Through the F3 women in finance program, we received the opportunity to spend a week with Perennial Partners for work experience. This was an amazing opportunity as we were able to deep dive into different aspects of finance, and we were able to have some surreal experiences like attending conferences and meetings. We have learned so many new soft skills and have developed a good understanding of the industry. Ultimately, we really enjoyed this experience because we were mentored by many accomplished women who helped us see the path we could take to find a career in finance.
Day 1: eInvest and Operations
What is eInvest?
eInvest creates Active ETFs, or exchange traded Funds. You can trade ETFs on the stock market. These ETFs are actively managed, with diverse portfolios.
Day in the life
Today was our first day of work experience and we were very excited to get started. We meet with Camilla Love who talked us through what the parent company, Perennial Partners does. We had a run-down on all the boutiques that Perennial Partners have, and we also talked about a client’s journey through the company. We then sat with the eInvest team who create active ETFs. This was a new concept to us, and we were interested to learn how this was becoming a prominent part of the industry. With the team, we went through all the different investment options that eInvest had to offer, and we even practiced pitching as to which one was our favourite fund. The second half of the day was spent with the operations team where they taught us about their role in the company and gave us a further general overview of the company from an operational perspective. We then sat alongside one of the operations team members, shadowing their work. It was very interesting to see the technology they use for their jobs and to see their normal work routines.
Day 2: Perennial Better Future
What is Perennial Better Future?
Perennial Better Future is an authentic ESG investment firm that values and looks for small-cap companies that generate a positive contribution to the future while generating a strong and consistent return for investors. “What is ESG” you might ask, well ESG stands for Environmental, Social and Governance. Perennial Better future believes that companies that have these ethics and are contributing to society will perform better and return more profit, as ESG is now being considered an important aspect of a company in society.
Day in the life
Today we were able to spend some time with the Perennial Better Future team, which focuses on investing in companies that value ESG. We began the day by attending the UBS Australian Emerging Companies Conference for small-cap companies. The first session covered the growth in the Electric Vehicle market in Australia. The panel discussed how Australia has a massive market for Electric Vehicles and they discussed how these cars can have a positive environmental impact on the country. We found it quite interesting to see how this industry will gain from the new leadership in the Australian Government and how they plan to manage the implementation of Electric Vehicles. The session conference that we attended was for the company APM, a human services provider for the disabled community. The panel conveyed how there is a multitude of opportunities for disabled people to enter the workforce with meaningful jobs and they also discussed how these opportunities could change lives for the better. Again, it was interesting to discuss how the recent election results will influence this company and it was also interesting to see how APM was looking to expand its service to refugees. After seeing these panels, we had a discussion on how these industries aligned with the ESG goals of the eInvest Better Future fund (ASX:IMPQ) and we also evaluated whether we would consider investing in these companies. To end the day, we were able to listen in to a MedTech company pitch that had developed an instrument to cure Aortic Valve Stenosis. In this pitch, we learned how companies present themselves to investors and we also were able to understand the types of questions and responses that happen during a pitch. After the pitch, with our mentor, we shared our thoughts on the pitch and again were able to evaluate with her the pros and cons of the company.
Day 3: Daintree Capital
What is Daintree Capital?
Daintree specialises in investing in fixed income or bonds. Daintree focuses on capital preservation as a cornerstone of their investment philosophy.
Day in the life
Today we spent the day with Daintree Capital which specializes in fixed income (bonds). We began the day by sitting in for a meeting with a research house, that evaluated the Daintree team and funds for recommendation to financial planners. In this meeting, we learnt of how Daintree Capital works, its philosophies, and its future ventures. We found it very interesting to see Daintree’s overlay strategy which combines risk mitigation and value creation to create the best return for their clients. Near the end of the day, we had the amazing opportunity to sit in for a job interview. We really appreciated this experience because we were able to observe how to act in a job interview and how to react to some of the pressing questions that may be asked. We know that we can take some of the skills that we learned today and apply them in our day-to-day activities. To conclude the day, we created a PowerPoint presentation on how would pitch Daintree Capital to a research house. This was a fun activity and it also helped us consolidate all the new things we have just learned.
Day 4: Perennial Private Investments
What are Perennial Private investments?
Perennial Private Investments invest in unlisted companies. This means that the company is not listed on the ASX, but instead develop a relationship with the company in order to invest. Perennial Private Investments also invest only for 5-10% of ownership and keep that title for about seven years, as well as invest in over eighty companies. These are common characteristics of private investments.
Day in the life
Today we spent the day with the Perennial Private investment team, who look to invest in companies during their pre-IPO stage. We had the opportunity to sit in for two company meetings. The first meeting was with a grocery delivery service. We really enjoyed how this company pitched their product to investors as they were able to create a story and a solid case. We were really impressed with their market evaluation as they conveyed how Australia has a huge market for groceries. We also found it interesting how the company referred to the success of similar companies overseas to build their case. Secondly, we met with a company that specialized in telehealth. This meeting was a working lunch (so we had some great food!) but we also saw how this company has actively taken feedback from previous meetings and have now applied it to become a better business. We finished the day with another meeting, however this time it was Perennial asking for investment. This meeting really opened our eyes to the entire investment process, and I enjoyed seeing how Perennial took the pitch.
Day 5: Legal and Compliance
Day in the life
Today was our last day. We spent the morning with Perennial legal and compliance team. We had a run-down on how this team oversees all the trades done by the portfolio managers and how they also manage risk outside of Perennial. We were given an insight into Bloomberg, a system they use, and we saw how the team finds, tracks and resolves trading issues that may arise. We finished off the day with lunch with the eInvest team.
In summary, we have really enjoyed our work experience at Perennial Partners because we have learnt so much about the financial and investment industry and we have met some amazing people that given us guidance.
Disclaimer: Please note that these are the views of the authors, Year 10 Abbotsleigh students, Shalisa Wijeyawardena and Aanya Bates and is not financial advice.
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