Why would anyone become a Financial Journalist?
After almost 12 years at Euromoney Institutional Investor I still have days when I struggle to answer that question. But, on balance, I can think of few more enjoyable or stimulating jobs.
In my first six months on the graduate trainee scheme I attended external courses covering news writing, features writing, libel, interviewing skills and financial markets and also took part in the internal editorial training scheme.
While these were all invaluable, the only way to become a journalist is by finding and writing stories. Every graduate trainee is initially assigned to one title. I started on Airfinance Journal (which is one of the magazines I now run). Airfinance Journal is the leading financial publication for people working in aviation. In my first six months on the job I interviewed hundreds of senior people including Stelios Haji-Ionannou, the founder of easyJet, the CEO of Boeing and the chairman of British Airways. This combination of coursework and real work experience is a huge advantage. While postgraduate diplomas and degrees in journalism can be good, the hardest job to get in journalism is your first one. The Euromoney graduate trainee scheme combines theory with practice.
Euromoney is a big company with a small business culture. Each magazine is run as a separate business and we compete against each other for readers, advertisers and stories. After a year on Airfinance Journal I moved to working on the company’s weekly financial newspaper, EuroWeek. Some 12 months later I moved again and became editor of Asset Finance International.
By then I had also been on Euromoney’s advanced editorial course but nothing prepares you for the challenge of editing your first magazine. I was suddenly responsible for everything in an international magazine that had been published for 25 years. My editorial team was split between New York and London. I was 23.
No other company trusts young journalists as much. Every magazine is a leader in its market and you have access to the top people in it. If you are prepared to work hard you progress quickly. I am now publisher for several magazines and websites and spend a lot of time working on launching new ones. I manage editors, journalists, researchers and salespeople and also work closely with colleagues in marketing and conferences. I have benefited from Euromoney’s Management Development Programme and other relevant courses, but still learn new things every day.
When I joined Euromoney I had never been out of Europe. It took me less than five years to fill my latest passport with visas and stamps. My job has taken me to more than 20 countries and four continents.
Looking back there are a number of stories of which I am proud. (These include one news story where I broke the news of a merger five days before it was meant to be announced and raised the share price of the target by 20% and also a feature exposing a fraudster.) I have also made mistakes that still embarrass me greatly. But the best thing about Euromoney is that it has given me the opportunity to do both.
Financial journalism is hard work, tiring and can be pressurized. It is also challenging, intellectually rewarding and – most importantly – it is good fun.
Alasdair W – Business Group Manager, Specialist Publications
