Mobolaji

When Mobolaji (who also goes by “Mo” for short) was holding down a job as a salesperson at a well-known home goods chain, he never thought he’d one day be working at an investment bank or even in the financial services industry, let alone in Wealth Management Analytics and Data at Morgan Stanley.

However, Mo’s experience at COOP Careers, an apprenticeship program that provides upwardly mobile college grads the digital skills and peer connections needed for career advancement, changed all of that. “I had just finished college and was working in retail when a number of my friends mentioned this program,” says Mo, a first-generation Nigerian-American who grew up in Brooklyn and studied forensic psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. “I chose to take part in the four-month data analytics apprenticeship offered by COOP Careers. It was an excellent introduction to data analytics and how it applies to capital markets and the finance industry as a whole.”

When the apprenticeship ended, Mo was hired as a financial analyst at a large media agency in New York. He continued to serve as a mentor (or “captain”) at COOP so that he could help other college grads advance their careers. In fact, it was during a COOP event that Mo and Morgan Stanley first intersected.

“A number of people from Morgan Stanley did a one-day presentation about wealth management and the importance of analytical skills in this area,” Mo says. Right after the presentation, Mo reached out to the five Morgan Stanley presenters via LinkedIn, including Jeff McMillan, who is Morgan Stanley Wealth Management's Chief Data & Analytics Officer. “A couple of months later, when a data governance anaylst position opened up, I applied and was offered a role as an Associate in October 2020.”

While Mo is responsible for helping to secure and track the firm’s Wealth Management data in his day job, in his time off, he seeks out adventure and loves to take a few risks. As a self-proclaimed adrenalin junkie, he has done everything from skydiving in the Poconos to riding an underwater scooter in Hawaii, and has even sky-jumped off the 855-foot-tall SkyPod tower in Las Vegas.

It was remote, so that made it interesting. But despite that, everyone was very open and wanted to get to know me and help me integrate into the team and the role. People think finance is cutthroat, but everyone was so friendly that I immediately became comfortable with my team and new work environment.

I think all of my past experiences have prepared me collectively. That includes the time I spent in COOP’s apprenticeship program, where I was developing and enhancing my project management and analytical skills. Even my retail job helped prepare me for this role when it comes to things like networking, public speaking and communication more broadly. I learned a lot dealing with customers and co-workers when I worked in retail, and that helps me in my role today at Morgan Stanley.

One day, I may be engaged with stakeholders internally on a project; the next day, I could be working with a data set and our cataloging system. My days vary, and that’s what I love about the job. My role requires me to leverage a mixture of  skills on any given day, from collaborating with other teams to analyzing data sets to presenting on trends. I never get bored.

Everyone is always willing to extend a helping hand and meet with you if you want to learn about what they do. I often reach out to others at the firm and ask if I can speak to them about their job. Morgan Stanley has countless positions and so many departments, so there’s huge opportunity to learn from others. I think it’s important to take full advantage of the networking opportunities and learn all you can about your peers, as well as their responsibilities within the firm.

I actually think that there are four words I would use to describe Morgan Stanley. I call them the four Cs: communication, collaboration, curiosity and confidence. By leaning into these four things, I feel like you can set yourself up for success here.

I’m part of many diversity and inclusion initiatives at the firm. For example, I was a panelist at an HBCU (Historic Black Colleges and Universities) program earlier this year at Hampton University that resulted in hiring two interns who rotated between my team and another team within Wealth Management Analytics & Data. It was my first time having management experience, besides being a team captain at COOP, and I really enjoyed it. I tried my best to provide the interns with a comprehensive learning experience and a clear understanding of Data Governance.

I like knowing how important our work is to the broader firm. My job may not sound as exciting as some of the other roles at Morgan Stanley, but knowing that the security and quality of the data my team provides is essential to the firm’s ability to operate and remain competitive is what I find most fulfilling.

I think that Morgan Stanley will only continue to grow. With our core values of always putting our clients first and giving back to the local and global communities we serve, we can’t go wrong.