When hard work pays off!
Yan Gong joined Thorntons Investments in September 2017, after a brief spell at Alliance Trust and with a Masters Degree in Finance from St Andrews University under her belt. When Yan chose to learn her new role in the business support team by reading and learning the 64-page manual, we knew she was going to be no ordinary employee. A few months in, Yan decided to start studying again for her professional exams.
At Thorntons Investments, we consider ourselves a learning organisation and support many of our team to progress through their professional exams in financial services – this can support the role they are in, but often carves out the next step in their career with us.
Yan started on the exam route fairly rapidly and could often be seen in a meeting room at lunchtime poring over her textbooks. Within 12 months, she had rattled through her CII Level 3 Certificate in Financial Planning, passing every exam with flying colours. Each time Yan said she hoped she might pass – and each time she came away with one of the highest marks awarded to any student! This didn’t go unnoticed by the exam body, the CII (Chartered Insurance Institute), and we are extremely proud to announce that Yan is to be awarded the Skandia Quaich for attaining the highest result in the Certificate in Life and Pensions category. She is delighted to be attending the Institute’s awards ceremony in Glasgow on 21 November.
This is a tremendous achievement by Yan, and it doesn’t stop there. Since completing her Certificate, she has already begun studying for her Level 4 Diploma and continues to attack each exam with great enthusiasm. Best of all, Yan’s work ethic and impact on the team cannot be under-estimated, and she has recently been rewarded with a promotion to the role of Trainee Paraplanner.
We have a very strong feeling that Yan’s career won’t stop here, and we will continue to support her growth within our team for years to come. Congratulations Yan – and thank you!