ELITE Newsletter. Experienced Learning Initiative Towards Excellence. City University of Hong Kong December 2005 Issue 5 SUCCESSFUL

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1 City University of Hong Kong December 2005 Issue 5 ELITE Newsletter TORY - Mr. Zero Ma Read what Zero has to say about Hang Seng Bank (Personal Banking Manager) and Bank of China (Officer Trainee) INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME Merrill Lynch Rothschild United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Amrop Hever Artificial Life Inc Artistic Choice Enterprise (Asia) Ltd Bloomberg L P Cascade Ltd Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd Citigroup Fire Services Department, HKSAR Fortis Bank Hong Kong Police Force Hong Kong Trade Development Council ING Life Insurance Company (Bermuda) Ltd Jones Lang LaSalle Kerry Properties (HK) Ltd Ma Belle Jewellery Company Ltd Macquarie Goodman (Hong Kong) Ltd NWS Holdings Ltd The Hong Kong Jockey Club

2 Page 1 TORY - Mr. Zero Ma * This interview was conducted in November 2005 University Education Major: BBA (Hons) Quantitative Analysis for Business (QAB), 2004 Minor: Finance Employment History Personal Banking Manager, Retail Banking, Hang Seng Bank Ltd - Present Officer Trainee, Bank of China (HK) Ltd Would you tell us the job duties involved in your position at Hang Seng Bank Ltd? I have been promoting various retail banking products including mortgages, personal loans, insurances and mutual funds to potential branch customers. Also, I have been participating in relevant marketing activities to solicit new business for our bank. I held a similar role when I was in Bank of China. Does your company provide any training before/after your employment? I had a 1-month training after my employment and during which I learned the basics and codes of the bank operations. In addition, as Hang Seng focuses heavily on the quality of services, I was taught some useful service and selling skills as well during the training period. What do you find most enjoyable about your work? I enjoy the time of cooperating with my colleagues. Although we usually need to meet tight deadlines, we always have team spirit. Every time when we get the jobs done every one of us feel the sense of satisfactions, which is the most enjoyable thing in my work. The ample supports and trainings provided by Hang Seng are worth mentioning too because these supplements can help enrich my banking knowledge, which will certainly do me good in my future career. What is the career path in your bank? Personal Banking Manager Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) Internal Departmental Transfer CRM: Focuses on bigger clients whose assets value are more then $1 million. Internal Department Transfer: We can switch to any department we like, e.g. back office (research on investment products), private banking (deal with even bigger clients whose assets value are more than $10 million). Is the Management Sciences knowledge fitting in your position? In Finance / Banking, proficiency in Microsoft Excel is a MUST because we usually have to deal with data and records. I was lucky because MS Department taught us a lot about the applications of Excel. I am sure every MS graduate will have the competitive edge of using Excel well in every workplace. How should we plan our career? By knowing what industry you would like to be in, you can start planning your career by searching information (recent news, job postings) on the industry you like. Also, consulting alumni and staff would be a good way too. Did you join any workshops or trainings of job searching skills in CityU? 1. SDS workshops for job interview. 2. Alumni mock interview organized by our department What did you do at university to make you competitive in the job market? At my final year in CityU, I completed most of the professional examinations, which are commonly required for working as frontline officers in local banks. These exams included HKSI (Paper 1, 7 & 8), IIQE (Paper 1, 2, 4 & 5) and MPF exam. By doing so, when I had the chance of interview, the interviewer was impressed by my effort of accomplishing those professional qualifications. At least I showed the interviewer I had the determinations of going into the Finance field.

