Omar, could you give us a view into the graduates at swissre programme? I work in a unit called Reinsurance Liability and Asset Management. This sits in the Claims and Liability Management department at SwissRe. Our role is to manage the reinsurance run-off portfolio. On a more personal level, I am responsible for working with the more experienced members of my team to complete various transactions with our clients. This includes commutations, novations and some M&A type activities.
Entry requirements prescribe that candidates applying for Swiss Re should have a Bachelor or Masters Degree. One of the first things I noticed at Swiss Re was the heavy emphasis on your skills rather than your knowledge. I am an electrical and electronic engineer by training, and my colleagues come from various backgrounds. A background of numerical ability, logical thinking, clarity of communication and being able to work with people is more important than your educational background. Knowledge can be easily learnt, unfortunately - it can also be easily forgotten.
And what about personal attributes? As per the previous question - numerical ability, logical thinking, clarity of communication and being able to work with people - these are key skills.
Could you give an idea about the introduction into the programme? C.V. submission online, with online numerical and logical reasoning tests. This is followed by an interview at one of our offices, which is in turn followed by an Assessment Centre; a day long event where various exercises are carried out to see how you perform.
Where is your home base? I work in London within Reinsurance Liability Management.
Could you describe your daily business? A normal working day for me starts at around 8:30am and finishes around 6pm. On average, I would be working on several projects at any given moment.
And your career goals? The simple rules I have for my career are to do something I enjoy and where I am continually learning. Where this takes me, is in the lap of the gods.
Your reasons to participate in this programme? As per the answer to the previous question, I chose Swiss Re and this job in particular because I saw the opportunity to work with some brilliant people and to learn a great deal.
Why Swiss Re? Swiss Re has several great qualities. These include: a global reach with offices worldwide, creating the opportunity for placements abroad; an 18-month graduate program allowing you learn a lot in a very short time; a diverse number of teams doing a multitude of different tasks - anything from sustainable investments to research into the longevity of people. It is not necessarily unique in any one of these qualities, but as a complete package, Swiss Re offers the quality and quantity of opportunities making it a great prospective employer.
