summarize two projects

Melissa Montesinos

Finance deals with leverage, banking or debt, capital markets, investments and money. It is used

in describing the general management of funds and the processes of acquiring funds. Finance is

categorized into major areas such as corporate finance, investments, financial institutions and

international finance.

The paper aims at outlining each of the outlined areas of finance and describes the relevant skills

required in becoming an effective professional in the field. Also, there is a comprehensive

description of the impact of technology, the economy and the persistent pandemic on careers in

the respective field of finance.

Corporate finance

This is the branch of finance that deals with how corporations deal with funding sources,

investment decisions and capital structuring. The aim of corporate finance in the operations of

organizations is maximization of shareholder’s value through short-term and long-term planning

and implementation of strategies. Corporate finance is mainly focused on specific areas such as

cost of capital, invested capital, operating flows and return on invested capital. In ensuring that

one understands the requirements of each of the areas outlined in corporate finance, there are

skills that are necessary for the corporate finance professional. One of the skills is a formal

accounting qualification which is highly applied in determining the appropriate cost of capital

that an organization or a company should use in its capital structure. Also, the professional

should have the skills to develop a budget for an organization based on projections or past data.

This is enhanced by the presence of interrelated skills such as financial reporting skills which

enable the professional to prepare statements based on the relevant financial and accounting

standards (Booth et al, 2020).

Investments

This refers to the area of finance that deals with allocation of resources with the expectations of

getting a return after some time in terms of profits or interests. In most cases the resources used

in investments include money and financial instruments. An investment is basically an asset that

is purchased with the hope that there will be generation of income or appreciation in value at

some point in future. Professionals in this field are normally the financial analysts. In enhancing

one’s effectiveness in the investment field, there are various skills that one should at equipping

themselves. One of the skills is information technology expertise in terms of computer literacy

among other areas. Also, one should have analytical skills which relate to the ability to collect

and analyze information and use the information in solving a problem at hand. Also, one should

have research skills as investments require one to have all the necessary data in making a certain

decision (Brown, 2021).

Financial Institutions

This field of finance deals with the entities or institutions where finance and related activities are

carried out. There are various financial institutions that are covered in finance. Among the

institutions include Central Banks which are the largest or most powerful banks in jurisdictions

or economies. Also, there are commercial banks, investment banks, brokerage firms, credit

unions among others. In becoming an effective professional in any financial effective, there are

common skills that one should focus on. One of the skills is numeracy skills which deal with the

ability to use, make interpretations and communicate mathematical information in solving

real-world problems. Organization and time management skills are also important skills as

financial institutions are based on compliance to schedules. In addition to the necessary skills is

team management as financial institutions are composed of teams from different fields in finance

(Murray, 2020).

International finance

This is one of the complex fields in finance which refers to the study of monetary interactions

that are carried out between two or more countries. Among the areas that are dealt with in

international finance include: foreign currency exchange rate and foreign direct investment. It is

an important field particularly with the increased globalization. There are various key skills

which are important in international finance. Among the skills include risk analysis where a

professional should have a great understanding of the economic and currency risks which are

mostly dealt with in comparing opportunities from different jurisdictions or countries. Also,

foreign exchange knowledge is necessary as international finance deals with more than one

currency (Booth et al, 2020).

Impact of technology on careers in finance

Technology has resulted into introduction of computerized financial modeling thus requiring

finance professionals to expand the IT skills and understand how to make corporate finance

models using information systems in finance. Technology has also contributed into development

of new careers in finance such as business information technology which deals with various

issues in finance which are operated through the information technology systems. Technology

has enhanced globalization which in turn has increased the demand for international finance

experts (Lohr, 2019).

Impact of economy on careers in finance

The careers in corporate finance are also affected by changes in the economy in that the economy

has a direct effect on the corporate entities. For instance, recessions in the economy result into

downsizing of corporations and financial institutions which forces the management to layoffs

some of the members of staff such as corporate finance officers.

Impact of Persistent pandemic on careers in finance

When a pandemic is persistent, the governments establish measures to reduce the spread of the

pandemic. One of the measures includes reducing overcrowding in financial institutions by both

the professionals as well as the customers. This results into the finance professionals changing

their places of work and they start working remotely other than their normal offices. Also, with

pandemic, financial institutions reduce their operations resulting into some finance professionals

being laid off (Ackerman, 2020).

Reference

Ackerman Andrew (2020). Fed Says Coronavirus Remains a Top U.S Financial Risk.

The Wall Street Journal.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/fed-says-coronavirus-remains-a-top-u-s-financial-risk-1160

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Booth, L., Cleary, W. S., & Rakita, I. (2020). Introduction to corporate finance. John

Wiley & Sons.

Brown B. Paul (2021). Investing Made Simpler for Beginners and Everyone Else. The

New York Times.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/08/business/investing-made-simple-for-beginners-and

-everyone-else.html

Lohr Steve (2019). It Started with a Jolt. How new York Became a Tech Town. The New

York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/22/technology/nyc-tech-startups.html

Murray Seb (2020). Graduate with Tech and Finance Skills in High demand. Financial

Times. https://www.ft.com/content/6c7001ec-70e3-11e9-bf5c-6eeb837566c5