We are witnessing a highly competitive world where the dependence on the finance industry is increasing rapidly. This sector mobilizes savings while holding the power to allocate credit across space and time. It allows people to cope with economic uncertainties by reducing the cost of hedging, sharing, and pooling risk. It plays a significant role in the well-being of companies, individuals, and the overall economy.
At the same time, this industry offers overwhelming opportunities for people who know how to play with numbers. Even though qualifications in finance are strenuous, people enjoy fruitful and lucrative jobs in this sector. Here is a list of thriving finance career options if you have a finance degree in hand or are thinking of pursuing it.
Private Equity Analyst
An equity analyst is responsible for managing equity – assets, and liabilities of a company or individuals. However, a private equity analyst specializes in managing equity of private firms and non-public enterprises. These companies are not listed on the stock exchange as a result of which analysts raise money by keeping a portion of their profits. They help them with investment, expansion, and funding decisions to rescue companies from making wrong decisions. It requires outstanding academic credentials with some prior experience of working in investment banks.
Financial Analyst
Are you good at thinking critically? Financial analysts use data and their competent thinking skills to make decisions. They tend to work at more traditional companies or government agencies, where the capital structure is massive. All the big companies need financial analysts to maintain budgets, analyze cashflows, and propose cost-cutting methods. Similarly, they also assist with capital raising, strengthening the financial performance of the company. If this sounds intriguing and you are wondering how to become a financial analyst, reach out to Google, and explore your options.
Hegde Manager
Do you know what hedge means? It is a way of protecting oneself from financial losses, and hedge managers hold this responsibility in the finance industry. They analyze the performance of portfolios and maximize profits with the available funds. These experts invest in companies that offer minimal risk and high returns to hedge funds. However, it depends on the company, how much risk they are willing to take, and hedging is done following it.
Portfolio Manager
Portfolio managers are high in demand because every company is looking for experts who can help them diversify risk. After all, smart investment decisions are much more than putting all your eggs in one basket. These managers devise portfolios by shortlisting different companies from various sectors. For instance, two companies could be from textile, four from automobiles, and a few from telecom. It requires incredible analytical skills, informed decision making, and plenty of market research to craft profitable portfolios. Every job offers soaring salary packages, and these experts earn $70,000 on average.
Investment Analyst
Usually, people think businesses are only earning from their profits. It might be true in the case of small companies, but well-established companies use every source to generate income. Most companies do this by making an investment in other firms and enjoying a share from their profits, in the form of dividends. However, to make sure they are investing in reputable companies, they seek help from investment analysts.
They are highly qualified individuals who have a knack of how stock markets work. Thus, as an investment analyst, you will hold the bag of creating risk portfolios for clients, which will include average returns and risk of companies. All in all, these experts expose companies to the best investment options, may it be securities, bonds, or shares.
Finance Manager
Believe it or not, every company needs a finance manager to take control of the organization’s finance department. These people manage finances by aligning them with business practices. Likewise, they also prepare financial statements such as cash flows, income statement, and the balance sheet of a business. They project the financial position of the company in front of the shareholders. Hence, you will not have the autonomy of doing work on your own, but this career option is equally rewarding because it is one of the top-paying jobs of the finance industry.
Risk Manager
In today’s world, the markets are very volatile. You might come across a short-term loan, offering funds without adding to the long list of debts. Unfortunately, entrepreneurs do not have enough expertise to judge whether it is an opportunity or a trap. Risk managers are the experts that work closely with the companies, helping them identify potential risk. Businesses face different risks – financial, credit, operational, market, safety, and investment risks. Nowadays, companies are investing in technologies, increasing the demand for these experts. After all, they develop measures to manage and mitigate risks, ensuring a smooth flow of business operations.
Finance Director
Finance directors are responsible for directing the company’s economic direction. It requires analytical and commendable problem-solving skills. These are part of a firm’s senior executive team and make financial decisions on behalf of the company. They manage financial health by ensuring long-term growth and decide whether a new plant or machinery is needed. On average, a finance director earns $81,000, making it worth all the efforts.
Economic Strategist
Economic analysts observe economic activity and identify significant trends. They broadly analyze the country’s current economic condition and see whether it is putting an adverse or favorable impact on financial performance. Usually, the directors project increasing interest rates, which allows them to withhold financing decisions, saving themselves from drowning into losses. If you are fond of tracking trends and learning about economic conditions, this job might be the perfect fit for you.
Venture Capitalist
You might have heard of venture capital firms lending loans to businesses. Well, with a finance degree, you have the opportunity to become a venture capitalist. It is a rapidly developing industry, allowing venture capitalists to enjoy high returns on investment. You should have the ability to identify the ‘the next big thing’ to generate maximum profits. Likewise, tech-savvy startups with unique ideas hold captivating opportunities for these experts.
Wrapping Up
The emerging finance industry is opening doors for many new career opportunities for students. Likewise, professionals can excel in their skills by opting for advanced courses while securing their position at senior management levels. Usually, people are drawn to this field because of substantial income, but the high entry barriers only make room for individuals who have an interest in finance. If you are one of them and searching for career opportunities, have a look above!
