Graduate Data Analyst (Finance Focus)

Location: Hybrid – London (main office) with flexibility to support regional offices in Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, and Edinburgh

Type: Full-Time, Graduate Entry

Salary: £39,000 – £45,000 + annual bonus + relocation allowance (where applicable)

About Us

We are a leading financial analytics and advisory firm based in London, with growing footprints in major UK cities. Our mission is to deliver data-driven insights to clients across finance, risk, and investment sectors. As part of our growth strategy, we are recruiting for a Graduate Data Analyst (Finance Focus) to join our Analytics & Reporting team. This is a high-impact role where you will help shape the firm’s data capabilities and support key business decisions.

While this is primarily a data-driven role, we also recognise the value of professional development in financial knowledge. For ambitious graduates interested in expanding into finance career paths, we provide sponsorship for the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) qualification, offering both financial support and study time.

Role Overview

As a Graduate Data Analyst (Finance Focus), you will be embedded in the Analytics & Reporting team and work closely with stakeholders across finance, risk, operations, and client services. You will support the design, development, and deployment of data-driven solutions to inform strategic decision making.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Designing, writing, and optimizing SQL queries to extract, transform, and load data from multiple relational and non-relational data sources (e.g., PostgreSQL, MySQL, Snowflake)
• Building interactive dashboards, visualizations, and reports using Power BI, Tableau, or Looker
• Performing statistical analysis, trend detection, and forecasting using Python (e.g. pandas, scikit-learn, statsmodels) or R
• Collaborating with finance and risk teams to define KPIs, metrics, and data requirements
• Conducting monthly, quarterly, and ad hoc financial variance analyses and deriving actionable insights
• Assisting in data quality, governance, and compliance initiatives (e.g. validation, lineage, GDPR)
• Automating data pipelines and routine reporting tasks using tools such as Airflow, dbt, or scripting
• Presenting findings and recommendations to senior stakeholders

What We’re Looking For

Essential Qualifications & Skills

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Data Science, Statistics, Mathematics, Finance, Economics, Computer Science, or related quantitative field
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with strong attention to detail
• Solid knowledge and experience (academic, internship, or projects) in SQL – ability to write, troubleshoot, and optimize queries
• Proficiency in Excel (pivot tables, lookups, data modeling)
• Familiarity with Python or R (data manipulation, basic modeling)
• Strong communication skills—able to explain technical findings to non-technical stakeholders
• Highly motivated, curious, and eager to learn in a fast-paced environment
• Knowledge of regulatory frameworks is expected, particularly FCA rules and GDPR requirements, as these are essential when working with financial and client data.

Desirable / Nice-to-Have

• Experience or coursework in machine learning, predictive modeling, time series analysis
• Exposure to cloud data platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and modern data stack tools
• Understanding of financial statements, budgeting, or financial planning & analysis
• Previous internship or project work in financial services, consulting, or analytics

Induction & Training Period

All new graduates will complete an induction period during their first weeks of employment. This period is fully paid and designed to ensure you become familiar with:

• The firm’s internal systems, reporting platforms, and analytics tools
• Company-specific finance workflows and compliance requirements
• Best practices for data handling, governance, and security
• Collaboration methods with both technical and non-technical teams

You will receive hands-on guidance from senior analysts, training modules tailored to our software stack, and dedicated time to shadow experienced team members. By the end of the induction, you should feel confident working independently on live data tasks while following company standards.

Key Metrics & Success Indicators

• Accuracy and timeliness of reporting deliverables (e.g. < 1% error rates)
• Reduction in manual reporting effort through automation (target: 20–30% reduction in first year)
• Adoption and usage of dashboards by internal stakeholders
• Quality and impact of insights delivered (measured via stakeholder feedback and execution of recommendations)
• Progress in upskilling (completing trainings, certifications, internal projects)

Work Locations & Flexibility

While our main office is in London, this role supports a hybrid and distributed workforce. You may be based (or travel periodically) in one of our regional hubs, including:

• Manchester
• Birmingham
• Leeds
• Edinburgh

We provide flexibility for remote work (up to 2–3 days per week) and expect occasional travel between sites or to HQ as needed.

Benefits & Perks

• Relocation assistance and support (if relocating to London or another hub)
• Annual performance-related bonus
• Comprehensive onboarding and training programs, including internal data bootcamps
• Career progression paths toward Senior Data Analyst, Analytics Manager, or Data Governance roles
• Access to certifications (e.g. Microsoft, Tableau, AWS)
• CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) qualification sponsorship – financial and study support for eligible employees
• Pension scheme, private medical coverage, life insurance
• Flexible working hours, remote work options, and company-wide retreats
• Visa sponsorship available for eligible candidates

How to Apply

Please submit your CV, academic transcripts, and a short cover letter (max 500 words) describing a data or analytics project you completed (academic or personal). Highlight your contribution, challenges faced, and results or insights derived.

If you have been pre-screened by a Finance Recruitment LTD advisor, your application will be submitted directly to us on your behalf if you are successful in the screening. In this case, there is no need to send a cover letter or email separately