Michelle Berges Cebrian joined Deutsche Bank Management Consulting (DBMC) as an analyst in March 2018. Since then, she has been part of key projects of the bank involving direct contact with the bank’s executive management. Furthermore, she is also a member of the DBMC recruiting team where she interviews applicants and is responsible for keeping in touch with candidates interested in joining the division. In this interview she tells us more about her path to Deutsche Bank Group Management Consulting, her experiences with the team, and what she believes it takes to work at DBMC.
Deutsche Bank Management Consulting & start your career
What brought you to Deutsche Bank, and Group Management Consulting in particular?
I studied Business Administration with a concentration in Finance during my Bachelor, and like most students completed different internships during this time. One of my internships was in the strategy department of a bank, which is when I discovered my passion for both the banking sector as well as the possibility to set strategic goals and thereby shape a corporation’s future. I then pursued a Master in Finance at ESADE in Barcelona, where I was able to combine both my interest in the financial industry and a strategic perspective on its future. My first contact with DBMC was through a fellow student of mine who completed his summer internship at DBMC in Frankfurt. I was really intrigued about the department as he told me about the high impact projects he worked on, but especially his positive experiences with the team members. Once I was able to confirm this positive picture of the DBMC team myself during my interview process, I decided that this was the perfect place to launch my career and, thus, started working at DBMC a couple of months later.
Deutsche Bank Management Consulting & team structures
How do you like the team structures at DBMC?
Teams always vary in size, depending on the project – I have worked in a team of as little as 3 people, as well as in teams with up to 15 people. Independent of the team’s size however, it is always ensured that every member plays a vital part, has the responsibility for a certain range of tasks, and interacts with the relevant stakeholders. Nonetheless, there is still room to make mistakes and to ask for help – at DBMC you will always receive as much support as needed while ensuring that every team member has the opportunity to learn and grow with each challenge. I also genuinely like that we have many young colleagues here at DBMC, which means that we get on very well on a personal level and often socialize after work or on weekends.
Deutsche Bank Management Consulting & team-based project work
You mentioned personal development through team-based project work. Can you describe that in more detail?
One of the most important aspects for me at DBMC is that we are continuously encouraged to develop ourselves. Part of this includes rotating to different projects approximately every three to six months and discovering new departments. Although this can be overwhelming when you only have little prior experience around a particular topic, it allows us to learn more about the bank and deepen our knowledge. Furthermore, here at DBMC every team member sets their own goals together with their line manager and regularly reviews and discusses how to best achieve them. During my time here, my previous and future project managers often talked to each other before I started a new project with them in order to understand where my strengths and weaknesses lie and how they can best support me in achieving my development goals.
Deutsche Bank Management Consulting & important skills
What personal goals have you set yourself?
Since starting at DBMC I have set a variety of goals. Firstly, I wanted to work at least on one project in every DB business division to understand the various business models within a universal bank and build a network across divisions and departments. Moreover, I would like to especially focus on developing my analytical and problem-solving skills during my future projects. Lastly, I would like to improve my communication and presentation skills, which I hope to do during my projects but also with the help of external trainings.
Deutsche Bank Management Consulting & advices for students
Do you have any key advice for students or recent graduates who might be interested in working at DBMC?
I genuinely believe that the subject you studied is not the most important aspect during the application process. Instead, your interest in and passion for the banking landscape in general and Deutsche Bank in particular, as well as dealing with strategic issues is crucial. For me it is important to see that my colleagues are as motivated as I am to work on the bank’s current issues and help shape the bank’s future. To do so, it is obviously important to have good analytical, quantitative, problem-solving and communication skills. These skills will be tested in the interviews and preparation is key. At the same time, the personal fit at DBMC is at least equally important. We have a great team here that gets on well and has fun, is open-minded and always keen to experience new things together.
Deutsche Bank Management Consulting & Free time during the Job
Is there still time for personal interests alongside your work?
Of course! In my opinion the key is to organize yourself well. Sports are very important to me, therefore I started to go for a run with my dog in the mornings before work. Those of us at DBMC who are up for the challenge also have the opportunity to participate in a tough mudder as a team once a year. As the name suggests, this is a very muddy and demanding matter (and for me means at least a week of very sore muscles), but it has always been a lot of fun and proved to be a great team building activity. In the past, I also played tennis on a competitive level. While I do not have time to do it competitively anymore, I still love to play tennis with friends or colleagues on the weekend. Lastly, I am extremely passionate about football. I follow nearly every single game of my favourite team FC Barcelona, either at home together with my family or on special occasions at Camp Nou in Barcelona!
Insider-tipps by Michelle Berges Cebrian, Assistant Vice President at DBMC: "Once I was able to confirm this positive picture of the DBMC team myself during my interview process, I decided that this was the perfect place to launch my career and, thus, started working at DBMC a couple of months later."
