Name: Guanglun Wu
Age: 22
Job title: Consultant
University attended: University of Warwick
Degree obtained: BSc Computer Science

Brief career history

Guanglun joined CHP Consulting as a Junior Consultant after graduating from the University of Warwick. He likes his job so much he decided to write about it.

Why CHP Consulting?

After university, I was eager to find a job that not only used and challenged my technical skills, but my personal skills too. Consulting fit the bill, and CHP Consulting really stood out as an interesting company with lots to offer.

Having been here for almost a year and a half, I can say that it has been a challenging but also deeply rewarding experience.
 
The thing that made CHP stand out for me was its relatively small size, despite being a successful international company. For those willing to accept responsibility, there are great opportunities up for grabs.

Opportunities

After four weeks of induction training, I started my first project in London. This was an internal project concerned with developing our core product and internal tools. A great first project and learning opportunity, the end-of-project jolly involved jumping out of a plane!

To gain maximum exposure and experience, new graduates tend to move projects every six months. After six months, I was asked if I wanted to work in America, and I leapt at the opportunity.

Friendly working atmosphere

Liking the people you work with becomes particularly important if you suddenly find yourself living with them in a different country! So it was a great relief to me that they’re a friendly and approachable bunch. Regular social events help build team spirit and general camaraderie.

Talking to clients is part of what makes the job really interesting and, even as a junior member of the team, you talk to key decision makers and help shape their decisions. Interactions are usually friendly and relaxed, and we sometimes socialise with clients outside of work too.

Personal development

CHP places emphasis on the fact that its consultants are not just IT professionals, so a lot of training happens during the first two years. There are both internal and external training courses, from technical skills to industry knowledge or supervisory skills.

Training is put to use surprisingly quickly. Before joining the company I had no experience of asset finance, yet I am currently helping to design new functionality for a US-based client to support their financial products more efficiently.

Regular appraisals are carried out to review performance, and also career development plans. As with most things at CHP, this is an open, two-way communication process, where feedback is encouraged and acted upon.