As a technology consultant for banking and insurance projects

I work as a technology consultant in Deloitte's System Delivery and Modernization team, specialising in IT transformation projects in the finance sector. I graduated as a Master of Science in Technology from TKK (now Aalto University), specialising in corporate communication systems. The term might be a bit elusive, but in the context of the finance sector, it practically means internet banking and insurance applications. I ended up doing precisely what I studied. In our team at Deloitte, we have experts with both commercial and technical backgrounds.

"Work is versatile and offers interesting challenges in a sector that affects everyone in society."

Before Deloitte, I worked for five years with a competitor on pension insurance systems. This was my first job after my studies. In client projects, Iwas responsible for regression testing and later continued with development and requirement specification during maintenance. A natural next step in my career was moving from grassroots work to the roles of project and service manager. During my studies, we didn't have any industry emphasis, so I ended up in finance projects by accident – and for now, I've stayed on that path because the work is versatile and offers interesting challenges in a sector that touches everyone in society.

Banking and insurance projects require strong business understanding

At Deloitte, I've mainly worked on banking projects as project and programme manager. In Europe, we have professionals specialising in industry products, but often there is also an external system supplier involved in the projects. My team and I are responsible for acting as the client's point of contact, ensuring that the client's needs are taken into consideration, and that the project progresses on schedule. In my work as a project manager, I must communicate at a strategic level with management and at the same time understand technical details so I can guide my team and the system supplier’s teams. My background has been very beneficial in this.

Transformational projects for core business systems are rare in a corporate organisation's lifecycle, so clients often don't have the expertise to plan and execute them. For a consultant, this is a natural place to get involved in projects. Finland's small market often leads to encountering the same people in transformation projects as professionals move from one organisation to another following projects. Ideally, this leads to people becoming more familiar with each other and learning each other's strengths. In my experience, this improves team dynamics, accelerates project progression, and can even lead to better outcomes.

"Finance is a heavily regulated and supervised industry, which adds to the complexity of the projects."

Banking and insurance projects require people with a strong understanding of the client's business. This understanding is usually best achieved through working at a bank or insurance company. Additionally, the finance sector is highly regulated and supervised, which adds to the complexity of the projects. A good consultant maintains their expertisein this area as well.

This autumn marks 13 years of my consultant career. Sometimes you stop to think if you should do something else. However, the versatility and diversity of consulting work are addictive: there's always something new to learn, and you must maintain your technical and business expertise. The spice of my work particularly comes from tackling challenging issues together with the client. It’s rewarding when I can support the client in succeeding with significant changes that impact their business.