Generalist programme

Careers

Programme overview

The programme

The RBC Wealth Management Generalist Program is a unique rotational program that develops future leaders within RBC Wealth and Asset Management. The program is offered to a select number of individuals each year who exhibit leadership potential and a versatile mindset, and welcomes applicants with diverse work or education backgrounds who can help RBC think differently. Ideal applicants are curious, open, and innovative thinkers who are looking to develop a dynamic skill set and breadth of experience to accelerate their careers within RBC. Candidates should have a master’s level degree or be starting the final year of a graduate program when applying.

The company

With over $1.141 trillion in AUM, over $4.108 trillion in AUA, and hundreds of thousands of clients worldwide, RBC Wealth Management is one of the world’s largest and most respected money managers. Rotational associates have an extensive range of placement options available to them, including a variety of roles available within Global Asset Management (GAM), Dominion Securities, Philips Hager & North, Wealth Management International and RBC Direct Investing.

Hear from our graduates

Current job title:

Senior Credit Analyst

Education:

Richard Ivey School of Business—Western University

Masters of Business Administration (MBA)

Western University

Bachelor of Managerial & Organizational Studies, Minor in Economics, Finance, and Accounting

Job specifications for what you do now:

I currently hold the position of Senior Credit Analyst on the Canadian Investment Grade Corporate Debt team, where I am directly involved in the management of 12 funds representing nearly $17B in CAD investment grade corporate debt. My day-to-day involves credit analysis (making specific recommendations on investment opportunities and authoring credit reports), trading bonds in both primary and secondary markets and assisting with portfolio management decisions (e.g., sector allocation and duration exposure). I also regularly contribute to our month Credit Strategy Committee meetings, where I assess macro considerations including recession and default risk, credit cycle positioning and expectations around valuations and market technical.

A bit about your RBC experience to date:

My experience has been wonderful. I joined RBC in 2014 as a Wealth Management Generalist and it was the best decision I ever made. I rotated through a variety of areas, including;

Investment Policy, where I had the opportunity to contribute to the creation of new investment solutions
RBC GAM Strategy, where I assisted with our recent acquisition of City National Bank
Emerging Markets bond desk in London UK, where I developed quantitative tools to aid in our investment decisions
PH&N Institutional Clients team in Vancouver, where I developed a better understanding of communication with sophisticated institutional investors.

These rotations allowed me to build my network within Wealth Management and experience a wide array of different work environments and management styles. I also acquired an in-depth understanding of both the suite of RBC investment solutions and different asset classes.

Any advice you have for students:

Nurture your curiosities—you never know where they will take you!

Programme details

The RBC Wealth Management Generalist Program offers you the opportunity to develop a fulfilling career with Canada’s award-winning provider of integrated wealth management services.

As part of our dynamic 24-month program, you will have the opportunity to gain an understanding of the day-to-day operations of several wealth management businesses and a high-level understanding of the entire RBC Wealth Management enterprise.

As a Generalist, you will complete four six-months rotations where you will collaborate with leaders on complex assignments while developing your skills through formal training. RBC Wealth Management has a global network of offices in major financial centres around the world. Through this network, you will be given the opportunity to complete rotations outside Canada as part of your program experience.

What are the benefits?

As a Generalist, you will benefit from one-to-one mentoring by executives for the duration of the program.
Monthly coaching from the program manager will support your development, assignment matching and career planning.
You will learn from experience in a series of assignments designed to hone your leadership skills and increase your knowledge of various RBC Wealth Management businesses.
Following the successful completion of the program, you will continue your career in a mutually agreed upon area.

Rotations

The RBC Wealth Management Generalist Program offers an unparalleled opportunity to gain experience within Canada’s largest wealth management organization through a variety of business, strategy and market-related roles.

Generalists can rotate through a number of business units including RBC Asset Management, RBC Dominion Securities, RBC Wealth Management International, RBC Phillips, Hager & North Investment Counsel and RBC Direct Investing.

What we offer you

After completing the program, generalists have gone on to enjoy rewarding and successful careers within many RBC Wealth Management businesses. Examples of positions held by former Generalists include:

VP, Special Projects, RBC Asset Management
Senior Manager, Business Initiatives, International Wealth Management
Senior Manager, Growth Strategies, RBC Direct Investing
Associate Portfolio Manager, RBC Asset Management
Research Associate, RBC Asset Management
Associate Investment Counselor, RBC Phillips, Hager & North Investment Counsel
Equity Portfolio Advisor, Equity Portfolio Advisory Desk, RBC Dominion Securities

Here are some examples of possible rotation assignment areas:

RBC Wealth Management, Strategy and Change Management – International:

A Generalist working on the Strategy team gets an opportunity to understand the structure, direction and strategy of the Wealth Management division at RBC. The Generalist works directly with the Strategy team on cross-platform, collaborative projects with senior leaders.

