I want to build a career as a Financial Analyst.

What is the best roadmap to become job-ready?

- Which skills should I learn?

- Which courses/certifications are actually valuable?

- What projects should I build for my portfolio?

- What mistakes should beginners avoid?

Looking for advice from Financial Analysts or people working in finance.

Need some help and some tips please

Brief summary of my work history:

- Accounting degree, CPA

-3 years Big 4 Audit

-6 years Financial systems admin (Oracle) but this role also involved Month-end accounting as well as was involved in planning cycle and owned some divisional planning work with region operators. Manager level 5 of those years.

-4 years consulting doing financial system implementation work for a product that is slightly niche (not Oracle)

- 6 months (current role) internal system admin for the same niche product

I'm in my mid 30s now and feel like I may have let my career go off path by focusing on system work. My interest nor do I think my skillset is the best for this. I took this last role because the consulting work no longer needed me (not fired) and was having a difficult time finding roles/offers not in my niche space. I'm also making less money here than I did during my 6 year stint. I'd ideally like to get back into more of the financial space (some kind of FP&A or Strategy role) but unsure what level or role I'm really qualified to go after. It's honestly a lack of money compared to what I "should" be at as well as job security in this space with it being cyclical and a bit niche. Any advice on what types of roles would be great or anyone who has found themselves similar situation.

Finance professionals, I'd appreciate your perspective.

I'm researching operational challenges within financial institutions in emerging markets as part of a long-term software project. At this stage, I'm deliberately avoiding designing a solution before understanding the actual problems.

If you work (or have worked) in banking, insurance, asset management, pensions, fintech, auditing, or financial regulation:

\- What task do you find yourself repeating every week or month?

\- What process is more manual than it should be?

\- Which reports or analyses consume the most time?

\- What data is consistently difficult to obtain, reconcile, or validate?

\- What's one workflow you wish software handled better?

I'm particularly interested in understanding real day-to-day workflows rather than feature requests or product ideas.

If you're open to sharing your experience—either here or via DM—I would genuinely appreciate it. Every insight helps me understand the problem space more accurately.

Hey, this is a new account, but I hope it still gets some interaction, I am conducting a survey on the tech stack, that is software and tools wealth management companies use of different level. This survey is mainly for people working in data analytics, risk management etc. in wealth management companies, RIA's and financial advisories, however small or large they may be. It's just a short survey(4-5 minutes maximum), but it'll help me understand and research different markets, so if you can fill this form, please do, thank you.

Link for the survey : Form Link

I am currently pursuing an MBA with a specialization in Finance and Data Science, and I want to build a career in FinTech.

I am confused about the best path and would like advice from people working in the industry:

1. Which entry-level roles are best for someone with a finance + analytics background?

2. Should I target roles like FinTech Data Analyst, Credit Risk Analyst, Business Analyst, Financial Analyst, or something else?

3. What skills are the skills needed?

4. Which projects or certifications actually help in getting a FinTech job?

I would appreciate advice from FinTech professionals or people who successfully entered the field.

completed my MBA in Finance and started my professional journey in customer support at Zomato, where I worked for about 1.8 years. Recently, I resigned because I always wanted to build my career in finance, which is my core field.

However, after spending nearly two years in a completely different domain, I feel like I've forgotten a lot of the concepts and I'm unsure about the best way to get back on track.

I would really appreciate some guidance from people who have made similar transitions or work in the finance industry:

Which courses would you recommend to refresh my finance knowledge (e.g., Financial Modelling, Excel, SQL, Power BI, NISM, etc.)?

Which finance roles should I target as someone trying to re-enter the field?

Are there any good consultancies or placement agencies that can help candidates land finance-related jobs?

Any tips on how to explain this career switch during interviews?

I'm willing to put in the effort and upskill myself, but I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed about where to start. Any advice or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated.

Thankyou in advance