3 Page 2 TORY - Mr. Zero Ma (continued continued) What were the selection processes? Usually for most of the trainee programs, like BOC one, there were a written test, an aptitude test, a group interview and finally, an individual interview. The interviews were conducted in English, Cantonese and Mandarin. Written Test (English, Mathematics) Aptitude Test Group interview (current issues discussion, e.g. a debate in HS interview) Individual interview (common sense, current issues questions, usually not related to the job position) What are your secrets for passing the screening and interviews? Practise more on the internet. Try to make as many job applications as you can, regardless of job industries. The more experience you gain from interviews, the higher the chance you will succeed. What advice do you have for students who wish to apply for such a position? If you are interested in Finance / Banking (frontline positions) after graduation, you should try to sit for some of the professional exams. As for the Back-office positions, you do not need to take any professional exams. However, normally it takes longer time for promotions when you are in back office. By what means did you get awareness of the job openings? My first job (BOC Officer Trainee): JIJIS My current job (HS Personal Banking Manager): Careertimes, Jobsdb How many job applications did you make? And why did you apply for this job? I made 5-6 job applications during my final year; two of them were banking-related. I have long been thinking to develop myself in Finance stream in my career. And I can learn a lot from the many diversified businesses in banks, so I see banks as my first stop to kick start my career. Is it necessary to study the company's literature beforehand? Definitely! Although you may not be able to have any chances to talk about the company during the interviews, it is always good to mention anything about the company in an intelligent way. This can build a good impression to the interviewer and let the interviewer feel you are well-prepared beforehand. Are there any tips in writing a competitive CV/cover letter? Start working on your CV and cover letter sooner rather than later. Keep polishing your CV and cover letter on an ongoing basis. Try to make an all-around CV (balancing your various skills and abilities). Take the CV / cover letter in the MS website as samples. Were there any challenging questions in your job interviews? What were they and how did you answer them? At one time, I was asked to talk about one of my unforgettable experiences. I took one example of organizing activities in my mentor experience. The trick here was Tell the truth ; do not even think you can fabricate things. The interviewer can easily trace your source by getting into details with your experience. On the other hand, try to anticipate and prepare the hottest questions (e.g. self-introduction, self strengths / weaknesses) to be asked in the interviews. Advice for students Start your job hunt earlier. Keep trying different job applications; do not give up when you did not receive any response. Prepare your CV / cover letter as well as you could. Consult alumni about the techniques in job interviews in their industries.

4 Page 3 INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME For the job details, please go to login & select Internship and Summer Job. Rothschild Long-term Internship and Summer Internship Merrill Lynch Summer Interns for Global Markets Summer Interns for Investment Banking Summer Interns for Research Divisions United Nations Economic Commission for Europe UNECE Internship Programme INT December 2005 INT January 2006 INT0104 For the job details, please go to login & select Job Posting. Bloomberg L.P. Global Data Corporate Actions Data Analyst Entry-Level Financial Training Program Supply Chain - Junior Buyer Global Customer Support Representative Amrop Hever Research Associates LNK0895 LNK0865 LNK0864 LNK0863 LNK0913 Kerry Properties (HK) Ltd Customer Service Officer LNK0911 Jones Lang LaSalle Graduate Recruitment Programme LNK0898

5 Page 4 (CONTINUED) Citigroup Management Associate (General) - Corporate Banking Management Associate Program Finance Management Associate Program Operations Management Associate Program LNK0915 LNK0908 LNK0907 Artistic Choice Enterprise (Asia) Ltd Management Trainee 18 December 2005 LNK0912 The Hong Kong Jockey Club Membership Management Trainee 22 December 2005 LNK0919 Cascade Ltd Graduate Trainees 22 December 2005 LNK0914 Ma Belle Jewellery Company Ltd Management Trainee - Retail Operations 30 December 2005 LNK0924 Fortis Bank The Merchant Banking Associate Programme 31 December 2005 LNK0920 NWS Holdings Ltd Management Trainee Programme 31 December 2005 LNK0896 Macquarie Goodman (Hong Kong) Ltd Property Analyst 1 January 2006 LNK0923 ING Life Insurance Company (Bermuda) Ltd Actuarial Assistant 5 January 2006 LNK0922 Artificial Life Inc Sales & Marketing Management Trainee 5 January 2006 LNK0921 Hong Kong Trade Development Council Executive Trainee 31 January 2006 LNK0925 Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd Flight Attendant Cadet Pilot Programme Customer Services Officer Hong Kong Police Force Police Inspector Police Constable Fire Services Department, HKSAR Ambulanceman/Ambulancewoman Senior Fireman/Firewoman (Control) Ambulance Officer Station Officer (Operational) LNK0862 LNK0861 LNK0860 LNK0840 LNK0839 LNK0875 LNK0873 LNK0872 LNK0871