The reinvention of this figure has made the banking sector no longer the only area of its activity. Right now, the job opportunities for a financial analyst are wide ranging from risk management to financial Big Data .
These changes leave many students in doubt about what he does and where he is most likely to work tomorrow.
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What is a financial analyst?
Basically he is in charge of examining financial data based on professional judgment. It uses the information and the conclusions it reaches to contribute to the good decision-making of companies, especially in the investment sector.
It establishes predictions about various types of sectors, businesses and industries based on the microeconomic and macroeconomic conditions of the moment.
It also establishes financial models that predict future economic conditions . To do this, taking into account a large number of variables is one of its priorities, so that it can recommend specific actions. For example, buying or selling shares in a company, considering its growth prospects or performance.
Sometimes companies hire external financial analysts to study the effectiveness of specific actions, such as a marketing campaign. Analysts should always keep up to date with current developments in the field in which they specialize. In addition, they establish where the strengths and weaknesses of a business organization and a line of business are . At the same time, they make profit and loss forecasts.
What is the profile of a financial analyst?
Unlike what happens with other professions, the financial analyst can be done with diverse university training. Although it is essential to have a degree, such as Economics Sciences (but also others, such as Mathematics), this training is consolidated with specialization.
In this sense, there are numerous master’s degrees that focus on specific aspects of financial analysis. They include a high degree of training in accounting and mathematics, and even biology and engineering .
Financial analysts are noted for their use of logic, their problem-solving skills, and their communication skills in the field of finance . His high capacity to collect data adds a special skill to analyze them.
One of the challenges that analysts face is the rapid pace of changes to which the financial sector is subjected, which forces them to continue training and to keep up-to-date with news of any kind that affect business at all times. your sector.
Being a financial analyst also means dealing with a significant amount of travel, as it is sometimes necessary to visit delegations and companies to see first-hand operations in the field.
Today’s financial analysts carry out their professional work in very diverse sectors and in many business areas. Companies that have one or a department of analysts can belong to very different fields, from pension funds to insurance companies, not to mention other fields such as construction or the technology industry, to give different examples.
These professionals are essential in companies that handle large amounts of assets , where they play a crucial role in gathering the information necessary to make decisions and develop new strategies.
