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‘We are the travellers of the corporate world’

Analyst at Deloitte in United Kingdom, Karan Kathuria, opines that the fusion of technology and finance is the next big thing

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An alumnus of Apeejay School, Saket, Karan Kathuria (28) is a dynamic professional. He remains open to exploring new situations as he hopes to gather varying learning opportunities from them. And his professional journey thus far has been nothing less than splendid. In an interview, he shares more about how his life changed as he moved from India to the United Kingdom (UK). Read On:  

Please tell us about your educational background.

I completed schooling from Apeejay School, Saket and spent close to 14 years in the school. To seek an undergraduate degree, I enrolled at Christ University, Bangalore to study Business Administration, Marketing and Strategy.

After that, I worked for five years at TC Global, an educational consultancy, based in Delhi. In the firm, I steadily moved from an analyst to a consultant. During my stint, I also received several opportunities to upskill myself. Along with my routine job, I also pursued a course with The University of Queensland, Australia.

Then, as I had gathered about 3-5 years of necessary work experience, I decided to seek a Master’s degree in Business Administration. And in my journey, Covid-19 acted as a catalyst. So, I came to the UK in February, 2021 and enrolled at Loughborough University. During my study, I networked with several students, professionals and experts in the field. Their insights helped me a lot, as I eventually bagged a job at Deloitte within 3 months of joining the course. It has been an upward ride since then.

Do detail out your role at Deloitte.  

I am an analyst within Op Model Transformation – Capital Markets. I have been working for the past five years in the domain of operations transformation and process optimisation through technology (integrations and automations). My work includes effectively communicating with a range of stakeholders and using initiatives to bring creative solutions to problems as well as deliver remediation that improves efficiency.

How has been your experience of studying in the UK?

When I entered the country in 2021, it was surely a difficult time. The country was in the middle of its second biggest Covid-19 wave. And, several people were impacted due to the health crisis, whether it was financial, emotional, social, etc. In about 5-6 months, things began to look steady. The UK soon bounced back to normalcy due to their successful mass vaccination drives.

UK has been one of the biggest hubs for professional and educational pursuits. I would say that for Indians, studying abroad is a huge goal. It offers a great exposure and learning. Personally, I would highly recommend it!

Your tips for a study abroad aspirant?

Plan it well and it can take many months. In my case, it took me about 3 years to finally move to the UK, and build my profile to enroll in the school I desired. I aligned my letters of recommendation, statement of purpose as per my goals. To be honest, I had about 63 versions of my statement before I submitted the final document. It took me 8 months to polish it and present it well.

And, managing one’s finances is also very crucial to their study abroad plan. Because a great degree often does not promise a great job. It, rather, depends on multiple factors. A good university can provide one a foot in the door but cannot make a career. Therefore, one should focus on their personal growth, development, communication and knowledge from the very beginning.

Any up and coming opportunities/trends in your line of work?

At present, Management Consulting is the fastest growing sector. And we can be called the ‘travellers’ of the corporate world because we keep moving from one project to another rapidly. The pace of work is fast as it is complex.

In the domain of finance, the world has been in a T+3 (trade date plus three days) scenario for a long time. To put it simply, it used to take about 3 days to settle a transaction. And now, we are gradually moving to a T+2 trend. The big move is T+1 where a certain transaction will be settled the very next day of initiation. Therefore, this too is an ever-evolving field. Now, cryptocurrency is also taking the world by storm.

Globally, companies are looking into Investments, Treasury and Liquidity and 90 percent of the major banks are doing it. Further, there is going to be a fusion of technology and finance in the next 3-4 years as companies are putting in billions of dollars to develop the human capital.

How is work culture in the UK?

Most companies in the UK do not encourage ‘working Saturdays.’ Work-life balance is a must in the country, therefore, employees tend to finish work by 5 to 6 pm and call it a day.

The work culture in the UK is also very inclusive. People do not have an air of superiority, and that is very endearing. The country is a melting pot of cultures, so it has given me a lot of opportunity to look at situations and issues from varying viewpoints.

How was your experience at Apeejay School, Saket?

I underwent a solid transformation in the school from classes 8 to 12. And, my scores improved significantly as I progressed. So, my learning has been to push one’s boundaries and discover a zone to work on the strong areas. The school has given me great friends and good relationships.  

Your final message to students?

  • If there is an option to take risks for something worthy, do it.
  • Keep trying multiple fields of work and study.
  • Don’t crumble under any peer, parental or societal pressure.
  • Be open to experimentation. 

Mrini Devnani is a Principal Correspondent and Marketing Coordinator at Newsroom. She covers student achievements, conducts interviews, and contributes content to the website. Previously, she served as a Correspondent specialising in Edu-tech for the India Today Group. Her skill areas extend to Social Media and Digital Marketing. For any inquiries or correspondence, you can reach out to her at [email protected].

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