| In the last twenty years, the face of financial | | | | Europe can use a variety of resources. Employment |
| advising and planning in the United Kingdom and | | | | sites are a great way for more experienced |
| Europe has changed greatly. Only a generation ago, | | | | professionals to find job leads and make connections |
| financial planners were often left to their own | | | | with an local bank or national financial firm. Graduates |
| devices to come up with goods and services that | | | | and young professionals can use their university as a |
| would help their clients. As well, the means of | | | | resource, as many British and European universities |
| communication only two decades ago was much | | | | are creating job centres and web sites for alumni. |
| slower than it is today. Fax machines and telephones | | | | Finally, banking professionals should use to the fullest |
| were favoured technologies for financial planning, | | | | extent their connections through former employers |
| requiring some time to reach clients and financial | | | | and colleagues to find job leads. |
| professionals. | | | | However, the best resources for financial and |
| However, banks and financial planning firms alike have | | | | banking professionals looking for a new job are |
| turned away from traditional technologies like fax | | | | recruiting agencies. These agencies specialize in |
| machines and telephones. Financial planners and | | | | providing a full range of services to potential |
| advisors are now expected to use new computers, | | | | professionals, doing all of the promotional work and |
| cell phones, and PDAs to get their work done. In this | | | | organization necessary to find their recruits the job |
| way, financial professionals need to have two distinct | | | | of their dreams. From application to placement, |
| sets of skills. Advisors and planners need to have the | | | | recruiting agencies of all sizes provide feedback to |
| traditional knowledge of financial markets and | | | | their recruits as the process goes along. Agencies are |
| services, while also possessing knowledge of how to | | | | beginning to provide more advanced options for their |
| use modern technologies. In this way, the job has | | | | recruits, including text message job updates and web |
| gotten easier for financial planners in terms of their | | | | surveys meant to provide feedback to recruiters. |
| job responsibilities while it has gotten more harried | | | | The best approach to finding a new financial position |
| with the high speed of financial transactions and | | | | is a combination of recruiting agencies, the utilization |
| communications. | | | | of personal connections, and general job sites can |
| Financial professionals looking to break into planning | | | | turn the hard work of a job search into the sweet |
| and consulting positions in the United Kingdom and | | | | rewards of a career. |