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Bernice O’Driscoll: ‘There really is something for everybody at Citi’

For those looking for new career opportunities, the innovation, mentoring and pace of change within the financial services sector means these are careers with variety built in

‘The amount of opportunity here is limitless. You can move across different sections and you can move internationally,’ says Anthony Brennan, director of regional credit risk management at Citi. Photograph: Getty Images
‘The amount of opportunity here is limitless. You can move across different sections and you can move internationally,’ says Anthony Brennan, director of regional credit risk management at Citi. Photograph: Getty Images

Citi has been supporting its staff to build a global career out of Dublin since 1965, when it was one of the first foreign banks to open an office in Ireland. Dublin is now the headquarters for Citibank Europe plc, which is regulated by the European Central Bank and is Citi’s single EU-passported bank, with branches in 22 countries.

Today, with the advent of hybrid working, more people than ever have the opportunity to enjoy a career at the bank, which is based at North Wall Quay.

Citi conducts a range of activities in Ireland, including markets and securities services, banking capital markets and advisory, treasury and trade solutions, and private banking.

Twenty years a-growing

Anthony Brennan, Citibank Europe’s credit portfolio head and a director in regional credit risk management
Anthony Brennan, Citibank Europe’s credit portfolio head and a director in regional credit risk management

Next year marks 20 years since Dubliner Anthony Brennan joined Citi, an anniversary he’s looking forward to because it comes with a gift from his employer of five extra days holidays, to mark the occasion.

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Long service is nothing unusual – almost one third of its staff, which represent 60 nationalities, have been there for more than 10 years.

Brennan, who went to school nearby in North Brunswick Street, began his career in financial services when he still had two exams left to take for his Leaving Cert.

Having worked for several other financial services companies for a few years, he joined Citi when he was 24. Today he is Citibank Europe’s credit portfolio head and a director in regional credit risk management along with being a board member for Citi Pensions Trustee Companies.

As he rose through the ranks he continued to study, supported by his employer. Brennan is now a fellow of the ACCA, the global professional accountancy body, has an MBA from Manchester Business School, for which Citi provided a scholarship, and chartered banker – and he is still learning. “I’ll do around 60 hours of training this year, everything from technical including ESG (environmental, social and governance) to soft skills such as influencing,” he explains.

In Citi, 'responsible finance' is the mantra

He jokes that his career success is a “rags-to-riches” tale, from opening envelopes as a 16-year-old summer intern to now being responsible for multi-billion dollar global portfolios, but it is also the story of an employer that values and nurtures talent and rewards it with huge opportunities He also stresses the importance of work-life balance and how family, friends and work colleagues are essential advisors and sounding boards in maintaining a balance.

“The amount of opportunity here is limitless. You can move across different sections and you can move internationally. Citi provides opportunities with local, regional and global roles based in Dublin,” he says.

Dublin was also chosen as the location of Citi’s first Innovation Lab, over a decade ago. “People’s perception may be that it is the tech and pharma companies that are innovating, but in fact we are really innovating here,” he adds.

The pace of change within the financial services sector means it’s a career with variety built in. “I could be in the same job for three years but I guarantee you that what I spend 90 per cent of my time doing in the first six months, I’d be spending 10 per cent of my time doing at the end, because Citi, the industry, the markets, and the regulations are constantly changing and evolving, so change is the only constant,” says Brennan.

That includes innovations, investments and commitments in areas such as ESG. “In Citi, ‘responsible finance’ is the mantra,” he says.

The opportunity to participate in corporate and social responsibility activities matters to him, as does being able to support others within the organisation. He commends Citi on its raising of funds for charities and has taken part in numerous sponsored cycles, abseiling and other fundraising events.

“As someone who has been both a mentor and a mentee in Citi, there’s nothing better for me than when someone comes in, whether as a junior or in middle management, and seeing them flourish and thrive,” he says.

A good choice for a great career

Carole O’Donnell joined Citi 10 years ago, having studied business at Trinity and worked for two banks in London. She spoke to a number of recruitment agencies, applied to some firms directly, and had several offers. She chose Citi on the strength of the interview. “I just felt I could see myself working with them based on the people I met during the interview process,” she recalls.

