Technology Analyst Review

This was a middling experience. Whilst the people around me were open and candid and very willing to help, a virtual experience at a large bureaucratic organisation like a bank makes it hard to establish yourself within the environment. I found pockets of work engaging but a lot of it was fairly mundane. I did not have access to internal servers for the first two weeks. Though, again, the people around me were lovely and I felt they tried to make the best for my experience so I am grateful for that.

Aside from delays that seem inherent to working at Barclays, I felt people were always approachable, and had some really interesting things to say. I was impressed by how much goodwill everyone was sharing with me and I felt like the firm was willing to partner with me so that I'm not just blindly taking orders from upstream. Even though virtual work insulated and isolated me, I did feel that I was valued, and that the conformist days of finance were in the past.

I received regular guidance from my manager in a friendly and amiable way, plus question and conversation windows from people at many levels of management and seniority (to varying degrees). For those wanting to network, this is a recommended experience, and each contact I spoke to was willing to offer their wisdom. I felt the guidance I was given was given on trying to understand what fit best for me rather than any ulterior or company-based motives.

I came from a natural science background, which was a slightly awkward fit for the role I was put into. I wasn't entirely explicit around where I wanted to be but I still felt the technicalities involved were foreign to my education and aspirations. This is only a reflection on my relationship with the programme. I will take away an industry awareness, and convention for acting within the network of people and the workplace (virtual) environment which will be generally useful, but not many skills I can directly apply.

The interning team organised a series of diverse events, workshops, speakers, which formed the backbone of the programme. They were frequent, and although inevitably varying in interest, and I appreciated how much effort went to set them up. My day to day was less structured, so I enjoyed having the contrast between the two aspects. I would not change any of the structuring of the programme, though this is just for my personal style of working.

Generally Barclays is an optimistic, extraverted corporate environment. This doesn't really suit my personality, but all the same I felt people were positive and inclusive, and always willing to talk. I faced two-week delays with internal access, and lots of small technical faults and inefficiencies that made being able to work a bit cumbersome. Overall the atmosphere was good, if a bit misaligned with how I am, and I wouldn't suggest any changes. Most people are willing to be happy and helpful.

The salary of the internship is proof that the company believes in its talent pool and the time that various different management leads and higher ups invested in coming to speak to the interns is also representative of a willingness to invest. I felt the people I spoke to were honest and candid, which is in itself an investment in allowing interns an insight. In terms of work I was given unimportant, risk-free work, though with the opportunity to present to important people at the end.

Overall it was a decent representation. The programme was well structured so a sense of industry and activity was conveyed. Most people in finance tech were used to working from home part-time so the virtual experience was part of the job. It did, however, enhance the inefficiencies in communicating and shuffling information around and I missed the chance to network and make contacts, plus seek guidance from, the people around me face to face instead of online.

Barclays is strong on advertising itself as an inclusive and friendly culture, far from the Machiavellian stereotype of banking and finance. I don't attribute much meaning to the 'values' of the culture though maybe other personality types do. Also, come people are more frank than others in giving an honest idea of the shortcomings of the bank, as well as the discrepancy in marketed personality and actual. So I understand that Barclays markets itself a certain way, and that the industry is changing.

I know I would not like to continue on with this industry. This experience has given me some direction, and the people I spoke to were willing to engage with my plans outside of banking and tech, but it is still a very open question. I came out with a general industry awareness of how large organisations function though this didn't do much in deciding the specifics of where I want to continue on in the future.

Initially the programme was set up to provide a proportional salary slice of the full time role I would be eligible for as a graduate, plus a large sum for housing and living expenses during the internship. When it was shortened the same salary was retained, so I feel that the payment was generous and a show of good faith in the interns. I was happy with the amount I was paid (and it was a factor in deciding to do the internship)

My line manager put me in touch with enough other colleagues whereby I had a call with one of them on average once a day. This list kept growing and evolving as I articulated my preferences and aspirations, and people were always willing to set up a virtual introduction. My manager also organised a chance to socialise outside of normal working hours so I was able to speak to people on a more personal basis

I had a few technical faults going on during the large intern networking events, but even still I was able to reach out to most in the company and set up a virtual introduction if I wanted to. Whilst lacking the charm of a face to face meeting, virtual networking meant it was easier to find people and could be done without the hassle of room booking and chasing them down to find them there.

I was told about the opportunity to engage with various outreach and citizenship events run by Barclays, which I caught wind of during my time organising the information for the next company newsletter. I felt the opportunity was there. I was also informed of the various networks and support groups put in place around Barclays aimed at bringing together minorities and others to share inclusivity. Again, I saw the opportunity but chose not to take it.

I would recommend to a friend of a certain personality type who would fit into a corporate environment. For those who are extraverted, observant, and enjoy engaging with people to execute functions and operations this is a good opportunity. The chance to network and grow your intuition was there and I think it was a good representation of the technology in finance industry as a whole. It just depends on the type of person they are.