Meet Stephanie

2019 Personal Banking Graduate – Melbourne

What did you study & where?

I studied a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Melbourne, majoring in Finance and Marketing.

What drew you to the NAB Graduate program?

After working as a bank teller while I was at university, I knew I was interested in banking and wanted to get a better understanding of what went on behind the scenes in a Head Office. I’d heard great things about NAB through school and university friends who already worked here, and I was drawn to the longer rotations – when I applied, there were 2 x rotations for about 8 months each.

How did you decide which stream to apply for?

To be completely honest, I found it really tricky to decipher what sort of work each stream would entail. I was interested in the broadness and customer-focus of the Personal Banking stream (at the time called ‘Customer Products & Services’) but my decision making was largely a process of elimination.

Can you tell us about the teams that you completed your rotations in?

My two rotations were in Digital Sales and Home Lending Product. My second rotation in Product gave me great exposure to one of the important ways the bank functions and makes money – using deposits to fund lending. However, my time in Digital Sales was a standout first experience at NAB, so I was thrilled to roll off into an analyst role in the team.

What role are you in now?

I’m now a Senior Consultant in the Digital Sales team, leading the website strategy for consumer sales experiences. Since being a grad in the team, I’ve been involved in a wide variety of work – leading different product portfolios, contributing to the Group Strategy refresh a few years ago, and getting to work on something I am personally passionate about - young people’s financial health and literacy.

What advice do you have for the next graduates on how to make the most of their graduate program?

Be curious, ask lots of question and don’t be afraid to not know the answer. Chances are, your university degree didn’t cover much of the content you’ll experience once you start work, so it’s okay not to know!

Is there anything that you would like to add?

NAB has a great volunteering program and I was lucky enough to participate in a Community Strategy Challenge with our now-strategic partner, Girls on Fire. We worked with the inimitable Bronnie Mackintosh to develop a 3-year strategy and 12-month implementation plan to help set her not-for-profit up for sustainable growth. As part of that experience, I got to attend one of girls’ fire camps in Tamworth with another volunteering participant and ex-grad, Spencer. It was an incredible experience to see Bronnie’s vision brought to life and made me proud to work at a company that supports the empowerment of young women and commitment to supporting communities withstand and recover from natural disasters. Photos included below:

Meet Michael

2021 Design Graduate – Melbourne

What did you study & where?

I studied a Bachelor of Design (Digital Media) at RMIT.

What drew you to the NAB Graduate program?

Through a program at Uni I did an internship at NAB. What drew me to apply for the program from there was the people and the work. I worked with a great team and even as an intern I was given meaningful and interesting work.

What was the highlight of your graduate experience?

The highlight was getting to work in an amazing and supportive team that took time out of their busy schedules to guide and support me in the work. Along that the friends and connections, I have made in the grad program. I still catch up with the other grad in my cohort and you end up knowing people all around the bank which is always useful.

Was there anything about that graduate program that exceeded your expectations?

The work that I got to do. I was getting to work on real life problems and deliver real things for customers. I never felt like a grad rather just a member of the team that got to do the same quality of work as everyone else.

Can you tell us about the teams that you completed your rotations in?

I completed my two rotations in the Digital accessibility team and Digital Design delivery team (neither of these teams exist in the same capacity as they did before) In both teams, the main goal was to make the best and most accessibility customer experience for both our customers and colleagues.

What role are you in now?

My current role is Senior Product Designer working on Project Edge

How do you feel the graduate program has set you up for your current role / career at NAB?

Set me up with the confidence and the skills to progress in my career at NAB.

What advice do you have for the next graduates on how to make the most of their graduate program?

Just enjoy the experience for what it is. Ask all the questions and put yourself out there. Use the time as a grad to go talk to every and get involved in as many things as you want to. Everyone at NAB is so open to help grads and take the time to chat so utilise that.

You also completed the NAB Summer Internship. How did you find your internship?

I was lucky enough to intern and do my rotations in the same team. So, I found that the grad experience for me was just a continuation of that internship. Even as an intern I was working on solving real customer problems.

Meet Anneka

2022 Data Analytics Graduate – Melbourne

What did you study & where?

I studied Business Information Systems and Psychology at the University of Queensland.

What drew you to the NAB Graduate program?