How you will spend your day in Strategy & Change Management (International)

Ensuring stakeholders are informed of ongoing changes and able to smoothly conduct business at all times

Participating in team meetings and professional development to ensure a consistent message is being delivered

Maintaining compliance and risk standards

Attaining a thorough understanding of Wealth Management International products to intelligently add value in discussions with relevant parties

RBC Dominion Securities, Equity Portfolio Advisory Group

Play an active role in the day-to-day tasks of the Portfolio Advisory Desk. This role offers you the opportunity to explore and learn about the portfolio management process.

How you will spend your time in the Equity Portfolio Advisory Group

Staying on top of economic developments and supporting Investment Advisor teams with market-related inquiries, research and publications

Enhancing market knowledge by providing up-to-date content for the daily newsletter distributed to Investment Advisors across the firm

Developing strong research capabilities by exploring a great array of companies, industries and sectors

Improving writing, communications and time management skills through a variety of ongoing projects

RBC WM Global Wealth Services team

As a part of a dynamic team of Global Wealth Services, you have a unique opportunity to combine strategy and operations. The desired outcomes may change with project and business needs. A recent rotation in this program was with:

How you will spend your time in a Operations/Strategy role

Conducting interviews with users to obtain feedback on new software developments

Liaising with front-end developers, back-end developers and Quality Assurance to identify technical issues and develop solutions

Creating user guides/other materials to support user learning and training

Collaborating with business and IT teams to integrate user feedback in the software

Investment Products Advisory Group, RBC Global Asset Management

The Investment Products Advisory Group supports RBC Global Asset Management’s products and Capital Markets’ view across all Canadian retail distribution channels. The group’s primary responsibility is to act as a link between investment management and sales, effectively positioning and supporting the firm’s offerings across multiple distribution channels.

How you will spend your time in the Investment Products Advisory Group

Answering phone calls from Investment Advisors to address their equity markets-related questions and provide ad-hoc information and commentary

Researching companies or investment ideas to present to the team to be included in publications, focus lists or managed portfolios

Preparing summary research pieces on equity markets for the team’s daily, weekly and monthly publications

Attending meetings with Capital Markets Analysts or company executives to learn more about a certain company or industry

Analyst for the Global Equity fund:

The objective of the RBC Global Asset Management Global Equity fund is to provide long-term capital appreciation by investing primarily in equities of a diversified mix of companies in various countries around the world. The role of the analyst is to conduct in-depth research on companies to determine whether they are appropriate for the portfolio. The analyst also assists in monitoring the performance of existing investments within the portfolio to help decide whether positions should be trimmed, increased or removed.

How you will spend your day as an Analyst for the Global Equity fund

Conducting in-depth research, including equity valuations, on large-cap Asian, European and U.S. stocks using sell-side research, Bloomberg and industry reports

Hosting in-person and telephone meetings with sell-side analysts and/or management to discuss the merits of specific companies

Attending Global Equity team meetings to review the portfolio’s performance and discuss the stocks that other team members are evaluating

Attending conferences held at other banks around London, England to get ideas for stock names, industry treads; and to meet other analysts

Fixed Income Portfolio Advisory Group, RBC Dominion Securities:

Working on the Fixed Income Portfolio Advisory desk offers you the chance to play an active role in providing support to Portfolio Advisors on their day-to-day tasks. You will develop a good understanding of the fixed income market and work on the trading floor directly alongside Traders.

How you will spend your time in the Fixed Income Portfolio Advisory Group

Leveraging the Bloomberg terminal, daily calls and meetings to stay on top of economic developments to support the team

Helping Portfolio Advisors with their Investment Advisor calls by providing suggestions, research and other administrative support throughout the day

Reviewing daily market events and summarizing the major economic news stories for the next day’s newsletter

Researching and producing charts and graphs for a variety of projects; building a fixed income portfolio using the list of fixed income securities in the Investment Advisor’s mandate

What you need to succeed

The Wealth Management Generalist Program is ideally suited for MBA/Graduate Level students. Preferred candidates are individuals who already have two to three years’ work experience within the financial or investment banking industry and are looking to broaden their area of specialization and deepen their understanding of the many facets of the wealth management industry.

Minimum qualifications

MBA or Graduate Level degree (i.e. Masters in Finance/Economics, Engineering, etc.)
Superior communication, presentation, analyzing, networking and innovation competencies
Demonstrated record of success in academics with diverse range of extracurricular activities
Interest in leveraging RBC’s global capabilities to collaborate across businesses with focus on delivering a superior client experience
At least 2 years of work experience

Nice-to-have

Preferred additional North American Designations (CFP, CA, CGA/CPA, CBV, CFA – Level 2 Candidates)
Second language an asset given the international nature of the enterprise
Project Management Program (PMP) or LSS (Lean Six Sigma) certifications

Application process

The application intake is now closed.

Interview process

Selected candidates will be asked to participate in virtual interviews as part of our first round selection process.
Those invited back for the last round will participate in final recruitment activities virtually OR in Toronto, based on travel restrictions to be determined.

We thank all interested candidates however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.