Spring Insight Programme

An amazing three-day programme that gave me a great insight into Barclays.
Matthew Jones, Intern, Spring 2011 and Summer 2012
Retail and Business Banking Leadership

Applications for this programme have now closed.

If you’re still near the beginning of your time at university, but you’re already starting to think about a possible leadership career, then our four-day Spring Insight Programme is the perfect opportunity for you.

The programme
Developing you
What we look for

Our Spring Insight Programme is designed to give you early insight into a leadership role at Barclays, and to help you decide if a career in financial services is something you’re really interested in. It’s intended for people in their first year at university, or second year of a four-year course.

We won’t ask you to focus on a particular function or programme at this stage. The aim here is more to give you broad exposure to the business so, when the time comes, you’re in a position to choose the best path for you.Taking place over four days at our Canary Wharf Headquarters, the programme involves shadowing some of our current Future Leaders so you can see exactly what their work consists of, as well as taking part in a number of activities designed to help you hone your skills.

You’ll also have opportunities to make valuable contacts at a series of networking and social events, and will even be able to put your questions to senior business leaders at a special Q and A session.

Read more…

Meet our people

When it comes to seeing more of what makes our Spring Insight Programme so special, it’s a good idea to ask those who know best – the people who have already been through it. Here’s what Matt Jones has to say about his experiences on the programme.

Video transcript

What has been the highlight of your career at Barclays to date?

The Spring Insight programme was absolutely brilliant. The highlight for me was actually getting a project first thing on Monday morning and being able to complete it and present it by Wednesday to some senior stakeholders, and also the head of the programme itself. We’re able to think out of the box so we actually can think of holograms for children, fingerprint technology, anything you said would actually be listened to.What made it so special?

I think it was so special because I actually felt valued and I actually felt part of the team. Trust was a massive thing for me and people actually had trust in me, once they had trust in me that gave me more confidence and inspired me to do an even better job.

What great things are happening in the business right now?

There are such exciting times for Barclays at the moment and there are so many great things that are currently going on. Project wise, if we look at mobile banking business apps for example, which is one of the projects I’m actually working on. These are at the height of technology and these are all intertwined within the likes of Pingit and the feature store whereby Barclays are trying to make it a much more personable experience, I think that really plays to their strengths.

What makes banking interesting right now?

I think what makes Barclays and banking exciting and interesting is actually the current climate that we’re living in, both in the UK and globally, there are so many changes and we always have to adapt to new regulations and also technology advances. We have to be aware of what our competitors are doing and also develop that and enhance it so that Barclays can be the best.

Show transcript

As well as providing you with insight into what it’s like to be a leader at Barclays, the programme is designed to help you build up your experience and develop some of the skills you’ll need in your future career.

Here are some of the development opportunities we provide:

  • Business games to help you improve your commercial acumen
  • Coaching on interview, presentation and leadership skills
  • The opportunity, at the end of the four days, to present to some of our business leaders and put everything you’ve learnt into practice
Read more…

Developing you

What do you learn on an internship? What are the opportunities to develop? Hear from interns and Future Leaders about the many development opportunities at Barclays.

Meet our people

When it comes to seeing more of what makes our Spring Insight Programme so special, it’s a good idea to ask those who know best – the people who have already been through it. Here’s what Matt Jones has to say about his experiences on the programme.

Video transcript

What has been the highlight of your career at Barclays to date?

The Spring Insight programme was absolutely brilliant. The highlight for me was actually getting a project first thing on Monday morning and being able to complete it and present it by Wednesday to some senior stakeholders, and also the head of the programme itself. We’re able to think out of the box so we actually can think of holograms for children, fingerprint technology, anything you said would actually be listened to.What made it so special?

I think it was so special because I actually felt valued and I actually felt part of the team. Trust was a massive thing for me and people actually had trust in me, once they had trust in me that gave me more confidence and inspired me to do an even better job.

What great things are happening in the business right now?

There are such exciting times for Barclays at the moment and there are so many great things that are currently going on. Project wise, if we look at mobile banking business apps for example, which is one of the projects I’m actually working on. These are at the height of technology and these are all intertwined within the likes of Pingit and the feature store whereby Barclays are trying to make it a much more personable experience, I think that really plays to their strengths.

What makes banking interesting right now?

I think what makes Barclays and banking exciting and interesting is actually the current climate that we’re living in, both in the UK and globally, there are so many changes and we always have to adapt to new regulations and also technology advances. We have to be aware of what our competitors are doing and also develop that and enhance it so that Barclays can be the best.

Show transcript

We see this as a stepping stone on the way to our Future Leaders Development Programme, so we’re ultimately looking for exactly the same behaviours we expect to find in all our Future Leaders.

If your initial application is successful, and you pass our online testing, you’ll have a telephone interview, where we’ll explore these behaviours in detail. To apply, you must have:

  • 300+ UCAS points from your top three A-Levels (or equivalent)
  • Previous work experience
  • Evidence of extra-curricular activity
Read more…

What we look for

We look for real leadership potential – people who can lead and challenge, be bold in their approach and yet collaborate to achieve the best possible outcome. Hear from two of our senior managers on what they are looking for from our Future Leaders.

Meet our people

When it comes to seeing more of what makes our Spring Insight Programme so special, it’s a good idea to ask those who know best – the people who have already been through it. Here’s what Matt Jones has to say about his experiences on the programme.

Video transcript

What has been the highlight of your career at Barclays to date?

The Spring Insight programme was absolutely brilliant. The highlight for me was actually getting a project first thing on Monday morning and being able to complete it and present it by Wednesday to some senior stakeholders, and also the head of the programme itself. We’re able to think out of the box so we actually can think of holograms for children, fingerprint technology, anything you said would actually be listened to.What made it so special?

I think it was so special because I actually felt valued and I actually felt part of the team. Trust was a massive thing for me and people actually had trust in me, once they had trust in me that gave me more confidence and inspired me to do an even better job.

What great things are happening in the business right now?

There are such exciting times for Barclays at the moment and there are so many great things that are currently going on. Project wise, if we look at mobile banking business apps for example, which is one of the projects I’m actually working on. These are at the height of technology and these are all intertwined within the likes of Pingit and the feature store whereby Barclays are trying to make it a much more personable experience, I think that really plays to their strengths.

What makes banking interesting right now?

I think what makes Barclays and banking exciting and interesting is actually the current climate that we’re living in, both in the UK and globally, there are so many changes and we always have to adapt to new regulations and also technology advances. We have to be aware of what our competitors are doing and also develop that and enhance it so that Barclays can be the best.

Show transcript