George Smart's Placement Year at Walker Crips

6 February 2023

George Smart, Trainee Wealth Adviser

We recently caught up with George Smart about his internship placement at Walker Crips Wealth Management. George shared some insight into the lessons he has learned and discussed how this experience is shaping his approach to work and helping him achieve his career aspirations. 

Tell us a bit about yourself and your role.

My name is George and I’m 20 years old. I’m originally from Nottingham, but I have lived in York for the past few years whilst studying at the University of York. I have been working at Walker Crips for 6 months now on the trainee adviser placement year.

What are you currently studying and what made you decide to do a placement year?

I have always wanted to complete a placement year as part of my degree in order to gain some practical experience, using the skills that I have developed throughout my degree, in a working environment. Although my degree involves some financial modules, it is quite often theoretical, therefore I have enjoyed using skills such as problem solving and analytical skills in my role at Walker Crips. These, as well as being able to prioritise and communicate effectively, are not only useful as part of my internship but also extremely important to become a successful adviser in the future.

What were the most important factors for you when selecting an internship?

There were a lot of important factors that I considered when choosing the right internship for me. After previously completing a placement week in wealth management, I was extremely interested in finding an internship in this sector to further understand the role of an adviser, and all aspects of the financial planning process. Walker Crips Wealth Management are also independent financial advisers, which means rather than being tied to a single product provider, we have the freedom to consider a wide range of offerings in the market when making recommendations. This allows us to focus on providing a personalised service and offer the best advice based on the client’s individual needs.

Which internship programme are you doing at Walker Crips?

My role as a wealth management trainee adviser involves working closely with one of our advisers, Scott Palmer, assisting with administrative tasks and gaining an insight into life as an adviser. The admin side of the role includes ensuring the back-office systems are up to date, preparing the documentation needed for annual reviews, carrying out ad hoc client requests and much more. As part of my adviser training, I have also been involved in client meetings, networking events, investment and product research, and cash flow forecasting.

What made you decide to do an internship at Walker Crips?

One of the main reasons I chose to do this internship with Walker Crips was because of the emphasis the company places on employee development. There is a clear plan for progression with the adviser trainee program, with experience through the administration and paraplanning departments to allow for a complete understanding of the workflow channels and how the different departments work effectively together to offer the best service to clients. 

What have been some of the highlights and challenges of your internship so far?

At the beginning of my internship, I was introduced to the processes and systems within the company, as well as how the wealth management, investment management and pension divisions work closely together to provide a wide range of products and services to clients. I initially found the first few weeks quite difficult as it was all relatively new for me, but I have really enjoyed my time at Walker Crips so far and now have a good understanding of the systems and processes in place, as well as continually learning and developing my technical and product knowledge. I have also particularly enjoyed being involved in client meetings and understanding the importance of developing good relationships with clients, with strong trust coming at the forefront of this.

What skills do you hope to develop as a result of your internship?

I feel as though I have already developed many skills during my first few months at Walker Crips, including attention to detail, efficiency, and prioritising and organising my workload to meet deadlines. These skills are all really important for my role to ensure the implementation of recommendations is carried out accurately and in a time-efficient manner.

Going forward, I hope to further develop my product knowledge and technical understanding, as this is pivotal for advisers in order to make suitable recommendations to clients based on their individual needs, objectives and risk appetite. This is also really important when explaining recommendations clearly to clients based on their knowledge and understanding.

What are your plans after completing your internship?

After finishing my internship, I will go back to university to complete my final year of my Maths degree. After that, I aim to continue to work in financial planning and complete the exams required to become an adviser.