Spotlight on Women: Clementine Almond
At Valentia Partners we focus on making our workplace a more diverse and inclusive environment for everyone. Operating in a male dominated industry, we wanted to shine a spotlight on our women and enable them to tell their stories of success and what inspired them to pursue a role in Management Consulting. Below you can read more about Clementine’s experience.
Clementine Almond | Consulting Analyst
What inspired you to pursue the career path that you are on?
I first got into consulting at university when I had the opportunity to do a placement in San Francisco at a strategy consultancy. This experience reinforced my interest in consulting as I loved the pace of the work and the focus on problem solving as a team. I realised how important impact in my work is to me and showed me that consulting is a career that allows you to constantly have impact and drive change, which I find extremely motivating.
What does a typical day for you look like?
As I am not currently on a client project, my day is focused on internal projects and developing Valentia as a company, which I think is a great aspect of working here. I would usually start with a Bench stand up to allocate the internal work that needs completing, and once assigned, start working on the task. Recently, this work has included creating a training deck about Asset and Wealth management and researching and compiling an article on the upcoming regulatory changes in the financial services. These tasks involved PowerPoint slide creation, secondary research, article writing and collaboration on calls with colleagues across the company at all levels.
How do you continue to grow professionally?
Being at an early stage of my career, I have found that one of the most valuable ways of growing professionally is talking to the people around you as much as possible, and asking as many questions as you can. People have a huge amount of experience and subject matter knowledge that they are happy to share, helping me to develop. Having a female career coach who I can look up to and learn from has helped greatly with this so far.
Tell us about an accomplishment you are proud of?
A recent accomplishment I am proud of is making the decision to leave my previous company, which had many positives, to join Valentia Partners. I often struggle with embracing the unknown and taking risk, but I am proud of how I listened to my gut telling me it was time for a new challenge and took that leap. So far, I am very happy with my decision and feel more comfortable with taking risks in the future.
Tell us about a woman who has made a positive impact on your career?
My manager at my previous company, Hattie, had a positive impact on my career as she set a great example of how to lead and manage with grace, logic and kindness. Leadership can often be associated with more aggressive adjectives, but she showed me that bringing your whole self to your work will yield the best results, and I have taken that with me into my current role.
How do you define success?
I think success comes from two main sources – the results you get, but also what you put in. Achieving the goals you set, and adding value are key external measures for success, but it is also important to consider achieving the feeling of success, being proud of what you have put into your work and the way you have handled yourself. Adding value and strong performance are the overall measures of success for me, but my attitude and the effort I put into my work is just as important.
How do you achieve balance between your work and personal life?
I find planning ahead helps in balancing work and personal life. While there will always be unexpected changes in both areas, if you can allocate time and manage the things you do have control over, it allows more flexibility when the unexpected does happen. Making sure to fully switch off and separate the two is also important for me to ensure I mentally feel the difference between work and play.
What advice would you give other women starting out in their career?
My biggest piece of advise it to always remember that when you are applying for jobs, you are deciding if you want to work for the company, just as much as they are deciding if they want to hire you; it isn’t one sided. This is important, as if you only think about how you come across to them, you may end up presenting yourself in a way that isn’t true to you, or accepting a job that isn’t right for you. Also, if you are unsure about being 100% qualified for a role, go for it. Research has found that on men will apply for roles where they only meet 60% of the requirements, so it is always worth trying.
What has been the best advice you have received to date relating to your career?
The best advice I ever received was probably from my dad, who (while I was having a crisis of confidence) sat me down and said ‘Clem, you’ll never be the best’. It sounded harsh, but it was his way of encouraging me to focus on how I feel about my own achievements, rather than focusing on external comparison. I am someone who always thinks they can do better and has a tendency to compare to those around me, so hearing this allowed me to take some of the pressure off myself, and shift from focusing on being ‘the best’ in the room, to doing my best in everything I put my mind to. Make the competition with yourself, not with others.
What do you enjoy most about working in Financial Services?
I enjoy that there is always a new challenge, and that the industry developing so much, that you can always learn more and grow with the industry. I have also come across extremely smart people in the industry, making it a great sector develop and learn in.
What makes a great leader?
For me, a great leader is someone who empowers the people they are leading to grow and achieve with them, while guiding with a clear vision along the way. It is the human element of being able to understand and inspire people that separates them from managers.