A day in the life of Alex

Name
Alex

"I’m also responsible for the performance management of a team of 35 Bankers, based in our London headquarters."

Role
Team leader, London and South-East Affluent Team

Works in
Barclays Wealth

Location
London, UK

My working day

My job relies on building and maintaining good relationships with my clients. It’s vital I understand what they want to achieve and continue to deliver products, ideas and services which meet their needs. Some of our clients have or are considering offshore investments, so I often work with colleagues based in Singapore, Jersey, Geneva or our other offices to discuss their requirements.

In the morning, 09:00 to 11:00
I’m usually in the office by 07:20, completing administration from the previous day, writing up notes from my meetings and following up on any queries from my clients. I’ll then take a look at how my team are performing against their targets and highlight any issues. By about 09.30 I’m ready to start contacting my clients.

Around lunch, 11:00 to 14:00
I like to allocate part of the day to dealing directly with my clients, either by speaking with them over the phone or meeting with them in person. Issues I might typically discuss with them range from how best to manage their investments to inheritance tax planning and risk management.

Early afternoon, 14:00 to 17:00
As well as liaising with my clients, it’s also important to work closely with my peers. Barclays Wealth is an extremely fast-paced part of the business and we’re working hard to manage that change so as a team we’re constantly looking at how we can improve our products and performance to become as efficient and effective as possible.

End of the day, 17:00 to 18:00
Before 17.30 I like to catch up with my team members to see what they’ve accomplished during the day and how I can help with any challenges they’re facing. I usually leave at about 19.30 after preparing for the day ahead.

 
My career at Barclays

I joined Barclays in February 2007 as a Private Banker. I was promoted to manage a team of seven people in June that year, then in January 2008 was made Team Leader on the London and South-East Affluent Team, with responsibility for 35 Bankers.

 
How I started out

Before joining Barclays I ran a successful corporate entertainment and training business, which I sold. My entrepreneurial experience definitely deepens my understanding of the clients I work with now. I spent nine years as an Army officer, and graduated with a joint honours degree in Geography and Economics from King’s College London and LSE (the London School of Economics and Political Sciences).