There were a couple of things that drew me to the program. Firstly, the ability to do different rotations. When comparing to other graduate programs where I needed to know exactly what I was interested in beforehand, it was nice to know that I could learn the ropes in multiple areas before rolling off somewhere I enjoyed. Secondly, the comfort of working at an organisation that I was intimately aware of the product as banking is something we use every day so knew I didn’t need to learn much to understand how to make an impact.

How did you decide which stream to apply for?

I had studied a bit of data analytics in university and really enjoyed it, but wanted to get more hands on experience, especially in a more technical capacity. I was interested in a few streams, but I think data analytics felt like the right place to start my career, because it might be harder to come back to if I didn’t have those foundation skills.

What was the highlight of your graduate experience?

Definitely the cohort in the grad program alongside me. I’ve made some lifelong friends as part of the grad experience and still regularly see them to play netball and catch up socially. It’s really unique to have work colleagues that you never work directly with that are experiencing something really similar to you and to have connections in so many places around such a large organisation.

Was there anything about that graduate program that exceeded your expectations?

My secondment definitely exceeded my expectations. It was so different to what I was doing as it was events and learning focused, rather than data analytics, but I enjoyed it so much that it led me to seeking roll off positions in Digital/strategy to have more of this project management lens in my work.

Can you tell us about the teams that you completed your rotations in?

First rotation: Reconciliation and Value Control, Second rotation: Group Security, Analytics and Insights & Secondment: Data and Analytics Guild

What role are you in now?

Analyst, Digital Notifications in Personal Everyday Banking

How do you feel the graduate program has set you up for your current role / career at NAB?

It has given me a really great understanding of the business, as I had the opportunity to learn from my rotations, colleagues, peers and the grad program itself. I have more awareness of so much going on around NAB because I helped contribute to so many projects through my time in different teams. It helps me with my current role because I sometimes have a lot more context than other people.

What advice do you have for the next graduates on how to make the most of their graduate program?

It’s a time of discovery in the grad program – time to discover what full time work is like, time to discover what elements of work you enjoy and don’t, time to discover what is important to you in a team. It’s such a perfect time to change teams, figure out your passions and find your place at NAB/in your career. If you’re not enjoying something, find another team that you will. The flexibility in the grad program is there so that you can be set up for success. And don’t be afraid to roll off into a completely different area of the bank – we’re all NAB, finding your fit is the most important goal.

Is there anything that you would like to add ?

Get involved in the social parts with your grad cohort! We formed a netball team and are now 7 seasons in a row still playing. We did winery tours, trivia nights and many lunches/dinners. It’s a really fun program to be a part of.

Meet Max

2022 Corporate & Institutional Banking Graduate – Melbourne

What did you study & where?

Bachelor of Commerce at The University of Melbourne, majoring in Economics and Finance.

What drew you to the NAB Graduate program?

I was working at NAB while studying, assisting clients with their Home Lending needs in NAB’s Personal Bank. In my final year of study, I started exploring options post-degree. For me it was a choice between taking the next step within NAB (likely to a Business Banking role of some sort) or doing the Graduate Program. Ultimately, I was drawn to the breadth of experience that the grad program offered, especially so early in my career. I realised that I couldn’t clearly picture where I wanted to be in my career in 3-5 years and for that reason saw a lot of benefit in a program that lets you rotate across teams and see far more than you would in any other role.

How did you decide which stream to apply for?

I spoke with mentors, predominantly my Personal Bank people leader at the time, about what the program looked like and what each stream offered. They told me about what each frontline division offered (PB, BPB, CIB) along with the roles in enabling functions (Finance, Strategy, Tech etc.). Given my educational background and experience with and passion for clients, I was recommended the CIB stream.

What was the highlight of your graduate experience?

The freedom to decide what you do and who you meet was my highlight. The program allowed me to undertake a secondment as well as engage in the graduate-led committee and other opportunities. I found that people I worked with, even those much more senior to me, often made themselves very available to catch up and share their advice and career reflections. Learnings from these catch-ups still guide my career decision making today. Overall, the program was what I chose to make of it.

Was there anything about that graduate program that exceeded your expectations?

The social side of the program exceeded my expectations. I still keep in touch with many grads from my cohort, regularly seeing them outside of work hours and we’ve continued the netball team we established during the program into our 7th or 8th season now.

Can you tell us about the teams that you completed your rotations in?

I rotated in Corporate Finance (Corporate Property CME) and Markets (Structured Products & Advisory). I also undertook secondments in Energy & Utilities CME and Group Development.

