What did you study & where?
Commerce (Finance major) and Arts (International Relations major) at Monash University
What drew you to the NAB Graduate program?
The ability to try many different teams and sectors within NAB is what got me excited for the program. NABs culture and value for colleagues is what set NAB apart from its competitors for me.
How did you decide which stream to apply for?
I decided to apply for the Business and Private Banking stream as I was interested in working with small businesses in the community to help them grow and succeed. It is also the sector that NAB excel in comparation to the other banks.
What was the highlight of your graduate experience?
The highlight of my graduate experience was the friendships I made with other graduates in my cohort. I was a grad during covid and when we weren’t in lockdown all the grads would come into the office on a Friday, no one else would be in the office so we would all sit together and go for drinks after work.
Was there anything about that graduate program that exceeded your expectations?
The ability to experience a variety of teams, outside of your rotations we could do a secondment as well as spend days with different teams around the bank. I did my secondment in the Government team in C&IB, spent a day on the Markets floor and worked from the Corporate Health BBC for a week. These opportunities allowed me to create a network in different areas of the bank I wouldn’t usually have access to.
Can you tell us about the teams that you completed your rotations in:
My rotations were in CLS, Risk, BDSB and Business Everyday Banking.
CLS – All B&PB grads started their grad program together, completing training for CLS. This was a great way to learn the basics and get to know your fellow graduates before being split into separate teams. I was placed on the Private Bank CLS team, where I worked on credit submissions and learnt how to use the (many) different systems.
Risk – My second rotation was on the Risk team. I really enjoyed this rotation, as it was an opportunity to see a part of B&PB that isn’t traditional banking. In this team, I conducted research for Andrew Irvine to assist in refreshing the B&PB risk metrics dashboard, which involved connecting with SME’s in different departments around the bank, analyzing data, and presenting solutions to senior members of the Risk team.
Business Everyday Banking – This team was essentially the one that managed merchant acquisition (it has since been restructured into multiple different teams). During my time in this team, I had the opportunity to work with the marketing team to uplift the merchant pages on nab.com.au.
BDSB – During my time in this team, I participated in BDSB’s strategic Net Promoter Score (“NPS”) working group, where I identified the top 3 complaint drivers for the division and presented & implemented solutions for capability uplift. This included extensive data analysis, facilitating meetings with the executives and managers from each business unit, liaising with data analytics teams and risk, creating presentations, and writing and sending out communications.
Secondment – Government and Education CME Team. I spent my secondment in the G&E Client Management and Execution team. This was a great opportunity to experience a different part of the bank and understand how it differed from B&PB. In this team, I worked on credit papers, went to client meetings, and assisted in a project on social housing for the relationship managers. I ended up rolling off the grad program into this team.
What role are you in now?
I am an associate in the Loan origination and syndication team in C&IB.
How do you feel the graduate program has set you up for your current role / career at NAB?
The graduate program set me up for my current role as it taught me how to get out of my comfort zone and try new things. It set me up with a network that spans different areas of NAB which has been very beneficial.
What advice do you have for the next graduates on how to make the most of their graduate program?
My advice would be to meet as many people as you can and take advantage of every opportunity you are given.
You also completed the NAB Summer Internship. How did you find your internship? Do you feel that this helped you prepare for the Graduate program?
I thoroughly enjoyed my summer internship. The internship prepared me for the graduate program as I had an understanding of how the bank worked, some experience with the systems, and a network at NAB before starting the Grad program.
Is there anything that you would like to add?
During my grad year, I was also part of the committee for International Women’s Day, where we prepared NABs IWD plan, I assisted in facilitating assessment centers for future interns and grads and assisted with the university information days. In my current team, I am working with another graduate from my cohort and get to work with many of the grads both in my cohort and below/above me every day. I still catch up with my friends from the grad program every week for lunch, and a group of us are going to Europe in July for the Olympics.