Technology is driving huge change in the finance industry, and as a result tech skills are in higher demand. Finance professionals should expect the explosive growth of financial technology to continue, and consider brushing up on their big data skills. However, as the economy continues to grow and the finance industry becomes more innovative in the way it’s doing business, there is also a high demand for core finance and accounting skills to keep the lights on.
LinkedIn Data Reveals The Most Promising Finance Jobs of 2017
Travel, work in a wide range of jobs and do further study. These are just some of the things you can do with an international business degree. This is a versatile degree in that you can pack your suitcase, take off and end up working literally anywhere in the world with it.
International Business graduates are hired by multinational corporations, businesses involved in import/export activities, government and public institutions, international non-governmental organisations – aid charities and environmental lobby groups – and they are also in demand in any entrepreneurial venture or for those in the start-up sector.
International business is highly impacted by two key issues – technology and the continued reach of globalisation. Further job-specific education, training or hands-on work experience will see career opportunities open up in accounting, finance, marketing, transportation and logistics, and IT and management information systems.
Five Top Jobs with an International Business Degree
1. International Accountant
Bean counters, number crunchers, they are called everything and anything but for any young person who finds accounting classes to your taste then you will do well if you pursue a career as an international accountant. Once you have your bachelor’s degree you +will need further studies in accounting but accountants work in every field from film production in Hollywood to professionals in international construction conglomerates. Accountants prepare and examine financial records, have tax law expertise, know about currency exchange rules as well as the regulatory systems of various countries’ laws.
2. Import/Export Compliance Specialist (Or Customs Compliance)
An International business graduate can work in a government or private sector role in customs and compliance. There are also roles as independent consultants to work for several companies in a particular field. A compliance specialist maintains import and export activities within the regulatory framework of domestic and international law. As trade laws change (GATT, CETA, TTIP etc) compliance specialists flag the changes that are needed to stay within the regulatory framwork. The most lucrative compliance jobs are often found at national or government level.
3. International Economist
Economists study markets, they analyse them, examine them for trends and make projections based on their findings. An international economist does this on a macro level for companies trading in international markets or those looking to enter them. These jobs are not for recent international business graduates but after some work experience and specific training graduates can work their work up to the position with a financial and/or marketing role within organisations.
4. Management Analyst
Management analysts are also referred to as consultants in the business world and they are required everywhere in nationally-based firms. The consultants analyse the whole company operations to look for efficiencies, to examine profit margins and study the company management structure. However, graduates with an International Business degree can scale this up by examining how the international segments of the company can be improved upon. This position often involves significant travel or living abroad for periods of time as consultants usually have to be on hand to investigate various segments of a company’s operations in order to analyse its functions.
5. International Banking
Business graduates with an interest in the banking sector have a far greater choice of career once they have that all-important international string to their bow. They can work at a local bank with foreign account sections or at foreign-owned banks that do business in your country or countries with your linguistic skills. Once you’re a degree holder you will have several different options open to you from finance to banking to financial consulting. Many of these jobs need advanced degrees or specialisations which are only obtainable and promise lucrative future rewards once you have that important first step – an international business degree.
LinkedIn data on the most promising jobs in finance in 2017
Recruitment firm LinkedIn this month (Feb 2017) released data on the most promising jobs in finance in 2017. The social networking jobs service said technology is changing the face of the finance and business sector. No matter what though traditional skills are still in demand and it said finance professionals “should expect the explosive growth of financial technology to continue, and consider brushing up on their data skills”.
To create this list of the Most Promising Finance Jobs of 2017, we evaluated the jobs in the finance industry with high median salaries, healthy job openings and year-over-year growth, and the jobs most likely to lead to a promotion or advancement within an organization. Topping the list is Financial Analyst with high potential for advancement. Read on to learn more about this year’s most promising careers in finance.
| Job | Median Base Salary |
Job Openings | Career Advancement Score (out of 10) |
Top Skills |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Financial Analyst | $62,000 | 1,700+ | 10.0 | Financial Analysis, Financial Reporting, Accounting, Microsoft Excel, Financial Modeling |
| 2. Underwriting Manager | $102,000 | 100+ | 6.0 | Underwriting, General Insurance, Commercial Insurance, Property & Casual Insurance, Liability |
| 3. Quantitative Analyst | $105,000 | 200+ | 6.0 | Quantitative Finance, Derivatives, Visual Basic for Applications, Quantitative Analytics, Matlab |
| 4. Scrum Master | $100,000 | 500+ | 10.0 | Scrum, Agile Methodologies, Agile Project Management, Software Development, Requirements |
| 5. Data Analyst | $63,000 | 1,000+ | 9.0 | SQL, SAS, Statistics, Databases, Microsoft Excel, Data Mining |
| 6. Product Manager | $99,000 | 500+ | 8.0 | Product Management, Product Marketing, Product Development, Competitive Analysis, Product Launch |
| 7. Credit Analyst | $52,500 | 400+ | 10.0 | Financial Analysis, Credit Risk, Credit, Banking, Loans |
| 8. Software Engineer | $87,000 | 2,000+ | 5.0 | Java, C++, SQL, HTML, Linux |
| 9. Risk Analyst | $65,000 | 300+ | 10.0 | Risk Management, Financial Risk, Financial Analysis, Credit Risk, Banking |
| 10. Business Analyst | $68,300 | 1,600+ | 8.0 | Requirements Analysis, Requirements Gathering, Business Requirements, Software Development Life Cycle, Business Process Improvement |
Source: https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/blog/most-promising-jobs-in-finance
As you can see the higher the level of degree you hold the higher your earnings are: A bachelor’s degree in business can add $2,000 to $5,000 or more per year in earning potential, while a masters can add yet another $7,000 to $11,000, though many MBAs start out in higher-level management jobs with more responsibility, and consequently earn a larger salary that may include a bonus package. While job growth depends on the area of business in which you choose to work, the prospects for success in international business grow as the world shrinks due to technology.
Author: Mary O’Carroll