“Many of the people I worked with when I joined are still here, others have moved around, and we are all still in contact. Sometimes people who leave end up coming back for a new opportunity.”

Despite talk of gig economies and portfolio workers, at Citi many people are building long-term careers.

“When we do town hall events, especially in the US, we’re calling out people with 35 years’ service. I’m here 10 years and there are loads of people here longer than me. Since I’ve been here, I’ve worked in a number of new roles, and they feel like completely different jobs when they are in a different part of the organisation,” she explains.

O’Donnell takes full advantage of the training opportunities offered, including a professional project management qualification and an external mentorship programme with the Irish Management Institute.

Being with Citi allowed her to travel too. “When an opportunity came up for a role in New York, I couldn’t turn it down,” she says.

You learn so much on the job, and there is so much help and support to enable you pick it up

“It was just brilliant. You’re moving to a different country but your work is already organised with people you already know. After three years, I thought I’d better move back to Dublin now or I might never leave. Citi was really accommodating and said I could continue to do the role from Dublin,” she says.

Earlier this year she was appointed to a chief of staff role supporting operations and technology in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa). “It feels like a completely fresh challenge, even though I’m in the same organisation, and all the roles I did prior to this help me with this role. I think it works for both sides – you move around, you gain experience, and from the company’s perspective you bring that experience with you to your new role,” she says.

“That’s one of the nice things about working here. Sometimes when you’re working at something for a number of years, it can feel like time for a change. Here things change around you. Opportunities open up and you can take advantage of that. There’s a lot more variety than people think, you learn so much on the job, and there is so much help and support to enable you pick it up.”

Actively recruiting

Bernice O’Driscoll, country HR head, Citi
Bernice O’Driscoll, country HR head, Citi

Citi recruited throughout the pandemic and continues to do so, with openings across all parts of the organisation, including operations and technology, functions including risk, compliance, finance and treasury, and client facing roles.

“This year alone we have actively recruited more than 400 roles spread right across the board, from entry level to managing director, the rate of recruitment and new roles being posted is set to continue into 2022,” says Bernice O’Driscoll, its country HR head.

She joined Citi in 1997 and worked in a variety of roles. When she decided to go to college part time at night, to study human resources, her employer paid for her exams, gave her time off to study for them, and then supported a move into its HR department.

“Citi has supported me with opportunities as I worked my way up through the ranks,” she explains. That included a year spent working in Citi in Italy, which she loved.

“That opportunity is here if you want it. We also have really good learning platforms and a brilliant learning team so, as you move up into leadership positions, the skills you need are supported, whether it’s taking charge of a team or having those difficult conversations for the first time,” she adds.

As well as core benefits such as a competitive salary, pension and healthcare plus its education supports, a key part of its appeal is its people-focused culture. Citi has affinity networks focused on specific diversity topics such as ethnic diversity, Pride, disability and working parents. All are driven by employees, for employees, to support one another.

There really is something for everybody at Citi

It is highly supportive of good mental health too, support that comes from the top. Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser introduced a number of innovations to this end during the pandemic, from meetings-free lunches, and Zoom-free Fridays to ‘Citi reset day’, a day off for all its 200,000-plus staff worldwide in recognition of the difficulties of the pandemic. Citi is also in the process of implementing a hybrid working model, where employees are based in the office part of the week and work remotely part of the week.

In Dublin, Citi has partnerships with a number of community organisations such as Inner City Enterprise, Junior Achievement, Enactus and Business in the Community. Volunteering is strongly encouraged and supported and several hundred employees take up volunteering opportunities every year. It also has a charity partner which changes every two years. Fundraising is managed by a committee of employees.

“There really is something for everybody at Citi,” says O’Driscoll. “From our leading Graduate Programme, to our Returner’s Programme for people who have taken a career break and are now looking to get back into the workforce, we’ve got something for everyone. We’ve got a really diverse employee base, 60 nationalities and all different age groups and levels of experience.

“Whether you just want to stay in Dublin and build a global career or move to any of our 98 countries, we can offer it.”

Find out more about what a career at Citibank Europe at careers.citigroup.com