Voluntary Uptake
Demonstrated learner interest beyond mandatory requirements.
Zero to desk-ready
Accelerating the "theory-to-practice" curve for early careers
Client overview
A top-tier global Corporate & Investment Bank (CIB). In this high-stakes environment, the learning curve for new analysts is a cliff edge. The bank needed a partner to act as a parachute and a rocket booster.
The mission
To transform academic high-achievers into commercially fluent professionals. The goal was simple but ambitious: take the smartest graduates in the room and give them the practical, real-world grit to contribute from Day One.
Test pass rate
Demonstrating true mastery, not just attendance.
CPD Credits
The challenge: the "theory gap"
University teaches you the definition of a bond. It doesn't teach you how to pitch a DCM strategy to a skeptical CFO.
The bank faced a classic "Early Careers" dilemma:
- The knowledge gap: Graduates arrived with strong academic theory but struggled to apply it to live deals.
- The confidence crisis: Imposter syndrome was real. New joiners were hesitant to speak up in meetings or engage with senior stakeholders.
- The speed to competency: The bank needed to shrink the timeline between "First Day" and "First Value-Add."
They needed a solution that answered one critical question: How do we make our interns and grads brave enough to apply what they know?
The solution: a “commercial fluency” accelerator
The bank deployed Finance Unlocked not as a textbook, but as a survival guide. By giving cohorts on-demand access to expert-led video content, they bypassed dry academic modules in favor of real-world context.
The program was designed to be:
- Targeted: Content mapped directly to the desks the grads were sitting on (e.g., Coverage, Trade Finance).
- Measurable: The bank implemented a rigorous pre- and post-learning data strategy to track the tangible lift in confidence.
- Self-Driven: Learning was positioned as a tool for success, not a compliance hoop to jump through.
“ Given I am in the coverage team, it has been helpful to learn about trade finance and DCM. They have really helped me in understanding the decks we prepare for client meetings on those products. ”
Graduate Analyst
The results: the confidence multiplier
Engagement was consistently strong. Graduates didn’t learn because they were told to; they learned because they wanted to win. The outcome? Interns and graduates hit the desk with confidence and capability. While this case study explores the impact of the programme on interns, the performance metrics presented above capture results across the wider business.
Impact in their own words
The qualitative feedback proves that Finance Unlocked bridged the gap between “concept” and “execution.”
- On Commercial Application:
“Given I am in the coverage team, it has been helpful to learn about trade finance and DCM... they have really helped me in understanding the decks we prepare for client meetings.” — Graduate Analyst - On Speed to Competency:
“It helped my basic understanding... so that during my internship I was able to handle the tasks.” — Intern - On Project Impact:
“Really helped during one of my intern projects for both research and a greater understanding.” — Intern
Ready to replicate these results?
If you want your early-careers cohorts to move from theory to real-world impact in weeks—not years—fill out your details and we’ll show you how.
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The learning driving Impact
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Paul Taylor • 12:59