sending out minutes of the meeting to the team after the meeting.

I had never done anything quite like this before so at first I was quite nervous, especially the speaking part, but since I have settled into my team very well and I get along with everybody, I was much more confident.

The First Month

At first, the change from classroom education to a workplace environment was daunting, but after a few days this quickly changed. All of my colleagues, not only in the dividends team but in other teams also, are extremely friendly and they make for a very positive social experience both in and outside of work – this is down to the fantastic culture which Rathbones promotes. Considering I have only been here for just over a month, I feel like I have really settled in now and I am thoroughly enjoying the experience and the challenges in the workplace.

I must admit that I felt a little bit overwhelmed by all the knowledge required in this industry, but a month down the line I feel that I am coming to grasp much of what has been shown to me so far by my colleagues – which is a credit to the training provided by the company. Compared to education, I could seriously argue that I have learnt more in this past month or so at Rathbones, than I did in a whole 6 months studying A-Level Business.

Outside of work and studying, I still have time to socialise with my friends and keep in touch, which to me is an important aspect as I worried that with both working and studying, I would never have time to socialise – but this is simply not the case.

To summarise, this first month has been much better than I imagined it to be and I hope to be saying the same in my next blog post!

Why an apprenticeship?

To most students finishing A-Levels, university is the main target for them, but this is usually for several reasons, such as: socialising, independence, relocating, or perhaps the reason why you pay a huge annual fee – your career.

Don’t get me wrong, I would have enjoyed University, but I felt that the cost of a business course at £9,000 a year was far too much and the benefits of a business degree could never justify this fee in comparison to an apprenticeship where I am studying for industry qualifications/NVQ qualifications and getting valuable, paid work experience in a extremely reputable company like Rathbones.

At first I wasn’t sure about the apprenticeship route and I was seriously considering University, but in no way do I regret opting for an apprenticeship at Rathbones and I feel that especially now I am a month into the programme, this was the right decision for my career.

A little bit about myself...

Hello! My name is Paul Edwards and I am 18 years old. I grew up in the Maghull area where I studied A-Levels at Deyes High Sixth Form and achieved grades B-C-C (Business – IT – Philosophy & Ethics).

My most passionate hobby/interest is playing the drums and it has been since the age of 12, to which this has led music to be of a huge influence in my life. I have always enjoyed business studies throughout my life, but perhaps more so when I created an e-business on Ebay and Amazon in my final year of A-Levels with my brother, which became a success and provided me with a regular wage.

I currently work for Rathbones Brothers Plc in Liverpool as an apprentice and my first placement in the company is on the Dividends team. The apprenticeship programme will last for two years, with four 6 month placements in the Operations department (Dividends, Pensions, Transfers, Client Static Data).

During my time on this apprenticeship course I will be posting about my experience and thoughts on the apprenticeship programme in the finance sector.