What role are you in now?

Climate Strategy

How do you feel the graduate program has set you up for your current role / career at NAB?

The grad program highlighted which skills came naturally to me and which ones didn’t. Equally, it showed me which areas I wanted to develop further. Unlike a lot of my peers, I didn’t end up in a team that I rotated in, but I feel that my secondments shaped the decision. I found a passion for climate and sustainability work while seconding in the Energy & Utilities CME team and also enjoyed the strategy and consulting skillset offered in Group Development. I feel that the role I ended up in combines these passions, both of which I didn’t completely know I had prior to the program.

What advice do you have for the next graduates on how to make the most of their graduate program?

Speak to a lot of people. Look at the org chart and find teams that sound interesting, find names of people in the teams and send an email. Some people won’t get back to you but the ones that do will be worth it. Also, treat all roles and experiences, good and bad, as a positive or learning opportunity. Finding out what you don’t enjoy or don’t want to pursue is equally valuable as finding out what you do. It’s the best time in your career to try something and find out it’s not for you.

You were the Treasurer on the 2022 Grad Committee. Could you tell us about why you applied for this position and also how this complemented your graduate program?

I applied for this position as I saw it as an opportunity to build on my leadership abilities while also being very involved in each of the initiatives ran by the grad committee. The Treasurer is responsible for managing the graduate bank accounts (collecting money from grads and making payments), preparing meeting materials, and working with the Chairs of the committee to run meetings and assist sub-committees with their initiatives. This role improved my organisation, leadership, and presentation skills but the biggest way it complemented my graduate program was by establishing a strong network of peers with whom I was able to work with.

You were also successful in being appointed The Banking & Financial Services Oath ambassador. Can you please tell us about your role as ambassador and what you learnt from this experience.

The Banking and Financial Services Oath (BFSO) is an initiative that seeks to strengthen the ethical standards of financial services through the empowerment of individuals making a personal commitment of integrity.
As an ambassador, I worked with my fellow ambassadors, who were also young people early in their banking and finance careers from a range of institutions, on a project designed to increase the ethical standards of our industry. For us, that was to create a series of videos showcasing the lived experiences of indigenous people, migrant Australians, and young women in navigating the Australian financial sector. These videos were rolled out into training programs across industry.

On a personal level, it was fantastic to build a network of likeminded individuals from other parts of the industry, enabling me to broaden my view of how banks and other financial services work together and separately. Additionally, being able to choose a project we were personally passionate about and see it through end-to-end, including the impact of it, was extremely rewarding.

Is there anything that you would like to add?

I think it helped to have a mindset during the program of ‘everyone here knows something I don’t’. You may meet people on the program that have very different interests or career goals but ultimately every connection could be valuable in the long-run.

Meet Hannah

2022 Business Banking Graduate – Brisbane

What did you study & where?

I studied a Bachelor of Design Computing at the University Sydney. It’s essentially a degree that specialises in UX/UI Design and programming. A bit different to banking!

What drew you to the NAB Graduate program?

I liked the concept of doing 5 rotations over 18 months rather than being locked in straight away. Given that I didn’t come from a banking background being able to have this range of experiences really appealed to me.

How did you decide which stream to apply for?

In all honesty, the biggest factor for me was that Business Banking had a stream in Brisbane! I am a born and bred Queenslander, so being able to move back closer to my family after Uni was important to me. However, I definitely don’t regret my choice and am still happily working in the Business Bank.

What was the highlight of your graduate experience?

Truly, there are too many to count. I particularly enjoyed my secondment, where I travelled back to Sydney for a month to join ubank’s UX/UI Design team. Being able to work in the field I studied was an awesome experience, and I particularly enjoyed the free snack bar in the ubank office. However, it also allowed me to solidify the fact that I thoroughly enjoyed Business Banking, and wanted to pursue a career in this field rather than UX/UI Design. I also developed a strong friendship with my fellow Brisbane grad Holly, and we are still great friends to this day. I recently loaned her some crochet hooks as she is starting to learn, and I am looking forward to attending her cat’s 20th birthday party later this month!

Was there anything about that graduate program that exceeded your expectations?

