Adam & Company continues partnership with 10,000 Interns Foundation

“Talent is everywhere, opportunity is not”

At Adam & Company, we are acutely aware of the challenges faced by so many young people when trying to access professional opportunities. Breaking down the barriers that have often dissuaded these candidates from considering careers in wealth management is of huge importance to us and Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management, and it is for this reason that we have been proud participants of the 10,000 Black Interns programme for the past three years.

The 10,000 Interns Foundation is on a mission to champion underrepresented talent, to change the face of British business, and promote equity of opportunity. It was originally set up by its four founders to provide 100 internships in Investment Management, and now the company is on track to support 20,000 young people through their two initiatives: 10,000 Black Interns and 10,000 Able Interns.

Understanding wealth management today

We are steadfast in our commitment to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. Adam & Company are already extremely proud of the female-strong investment management team we have in Edinburgh, and we are actively broadening our efforts to ensure this commitment to diversity goes beyond gender.

We believe that diverse teams create better business outcomes. Internships offer a number of benefits for the company, including a fresh perspective and a new set of eyes with which to observe challenges. Internships also create opportunities for young people to realise careers they never knew existed, and to take the first steps in a lifelong journey.

This internship programme has already given us the opportunity to open our doors to some bright minded individuals, and this summer was no different, when Adam & Company welcomed Leonard Quansah to the team. We interviewed him at the end of his six-week internship to ask him about his experience in our Princes Street office in Edinburgh.

Joining Adam & Company

Leonard joined us after graduating from the University of Aberdeen with an MSc in Finance and Investment Management. The goal of the internship was to learn from all aspects of the business, accumulating in a final project, in which he would design a hypothetical client investment portfolio and present it to the team.  Leonard slotted into the team immediately and got the chance to work with all areas of the business. “I was a bit nervous on my first day, but I’ve been made to feel at home”.

What surprised Leonard, he said, was the culture of the company. “There are no barriers. You can easily approach anyone. Our Investment Director, Stuart Dickson, will come up to me and ask if I want to join him in an investment meeting, and the rest of the team are always interested in what I’m doing, and I don’t think you get that everywhere”.

This is something, he continued, that comes from the lived values of Adam & Company; “the company really believes in the culture they are building, and for me that is really important. I am really proud to be part of a company like this”.

A hands-on approach

A key part of ensuring an intern’s time with the company is as valuable as possible is to give them access to, and time with, everyone in the team. For Leonard, this meant observing client meetings, learning about client account management, and gaining an insight into the basics of portfolio management by shadowing Investment Managers on trading platforms. He was able to get a feel for real investment scenarios, all the while offering his perspective on the processes used day to day by the team.

The accumulation of this work was his presentation of the mock investment portfolio, which he created with the help of those around him: “I’ve been asking for help from the Investment Managers to create a template, and I’ve used Bloomberg to research the companies I chose. I set up meetings with managers to brainstorm and ask them about their thought processes to establish their considerations when they approach a new client.” The entire process, he concluded, made him feel well-equipped for a continued career in investment management.

Leonard has, in his short time at Adam & Company, developed the confidence to continue applying for investment roles. “[This internship] has only inspired me more and made me realise that this is exactly what I want to do.”

We were incredibly grateful to have had the chance to meet and work with Leonard, and are looking forward to working with future talented individuals through the 10,000 Interns Foundation.

At Adam & Company, we are proud to be one of the investment management companies addressing the underrepresentation of black talent within our sector. We will continue to participate in the 10,000 Black Interns scheme over the coming years, working to build a more diverse workforce.