Consultant of the Month – July 2018

Each month, talented FDM consultants are recognised on-site for going above and beyond in their roles. Congratulations to the June Consultant of the Month winners! Could it be you next month?

Brandon Davis (US)

Software Engineer, Lord Abbett

Penn State University: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science

I began my journey with FDM in September  2017 to further  develop my skills and start my career as a developer in the financial sector. The connections I’ve made through FDM are simply invaluable and FDM’s Java program ensures success. After completing my training, I was placed with Lord Abbett and the experience has been very positive right from the start.  I am constantly being encouraged to try new technologies  to keep up to date with the software today, FDM’s culture is professional and motivating, and I have already recommended FDM to others. I really enjoy FDM’s  sense of community and support from fellow FDMers. I would like to thank FDM for this incredible award, along with those who nominated and believed in me. I’m honored to receive this recognition for my hard work and dedication. I will continue to work hard and do the absolute best work that I can do.

Heather Montgomery (UK)

Developer, Clydesdale Bank

University of Dundee: BA in Mathematics

I joined FDM in 2017 and secured a place at Clydesdale Bank before I finished my training. Being on-site  with Clydesdale Bank has been incredible. It’s really fulfilling to feel like I’m making a difference with my work. I’d like to thank my team at Clydesdale Bank not only for nominating me, but for providing me with the support and guidance that has led me to achieving this award. I’d also like to thank the team at the Glasgow Academy for supporting me since day one. After working in education for two years, I decided to look for a new career path. I had never considered a career in IT, mostly because I wasn’t sure I had to right skills to purse one. After speaking with a member of the recruitment team, I was surprised by the number of consultants who train with FDM that don’t have traditional IT degrees. For those who are already interested in a career in IT, I would definitely recommend FDM. The training will help you to further your passion and stand out to an unrivalled list of clients.

Akrem Latiwesh (CA)

Software Developer, RBC

Concordia University: Master of Applied Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering

A year and a half ago, I joined FDM as there was the opportunity to gain invaluable experiences. One of the best things about FDM is the continued support whilst we are on-site. All of the events and activities that FDM puts together to unite consultants so they can share their success stories is a big plus. My favourite event has been the summer consultant boat party, and I’m looking forward to this year’s party in Casa Loma. I would recommend FDM to others because it is a place where they can learn and succeed by building valuable professional experiences that will open doors for them. I was able to do this in my experience with RBC, which has been amazing. I’ve been placed in a challenging role that allows me to develop my problem solving and coding skills while learning new technologies, especially in Big Data. I would like to thank my managers at RBC for nominating me, it means a lot after all my hard work.

Daanesh Iqbal (UK)

Cybersecurity and Data Protection Consultant, Cordium

University of Greenwich: BA in International business

During my time at Cordium, I have been the main lead of the GDPR implementation project for over 60 clients. With this number of clients spread across the globe I have to manage my time accordingly in order to meet deadlines. The whole experience has been very rewarding. With each project I have learned something new and further developed the way I work. I would like to thank the trainers who spent the time and effort to help me learn and develop skills. I joined FDM because of the tailored training with both theory and practice before being placed on-site with clients. The best thing about FDM has to be being exposed to a network of individuals who are working in different areas and industries. This allows me to learn new skills, discuss experiences and expand my knowledge. FDM helps to transfer your current skills and develops them in order to build a career in IT. They have a pathway for everyone.

Ilya Bezgoubov (SGP)

QA Tester, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group

University College Dublin: BS in Finance

Prior to joining FDM I had very little experience in IT. I am now a third year consultant working in a very demanding front office environment where I constantly apply many of the technical skills that I’ve picked up from my FDM training. Like the real world, the opportunities at FDM are always evolving; I first started out as a production support analyst, and now I am working as a quality assurance tester for front-end pricing systems. This new role puts me right in the middle of the Agile software development framework. Every sprint presents a unique challenge and opportunity to pick up a new skill. Luckily, I am not alone as I work with two other FDM consultants on site. The strong collaborative culture that FDM teaches really shows in the workplace, as fellow consultants always put in extra effort to help each other out.

Paul Summersall (UK)

Data Analyst, St. James’s Place Wealth Management

Durham University: MA in Mathematics

Since being placed with SJP last year, everyone has been supportive in helping me settle in and bringing me up to speed. I’ve learned so much in my current role, particularly improving my knowledge of SQL and databases. After graduating university, I started looking for jobs that involved working with data. While researching, I thought the way that FDM uses their contacts to place consultants in top companies would be a great way for me to get the experience I needed to start my career. It was the Business Intelligence stream in particular that caught my eye and it certainly lived up to expectations. The training was very interesting and has come in handy in my current roleand hopefully beyond! I’m still in touch with my Business Intelligence training group and we recently caught up at the Summer Consultant Party. I always try to give my best, and I’m very grateful to my manager at SJP and to FDM for the Consultant of the Month award. For those like me, who have a degree but no prior IT experience, I would definitely recommend FDM’s careers programme. I may not have ended up where I am now if not for FDM.

Client responses:

Daanesh’s ability to absorb knowledge is excellent. He is the only member of my staff based in the UK, while the rest of the team is based in New York, requiring Daanesh to be a self-starter. A lot of the work Daanesh is doing requires an extra focus on being creative and thinking through various methods and approaches. Daanesh has helped, and led, in many cases, the development of client materials, which are critical accelerators for a successful consulting practice. Additionally, Daanesh is having a direct impact on revenue via positive client feedback. Daanesh has put my view of FDM in the highest tier. It’s obvious Daanesh has received excellent training. I’m continually getting positive feedback and compliments from my colleagues on Daanesh. He is the ultimate professional and far beyond his years from a professional development standpoint.

– Managing Director at Cordium

Shortly after joining SJP, Paul has taken the lead role in supporting our Investor Performance (CSIP) system. Paul was able to fully integrate himself into all aspects of the team’s work. The maturity, commitment and management ability Paul has shown is more akin to what we would expect from someone who has been working in the business for over ten years. It is great to see that FDM is not just churning out graduates with some additional business training, but are clearly ensuring that their consultants go the extra mile and do all they can to impress. FDM’s business model of providing highly intelligent and flexible graduates with additional business training and subsequent support is an ideal way of introducing new talent to any business.

– Head of Data Operations at St. James’s Place Wealth Management

Akrem has been involved in a major initiative that is currently under development to convert an application platform (OTIS) into the Hadoop Enterprise Data Lake. He has gone above and beyond to help the team to achieve this milestone. He has worked tirelessly during this period, voluntarily working extra hours and weekends. He demonstrates the ability to come up with independent ideas and works effectively within a global team to rapidly implement solutions and deliver production quality applications. Akrem shows great commitment and professionalism to his work. He is well trained and possesses in depth knowledge on his subjects. He can clearly communicate and works well within the team but works equally well as a single contributor. FDM does a good job of training their resources to be ready for the real world. Akrem is one of four FDM resources that we have now recruited for our team. We’ve seen massive success via the FDM junior resource. The resources coming out of this programme are extremely skillful and are committed to their profession. We are looking forward to working with FDM in the future.

-Development Lead at RBC