When Joseph McDonagh joined our Finance Graduate Scheme after completing a master's degree in maths, he was looking for an opportunity to explore different areas of finance while developing his skills and experience. What appealed to him was the structure of the programme, the support available and the chance to discover which direction he wanted his career to take. Three years and several different roles later, Joseph has completed his professional qualifications and progressed into a permanent position as Procurement Finance Manager.
Our three-year Finance Graduate Scheme gives graduates the opportunity to work across different areas of the business, with a new rotation each year. Joseph started as an Operations Finance Analyst, before moving into Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) and then Accounting & Controls. Each rotation brought new challenges, different teams and greater responsibility.
“More responsibility, new skills, new stakeholders,” he says, describing how the programme helped him develop “without feeling like I’d been dropped in the deep end”. The experience also gave him a broader understanding of how finance supports different parts of the business.
Alongside gaining practical experience, Joseph worked towards his professional accountancy qualifications. Balancing exams with a full-time role was one of the biggest challenges of the programme, but funded exams, study leave and regular check-ins from the Early Careers team helped him manage both. “That support made a huge difference,” he says. Joseph also valued being part of a graduate cohort, with opportunities to meet regularly, share experiences and learn from others going through the same journey.
“It was really reassuring,” he says. “You realise everyone’s feeling the same way.” Support from his managers made a difference too, particularly one who had previously completed the graduate scheme herself and understood the challenges of moving between roles.
As Joseph progressed through the programme, he had opportunities to contribute to significant projects across the business. During his Accounting & Controls rotation, he supported a major programme to change how the supply chain operated, helping teams understand new processes and ways of working. “We were reworking processes from the ground up,” he says. It was challenging work, but gave Joseph valuable experience of managing change and working with different stakeholders. “It was a big challenge, but in a good way.”
After completing the graduate scheme, Joseph moved into a permanent Finance Manager role, taking on greater responsibility and putting the experience he'd gained across his rotations into practice. He has since moved into his current role as Procurement Finance Manager. Looking back, Joseph values having had the opportunity to explore different areas of finance before deciding where to take his career. “I’m glad I didn’t go straight into one fixed role,” he says. “Being able to try different areas helped me work out what I enjoy, what I’m good at, and where I want to head next.”