Professional outlets
The Second-cycle degree course in Finance and Risk Management (FRIM) aims to train experts in the management of financial products and portfolios, in the analysis and management of banking and financial risks and, more generally, of economic business risks, in the management of financial institutions, and in the analysis and management of insurance risks.
Functions
The graduate in Finance and Risk Management:
- acquires an in-depth knowledge of the tools of mathematical calculation applied to the economics of financial products and markets, finance and insurance, as well as specialist knowledge of business models for analysing the risk of banking, financial and insurance operators;
- acquires knowledge and the ability to understand how to apply these methodologies and tools to the field of finance, in terms of analysing international scenarios, implementing decision-making models in financial markets and corporate governance, analysing and developing the management processes typical of the various categories of financial intermediaries
- matures an adequate autonomy of judgement with regard to problems of corporate financial management and risk management and to the modelling of financial market trends, being able to effectively interpret and process the information and data acquired;
- develops the ability to communicate, in a corporate context, as well as to a non-specialist public, information on financial market trends, on the use of alternative financial instruments and on banking and insurance risk management
- acquires the ability to independently address the life-long learning process required of professions by the changing economic environment, to investigate issues related to the use of specific financial instruments or to the functioning of particular markets, as well as the possibility to access PhD or professional master programmes in economics and business economics.
Skills
Possible fields of employment for the graduate in Finance and Risk Management include:
- asset management companies, financial system supervisory bodies and financial rating assessment companies; - technical offices and planning offices of organisations and companies in the financial system;
- consultancy in the areas of finance and insurance-pension, business risk management and insurance processes; - portfolio management, financial analysis services;
- financial management of industrial and commercial enterprises.
For the verification of the coherence between the contents of the learning pathway and the professional profiles required by the market, constant reference is made to operators in the sector. It should be noted that, on the basis of information deduced from AlmaLaurea on the economic sectors in which FRIM students have found employment, there is a good degree of consistency between expected and actual employment areas
The course also enables students to qualify as chartered accountants after passing the state examination.
Outlets
Graduates of the FRIM mainly find employment in the following branches of national and international business:
- Credit, insurance
- Financial intermediation companies
- Investment funds - Consultancy
- Services
- Industry
- Commerce
Risk manager
Functions
The risk manager is a professional figure that is still little known, but is becoming more and more widespread on the national and international scene. It prevents and manages all kinds of risks that can affect a company's balance sheet. And able to correctly identify risks in different areas. The risk manager deals with the management of financial and 'pure' risks. The risk manager is an internal figure with a rather high degree of responsibility and decision-making autonomy. S/he normally has to deal with all company departments and must be thoroughly familiar with every aspect of them. S/he works, therefore, in continuous contact with those in charge of production, marketing, logistics and sales, to analyse in detail each stage of the business and identify possible critical steps. Given the competences and responsibilities assigned to him/her, the risk manager is placed within the corporate structure at managerial or cadre level. For directives, being an autonomous figure, he coordinates directly with the management, production manager, administrative or financial director, up to the general manager. In Italy, risk managers are mainly located in large companies, but now even small companies are realising that the function is indispensable.
Competences
The risk manager, being a technician who carries out risk analysis within a company on an ongoing basis, is from the outset faced with taking decisions, related to specific activities, in order to optimise the relationship between the costs of risk coverage and the benefits for the company's activities.
Their function is carried out in three stages: research and identification of the risks affecting all company activities in close cooperation with the company's managers; clarification, assessment and treatment of risks, taking into account the probability of occurrence of claims and their impact on the company's balance sheet; periodic verification of existing risks with optimisation of insurance coverage and costs, and reduction of probable serious losses. These three actions lead to the result of reduced operational costs, less waste and loss of time, reduced probability of major damage and consequently reduced insurance premiums: hence the value of the risk manager. In the light of the above, the main skills required relate to insurance and corporate finance and accounting issues.
Outlets
The professional outlets consist of the possibility of carrying out this activity within a company as an employee or independently as a freelancer.
