Jayan Parbhu

What's your job about?

I am in the Capital Markets Development product team. We sit in the stock exchange/Capital markets business. We are the business unit responsible for helping bring to life the products and services for New Zealand’s capital markets.

We are essentially the team that helps scan what other global exchanges do in terms of services and products, understand from our relationship teams what our clients want and work with our IT teams to deliver solutions for the clients.

My role is a mixture of conducting research externally or conducting analysis internally, taking these findings and interpreting them in a way to pitch them to managers in the form of a value-add product or service for both our clients and the NZX Capital markets business. This means my role is really varied, and no one day is the exact same. I get to learn a lot about a wide range of areas. Some days I may be understanding the demographics of KiwiSaver investors, other days I may be learning about how an international investor receives their shares.

I have been lucky enough to work on a mixture of short-term incentives as well as large multi-team projects- both of which have been invaluable experiences so early on in my career.

What's your background?

I am a born and bred Wellingtonian, attending Wellington College and Victoria University. I initially studied actuarial science but changed to a Finance Honours and Economics conjoint degree. I chose these majors as I was interested in understanding how the financial system worked and how to manage risks in an ever-changing world.

During my final year of university, I applied for the NZX Graduate Programme. At that time, NZX was advertising for three graduate roles: two Capital Market Operations roles and a Capital Markets Development role. The graduate hiring process was unique to NZX, with a video submission accompanying the usual CV and cover letter. I was then invited to attend a graduate assessment day, where I was interviewed alongside other shortlisted candidates. This was a great opportunity to meet prospective co-workers at NZX and other graduates.

I was lucky enough to receive the Capital Markets Development graduate role. In my first year I was in the Markets Development team. This was an amazing opportunity to both understand how capital markets work in New Zealand, but also understand how the Exchange works from a commercial perspective. From here I was very interested in the products and services the Exchange offered Capital markets and in my second year I transitioned to the Product Team.

Could someone with a different background do your job?

Yes, 100% someone with a different background could do my job. Whilst experience in or around finance is helpful, my role is best suited to someone who is curious, eager to learn and loves to think critically and solve problems. 
NZX is an extremely diverse workplace, with many different backgrounds working at the Exchange. I’ve had the privilege of working with colleagues from many different professional backgrounds, ranging from IT to science to law and everything in between.

What's the coolest thing about your job?

The learning curve at NZX is steep, but it does reward people who are willing to learn and are curious. I have been fortunate enough to learn a lot of practical knowledge about how the financial system works in New Zealand and how a financial institution balances commercial and operational objectives. Something that was really pleasing was how forthcoming everyone at NZX was - no one is too busy to have a conversation with you and help you learn about their role. NZX also has a strong culture, with a large number of fun social events every month that bring everyone together outside of work, including an annual company quiz night.

What are the limitations of your job?

As I mentioned earlier, no day is the same in my role. If you prefer a structured routine where you do the same tasks at the same time daily, then my particular role might not be for you. The great part about NZX is that there are roles that are like this if you prefer.

3 pieces of advice for yourself when you were a student...

1. Try things outside of your comfort zone. University is a great time to try anything and learn about yourself. Being able to put yourself in situations that you find scary or are not that confident in is an invaluable skill in the workplace, and university is a time where you can try almost anything with relatively low stakes.
2. Maintain a study/life balance. Whilst grades are important, they are not the be-all and end-all for your career. Often your life experiences will complement your grades, so it is important to have a good balance between the two.
3. Don’t underestimate the power of making connections at university. You never know where your fellow students will end up - you may end up working with someone from your lecture or tutorial in your second job. So, it’s important to make connections with your fellow students while you have the chance.