Financial Academy survey results Skills and education in the financial sector

Background The establishment of the Financial Academy presented a good opportunity to compile experts’ views on the following topics: What are the future skill requirements in the financial sector? How well are member organisations aware of different training options? How can we improve financial skills and the Financial Academy? These were considered important questions, worthy of a new survey which will be conducted at a later time.

Participants included 72 experts Source: Haaga-Helia

Which skills were regarded most important in the following categories? business skills customer service international skills creativity and innovation technology networking responsibilities

Most important business skills Source: Haaga-Helia

Most important customer service skills Source: Haaga-Helia

Most important international skills Source: Haaga-Helia

Most important creative and innovative skills Source: Haaga-Helia

Most important technological skills Source: Haaga-Helia

Most important networking skills Source: Haaga-Helia

Most important responsibilities Source: Haaga-Helia

Future skill requirements AI mining, analysing and utilising data Big Data robotics new legislation financial direction solvency balancing regulation Excerpts “ability to learn not just core competences, but other skills as well” “work is learning and learning is work” “understanding the revenue model of negative interest” “making changes in a quick but controlled way” “building trust” “understanding how society works” managing whole processes self-direction personal encounters social situations international skills developing partnerships sharing knowledge facilitation coaching design skills service design

Identifying new skill requirements Employers, companies and other organisations Market and competitor analysis, customer research and feedback, internal surveys on skills and education requirements, trends, weak signals Regular performance reviews and skills surveys are the primary measures Skill requirements mainly surface in yearly performance reviews, but with the rapidly changing world, needs must be charted continuously Education should provide strong basic skills Source: Haaga-Helia

Identifying new skill requirements Educational institutions New students every year, financial sector organisations and events Requirements usually identified in cooperation with companies shared projects and thesis work/final projects for companies Following futures studies More training and forums on core competences “I’m interested in pretty much everything. As an employee it’s hard to recognise which of my skills are valued by the employer. Guidelines and discussions would be helpful.” Dialogue during classes and financial sector social media projects Identifying new skill requirements by following the markets and operating environment Source: Haaga-Helia

Where do financial sector skills originate? 100:0 80:20 60:40 40:60 20:80 0:100 Corp 3 1 23 21 Edu 2 9 11 Ratio of education to work experience, % (education:experience) Corp = companies (n=48) Edu = educational institutions (n=24) Source: Haaga-Helia

Awareness of available education Educational institute mean Universities 3.47 Universities of applied sciences 3.36 Vocational schools 2.90 Independent institutes providing continuing education Upper secondary schools 2.58 Secondary schools 2.37 Primary schools 2.35 Qualifications in the financial sector mean Bachelor of Business Administration 3.49 Insurance degrees (VTS and YVTS) 3.13 Master ’s degree 3.11 Bachelor’s degree 3.00 Vocational Qualification in Business and Administration 2.97 Further Qualification in Financial Services (competence-based qualification) 2.90 Investment qualifications (APV1 and APV2) 2.79 PhD 2.67 Executive MBA degrees 2.62 The Finnish Matriculation Examination 2.35 Degrees of Financial Analysts (CEFA/CIIA/CEESGA) 2.21 Comprehensive school 2.06 Scale 1–5 (1: not at all aware, 5: very much aware) Source: Haaga-Helia

Expectations for the Financial Academy Active cooperation. Mutual commitment, working together. Various events, networking sessions, webinars, discussions. Utilising digitalisation, ease of use. More visibility for the Financial Academy. Marketing the Academy to companies and educational institutions. E-mails, intranet, websites etc. Comprehensive cooperation in the financial sector, including trade unions. Everyone has to be included. Inspire economics teachers to become interested in the financial sector. Correct and practical information about students’ career opportunities. Less hype, more action. Proactivity. Planning education for 2019–2020. Informing member organisations on what’s coming.

Expectations for the Financial Academy More visibility for competence profiles “It would be beneficial to create competence profiles together. They would move from vocational schools to universities and the workplace, and result in different kinds of competencies. These profiles should match the real-world expectations of the financial industry and offer students a clear view of their opportunities and motivate them even more.” Communication “The Financial Academy is the most direct method of communicating the sector’s skill requirements. Cooperation between educators and employers is essential. An official channel is also important at forums with the Ministry of Education and Culture and with the Finnish National Agency for Education.”

Examples of successful practical projects “Basics of the financial sector”, a reform project by Laurea University of Applied Sciences Innovating together with students, for example the reshaping of the “Keep it Rolling” website Traditional cooperation, for example with the Helsinki Business College. Internships help students determine if the work corresponds to their expectations.