Giacomo G.
About me
| Giacomo G. | |
| Politics | |
| Politics with International Relations | |
| Research Postgraduate | |
| James | |
| 2016 | |
| Italy |
My employment
| Customer Success Manager, Nordics and UK | |
| Seerist | |
| United Kingdom | |
| Politics and public affairs | |
| Medium-size business (50-249 employees) | |
| 2018 |
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A day in the life of a Customer Success Manager, Nordics and UK in the United Kingdom
Over my years at York, I realized that I was interested in security studies and in particular, counter-terrorism.
Briefly describe the organisation you work for
I work for a specialist risk consultancy that helps clients operate safely, resiliently and compliantly around the world in complex environments. We provide a range of consulting services, including critical incident resolution, political risk analysis, crisis management, security consulting and due diligence and business intelligence.
What do you do?
I help manage project delivery and client relationships. I regularly speak to clients across a range of sectors to understand their problems and advise on how best to resolve issues and challenges.
Reflecting upon your past employment and education, what led you to your current career choice?
My interest in politics and international relations grew during my undergraduate studies. Over my years at York, I realized that I was interested in security studies and in particular, counter-terrorism. Following my undergraduate studies, I undertook postgraduate studies at the Jill Dando Institute, UCL in Countering Terrorism and Organized Crime.
Is your current job sector different from what you thought you would enter when you graduated?
No, I planned to work in risk management and throughout my early career, focused on gaining the relevant experience to successfully apply for a position in industry.
Describe your most memorable day at work
My most memorable day was participating in our hostile environment training course. As part of the course, we were taught how to respond to a kidnap for ransom situation and was held 'hostage' for several hours in rural Wales!
Are there any challenges associated with your job?
Some of the key challenges with my role are coordinating complex projects and ensuring successful delivery, managing client expectations and conducting commercial negotiations with clients.
What’s your work environment and culture like?
I really enjoy our work environment and culture. Pre-COVID I traveled frequently to visit clients and cannot wait to resume travel. Generally, my firm places high importance and value in being face-to-face with clients.
Our office culture used to be fairly corporate, in that we were expected to look presentable for clients, which are usually large multinational firms and governments. That said, COVID has changed this expectation too, and it is likely that with flexible working, we will be given more options.
On that note, my firm used to expect employees to be in the office throughout the week, unless one was traveling or meeting with clients. Again, with COVID this has completely changed and it has become clear that we can work successfully from home. This is likely to continue going forward, thankfully!
Given the breadth of diverse expertise, I find that I am constantly learning from my colleagues, who are incredibly open to sharing their knowledge and advice. Listening to our experts present to clients remains one of my favorite parts of working for Control Risks.
What extracurricular activities did you undertake at university and what transferable skills did you develop through these?
During my time at York I was part of the debating society, which helped strengthen my public speaking skills. I also worked on a project for YCC in my final year, which was my first experience with consulting. Through YCC I started thinking about consulting and how to support client requests/projects.
Through both experiences, I improved my team work and communication skills.
What top tips do you have for York students preparing for today’s job market and life after graduation?
I think that entering the job market is always challenging, and this has certainly not been made any easier by COVID. I wish that when I was looking for a job, someone had advised me on how to lay out my objectives in terms of industry and role, explained how to gain the relevant and necessary experience and then translate all of that into a concrete plan, with enough flexibility to account for unexpected changes.
Next steps...
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