Financial Analyst
Functions
The steady economic growth of our country has required an adjustment of financial systems as an indispensable means of supporting development. The high level of complexity in the sector means that financial operators are faced with increasingly complex demands and choices to be made in a very short timeframe. Moreover, the saver has gained awareness and demands transparent and rigorous information. The financial sector must offer comprehensibility and accessibility. In this sense, financial analysis, as the synthesis of a complex evaluation process, stands as an element of clarity and as a support for financial decisions. The financial analyst studies and analyses a company's balance sheet to establish its health, define its structure and profitability, and assess the company's economic prospects. The financial analyst is therefore the expert who directs the company in planning its financial activities. For these purposes, the financial analyst must gather as much information as possible and correctly value securities such as shares, bonds and other securities whose value is linked to the business activity. Starting from the available information, the financial analyst must process it and, by means of an interpretative analysis, formulate a forward-looking judgement on the value of the company and its investment opportunities.
Skills
The financial analyst, whether external or internal to companies, is a professional figure who must possess numerous interdisciplinary skills. The attitudinal quality that those practising financial analysis must possess is above all the ability to synthesise, which is indispensable for formulating rigorous interpretations of all the information gathered. To this must be added fundamental qualities such as the ability to study and study in depth together with organisational skills. In carrying out his work, which consists of precise analyses of company financial statements and studies of company financial trends and financial markets, the analyst draws on his knowledge of numerous disciplines such as, for example, corporate finance, accounting, law, econometrics, statistics and financial mathematics.
Outlets
The activity of a financial analyst in its specification is mainly practised as an employee. There are, however, non-negligible areas of freelance practice in the field of financial consultancy, serving public and private companies. The financial analyst works for companies dealing with the securities market, i.e. at finance companies, investment fund management companies, banks, insurance companies and trust companies. Career prospects depend on the company and the individual's skills. One enters the companies as a general collaborator of an analyst, then as a junior analyst, then as a senior analyst and finally as an analyst-manager. There may be opportunities for different jobs in the financial information sector (experts) and also in research or teaching.
Head of Treasury
Functions
Treasury means the set of information that provides an exact picture of debit and credit positions, in euro and in foreign currency, vis-à-vis the system of credit institutions. Keeping the company's liquidity regulation under control, especially in recent years, is an indispensable burden for the company and this necessity has made the role of the treasury manager crucial not only in financial and credit institutions, but also for medium-sized industrial, commercial and service companies.
The treasury manager consults daily with the departments' management to collect the liquidity needs or to detect the cash surplus of the company's various operating units. On the basis of this data, and taking into account the financial plan of the company's income and expenditure forecasts, he or she is in charge of raising funds or setting up possible investments in the event of a cash surplus. The role of treasury manager remains one of the most technical positions within the financial administrative organisation chart. The position holder is responsible for exchange rate risk planning, liquidity optimisation and the company's debt, functions that represent a complex financial management system. Its direct contact is the financial director, who provides the strategies through which the treasurer must operate (management of overdrafts, bank agreements on interest rates receivable and payable, liquidity flows to and from specific business sectors, etc.). Externally, the closest figures are the officials of banks, financial institutions, the managers of the public bodies with which they interact and their counterparts operating within other companies.
Skills
The function of treasury manager requires a specific familiarity with the rules governing capital flows, both for determining the cost of money and for the different choices possible in the financial products market, which in recent years have become increasingly diverse and complex. University education must naturally be oriented towards banking and finance disciplines, without neglecting certain disciplines such as accounting and law.
Outcome
The treasury manager is placed in the finance department and coordinates with the finance director of the company in which he/she works. In turn, he is responsible for managing a working group of one or more employees. The position often involves management and, within the framework of the policies and guidelines to be followed in the monetary and financial markets defined by the management to which it reports, s/he normally performs his/her functions with a large degree of autonomy. The search for this type of professionalism is on the rise, given the great ferment in the world of financial transactions and capital movements, and there is a significant inter-company job market, which promises good career prospects, even with a move into self-employment positions as a financial advisor.