The support I received from everyone around me was really amazing – I expected to struggle due to not coming from a banking/commerce background, but everyone was happy to support me learning and appreciated my unique perspective. I was especially wowed by the support I received from different rotation leaders when organising my secondment at ubank – the leaders went above and beyond to help me organise this rotation in a completely different sector, even though it meant I would be leaving their team!

Can you tell us about the teams that you completed your rotations in?

I completed rotations in:

CLS (Customer Lending Solutions), structuring new lending deals and writing credit applications to support our Business Bankers
BDSB (Business Direct & Small Business), working with the Small Business Bankers on lending deals and day to day customer management
Ubank (Secondment, UX/UI Design), working on projects such as ubank’s new Home Loan interface on the website and app
RA (Relationship Associate), working in alignment with Business Bankers to service day to day customer transactional enquiries
Major Initiatives, working on the beginning of a project to replace our current Equipment Finance competition. I even got to run a competition to choose the new name of the system!

What role are you in now?

I rolled off into the Relationship Associate team that I did my rotation in. I absolutely love my team, and am very happy with the decision I made. We have a lot of fun, manage the busy times together, and I am aligned to three excellent bankers who support me and my growth, and have more years of banking experience between them than years I have been alive!

How do you feel the graduate program has set you up for your current role / career at NAB?

Having the experience across CLS, Small Business, ubank, and Major Initiatives on top of doing a rotation in RA made me a very unique candidate, and allowed me to seamlessly step into the RA role and hit the ground running as a member of the team. I am able to field questions from my colleagues about lending and other areas that they aren’t familiar with, thanks to my time in all of these other teams. It also allowed me to grow significantly in my personal and professional life, and I have built a strong network of people I have met throughout my rotations who are excited to help me throughout my career.

What advice do you have for the next graduates on how to make the most of their graduate program?

Don’t be afraid of pulling the ‘grad card’ – a lot of my connections and experiences am from putting my imposter syndrome aside, and reaching out to people far more senior than me. You will find that a lot of leaders came through the grad program, so be sure to build on that connection!
Shake off the imposter syndrome – NAB knows who they hired, and they chose you out of thousands of applicants! That is a huge achievement in itself. In the same vein, you aren’t expected to know much of anything at all. The grad program is about learning, so embrace being confused and asking questions.
And of course, get used to giving an ‘elevator pitch’ about yourself that you can use to quickly introduce yourself as a grad to the people around you. Finally, dust off your first year Uni go-to fun fact, because you will inevitably be asked to come up with one on the spot!

Is there anything that you would like to add?

Ask questions, make connections with your colleagues, and enjoy the grad program for the amazing experience that it is. And make sure to get the NAB staff rate on your savings account!

Meet Archana

2022 Digital Graduate – Melbourne

What did you study & where?

Bachelor of Commerce (Majors in Marketing & Finance) at the University of Melbourne.

What drew you to the NAB Graduate program?

What drew me to the NAB Graduate program was the ability to experience multiple rotations. I wasn’t fully sure what I wanted to do after finishing uni, so having the ability to rotate through different teams helped me better understand what I enjoyed and didn’t enjoy. I also appreciated the emphasis that NAB placed on flexibility as this was super important to me.

How did you decide which stream to apply for?

I applied for the Digital stream as I felt that this stream encompassed a good mix of what I had studied at uni. Digital also felt very relevant at the time (and now) given the rapid digitisation of everything after COVID-19. It seemed like a space with lots of opportunities to grow and learn.

What was the highlight of your graduate experience?

All the networking opportunities that helped me meet the other grads. I found that it made the transition from uni to full time work much easier given there was such a large cohort of people who were able to share the same experiences as myself.

Was there anything about that graduate program that exceeded your expectations?

The support that we received from the Early Careers team. I found the transition between uni and full time work very smooth and this was largely because of the program that the Early Careers team had put together for the grads. I felt as though I always had people to go to if I had any questions or issues.

Can you tell us about the team that you completed your rotation in?

Digital Adoption & Migration – This team was all about improving the customer experience so that customers can do their banking themselves quickly and easily.

How do you feel the graduate program has set you up for your current role / career at NAB?

I felt that given the duration of the graduate program, it gives you plenty of time to learn, network and build your confidence before moving into another role and build your confidence before moving into another role

What advice do you have for the next graduates on how to make the most of their graduate program?

Say yes to as many opportunities as possible as this is one of the best ways to grow. Even if the opportunity ends up not being a positive experience, you will gain a lot of valuable lessons from it.

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