The St James’s Place Academy is proving to be particularly attractive to women who want a career which fits in better with their family lives. Here, Sophie Du Rouet, a graduate of the St James’s Place Academy and now a partner, explains what it has done for her.

UK-based advisory firm St James’s Place is investing £2 million (about $3 million) this year in intensively training 60 new entrants to the wealth management industry. The intake for the St James’s Place Academy is diverse, but the programme is proving to be particularly attractive to women who want a career which fits in better with their family lives. Here, Sophie Du Rouet, a graduate of the St James’s Place Academy and now a partner, explains what it has done for her. To view the first of the interviews with this firm, click here.

Could you briefly describe your career before the St James’s Place Academy?

Before joining St James’s Place I worked on the trading floor at a bulge-bracket investment bank doing specialist equity sales, specialising in healthcare. Essentially, I was an institutional stockbroker, sharing my views and recommendations with fund managers, buy-side analysts and the trading floor, on companies in the healthcare sector. I worked in the City for 13 years.

How did you hear about the St James’s Place Academy?

I had been a client of St James’s Place since my early 20s. In one of our annual review meetings I asked the guy I spoke to what being a St James’s Place Partner involved, and how would I go about it if it was something I wanted to do. He pointed me in the direction of the Academy.

What made you decide to go ahead with it?

I had recently got married and we were starting a family. My old job on the trading floor was pretty inflexible regarding working hours as it was obviously tied to the markets, five days a week. I wanted something that would enable me to have more control of my work/life balance.