Business Consultant
Functions
The profession of business consultant has experienced great growth since the 1980s, both as an individual profession and within specialised companies. The clients of the companies and consulting firms are medium-sized enterprises with excellent production capacities, but with a need to improve strategic planning, product diversification policy, and medium- and long-term planning in order to ultimately increase their competitive capacity. The business consultant identifies problems and studies medium- and long-term development strategies to improve business competitiveness.
Competences
The business consultant possesses in-depth knowledge in the fields of business economics and economics-law, the ability to use quantitative techniques and to develop analytical methodologies, knowledge of representation and communication tools, also with regard to extraordinary events and/or events with international relevance, an aptitude for dealing with issues related to economic communication and the ability to develop operational mechanisms to support business governance. They must also have a flair for problem solving and an ability to take risks and responsibility.
Outlets
The consultancy market is expected to grow rapidly and the business consultant can work as a freelancer or as an employee or partner in a consultancy company.
Credit analyst (or credit manager)
Functions
The credit analyst (or credit manager) is increasingly in demand by Italian companies: his task is to manage commercial credit in companies, determining how, when and to whom to grant credit facilities.
In essence, s/he is concerned with collecting debts and checking the customer's creditworthiness.
S/he must, therefore, have experience in cash and treasury management, dealing with banks and resolving temporary liquidity crises of companies. The responsibility for commercial credit management involves harmoniously interlinked commercial, financial, administrative, legal and tax assessments and decisions. The credit analyst has the business advisor as a privileged interlocutor who provides the necessary information for the definition of business lines to be undertaken with customers. S/he works, often in teams, with other, even more experienced specialists. S/he liaises with the structure managers and network colleagues who have direct contact with the companies.
Skills
For the credit analyst, the ability to draft documents with graphs and tables to facilitate reading is indispensable. It is a profession that cannot do without reliability and precision, and a propensity for analytical work. With experience, the credit analyst learns to judge the reliability and quality of operating income by being able to predict the development of the companies' economic-financial situation. S/he must be able to respond to the demands of its business partners, without failing to meet the requirements of a certain degree of prudence. Indeed, one of the skills required of the credit analyst is to correlate analysis data with possible effects, even if not in the short term. S/he must also be able to prevent problems from arising or to manage them when they arise. The credit analyst draws on knowledge in numerous disciplines such as, for example, corporate finance, accounting, law, econometrics, statistics and financial mathematics.
Exit
The credit analyst (or credit manager) starts working at certification and auditing companies, financial institutions, banks, finance companies, investment funds. This profession does not necessarily require a period of tenure in other roles; access can take place immediately after studies. There are good opportunities for those who want to set up their own business: there are in fact numerous credit managers who start up service companies with credit management and recovery and/or account management tasks.
Chartered Accountant (after passing the state exam)
Functions
A chartered accountant is a professional who provides advice on accounting, tax and corporate matters. More specifically, the chartered accountant's task is to provide assistance to individuals, entrepreneurs, partnerships, and corporations in the management of accounts, in the drafting of annual and consolidated financial statements (where applicable), in the correct fulfilment of tax obligations required by law, in the implementation of extraordinary management operations, in the setting up of corporate governance, and, more generally, in the management of administrative obligations weighing on business activities, in support of the entrepreneur or the administrative office. The chartered accountant also offers advice on management control and financial planning where necessary and required.
Skills
The chartered accountant is a highly qualified professional. For this reason, a chartered accountant, in order to qualify, must complete an 18-month internship and then take a State examination, the passing of which guarantees registration in the Register of Chartered Accountants. The state examination is designed to ascertain in-depth theoretical and practical knowledge of business, tax and legal subjects. Currently, the state examination consists of three written tests and an oral test.
Outlets
The professional outlets can be either the self-employed pursuit of the profession of chartered accountant or employment in associated firms, consulting firms, administrative offices of industrial and commercial enterprises or tax offices of large companies or groups of companies.