Provide an example of your leadership and explain what you learned about yourself through the experience.

One of my largest clients, a private Chilean pension fund, decided to implement a new SWIFT messaging system to automate its trade instruction process. My manager, the project point person, was leading the project implementation plan with the client over several months. As a result of the successful testing phase and an investment opportunity, the pension fund decided to move up the live production date while my manager was on vacation. This unanticipated schedule change left my team with only a week to complete the project. Although I was unfamiliar with the implementation process and the project status, I took the lead to ensure continued project success.

Because I was not involved with the testing phase, I quickly had to get up to speed on the project status, as the pension fund was a key client relationship. I contacted my project coordinator and the client’s liaison in order to clarify next steps on the implementation. I also contacted a senior manager at the pension fund to touch base on open items and answer questions. Within a few days, I was updated on the project status and had developed a plan for the go-live date. On the go-live date, the client successfully sent us trade instruction messages and the resulting trades settled seamlessly. Due to the success of the project implementation, the pension fund’s senior manager also sent a complimentary email to my manager about his satisfaction with the project.

This experience instilled confidence in my leadership skills. I learned how to think quickly on my feet and make good decisions with little time to digest extensive data. I utilized my interpersonal skills to grow our client relationship and form new relationships across my company. Lastly, by gaining the trust of the Chilean pension fund’s senior management, I have leveraged that relationship to efficiently resolve other issues.