‘People must have financial knowledge’

Vandana Aggarwal is the Senior Relationship Manager at SN Capital Management Pvt Ltd. She is in her last semester at Apeejay Stya University (ASU), Gurugram, who bagged a campus placement recently. In a freewheeling interview, the BBA final year student speaks about her placement, aspirations in the field of finance as well as offers some honest sales advice for the common man. Read edited excerpts:

What work does a senior relationship manager do?

My work is entirely related to sales. I have to reach out to the clients. I work on the Pre-IPO (Initial Public Offering) stage. I deal with the clients, explain to them various company offers and profitable propositions.

What sparked your interest in this field?

My interest is actually in the field of finance. But a person has got to start somewhere right? So, I got this opportunity, which seemed like a good learning experience for me, and I chose to go ahead with it. After interacting with my colleagues and mentors at work, I have observed that almost everyone starts out with the sales department only. (laughs) 

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How was your time at ASU?

It was delightful. Unfortunately, we are a pandemic batch of students and so, we were able to attend only one year at campus. 

Any best memories?

Plenty! An event titled ‘Shubh Aarambh’ which had a dandiya night was so joyful. Also, a lot of events kept happening at the campus. I am a part of the Rotaract Club, so there used to be a lot of events from which I have many good experiences. 

One finance advice for all?

Honestly, I am in sales, so our job is pitching our policies to the client, but people must focus on their financial budget first, and then go ahead with any investment. Cross questioning is a must. People must have knowledge about the financial world.

A few tips for ASU students

Focus on your studies because it comes handy later in life. I learnt about IPO and other financial concepts during my lectures. Hence, I am not facing any problem while working in sales. But I have observed that interns from other fields of studies are facing problems at work since they are unaware about various concepts. So, prioritise on gaining knowledge first, it will make the work easy and the learning process very enjoyable.