What is the most attractive thing in your eyes about this role with DRW Trading Group?

"Over the past couple of years, I've had an eye on pursuing a career with DRW Trading Group because of your reputation as a forward moving financial institution and your commitment to the communities that you do business in. As a person that believes in togetherness and helping others out where possible, these are values that I hold very high and would bring to the team here."

For this question, your interviewer is looking to gain insight into what you know and like about DRW Trading Group and how they will be able to help you meet your career goals. In your answer, try and stay focused on the alignment of your values with the organization's values and demonstrate that you've done your research on DRW Trading Group and the job you are interviewing for. To try and maintain positivity in your answer, try not to talk bad about a previous employer as that can make you sound like a difficult employee and raise a red flag for your interviewer.

"As I enter the midway point of my career, my job search has been focused on finding an employer that I can spend the rest of my career with and someday retire from. Looking at the history, culture and growth of DRW Trading Group, this is definitely a place that I'd love to be a part of as you continue to grow and prosper into the future."

What statistical models are you familiar with and which do you feel would best apply to the financial field here at DRW Trading Group?

"As a data nerd, I love the realm of statistics and I am very familiar with all of the unique statistical models and how to best apply them to different situations. I've applied linear regression when predicting the outcome based on two historically known data points. I've also applied multivariate models when looking at the distribution of multiple data points. Having dabbled a bit in the market myself and now looking to bring my quantitative analysis skills to the financial field, I am very familiar with the Gaussian model for predicting market changes and would love to bring the knowledge that I have of this model to your team here at DRW Trading Group."

Financial Engineers and Quantitative Analysts are relied upon in the financial industry to utilize complex algorithms and math to predict the trading market's immediate future. For this question, your interviewer will be looking to get the sense that you have the skills to apply statistical model in finance by having you talk about the models that are familiar with and have worked with in the past. While being honest about your experiences, be sure to point out that you are aware that some apply more to finance and the market to set yourself apart during this question.

"As you can see from my prior experience in data engineering and financial analysis, I have extensive experience in time series modelling that utilized both univariate and multivariate models. Multivariate time series modelling has proven to be very effective when looking at and predicting the S&P 500 performance and I think my skills in this arena would greatly benefit your team."

In this role with DRW Trading Group, we will rely on your organized and methodical approach to provide financial analysis reporting. What does your current reporting process consist of?

"In my current role, I utilize the Tableau program to provide live, up to date information to my clients. After using a simply built Excel program for many years, Tableau provides beautiful and easy to understand reporting that my clients can take and run with to make important decision. The connections and automations within the program have save me time and effort, allowing me to take on a much more robust client base. If hired for this role here at DRW Trading Group, I also have familiarity with SAS and Spotfire and consider myself a very quick learner if I need to learn a new program."

Providing the clients of DRW Trading Group with detailed reports will be a key part of this position and your interviewer will be looking to gauge your ability to be organized and detailed while also utilizing your critical thinking skills to provide the best reports possible. In your answer, keep a focus on the techniques and tools that you use to do your job in ensuring that clients are receiving the most accurate and detailed reports possible. As well, let your interviewer know that you are willing to learn new ways and new technologies to help onboard yourself to their team quicker.

"When I need to provide reporting to clients or my firm, I ensure that the reporting includes all key risks and valuation. Today, we as Financial Analysts have so many great tools available to us and my current preference is a statistical program like Crystal Ball. When paired with the advance Excel sheets that I have created, and have been commended, my clients are always happy with the insight that I am able to provide."

What statistical analysis tools do you have experience working with?

"In my current role, most of my analysis is handled in SAS and I've really grown to appreciate the program's ability to to manage large data sets and create predictive modeling in the financial field. From a past job, I have experience on SPSS and also with the SQL programming language to build robust databases. Of course, I have received expert level training in Microsoft Excel and consider myself a master of the program."

As a successful and resourceful Data Analyst, your interviewer at DRW Trading Group is expecting you to be knowledgeable and well-versed in the many tools available to you. In your answer, be sure to show diversity within particular programs like SAS and SPSS while also explaining that you are very proficient in Microsoft Excel. On top of the programs, talk about any experience you have with programming and database language like SQL and Python.

"Having been in the field for over 15 years, looking back at the technological advancements in the tools that we use is very amazing. I consider myself very fluent in both the Sisense and KISSmetrics programs. I also have a good amount of experience in Crystal Reports."

Give an example of a time that you had to resolve a difficult situation with a client or customer. What were the keys to coming to a successful solution?

"Having worked in customer service for one of the areas largest auto dealership for the last six years, handling difficult customers was a situation I had to learn to handle pretty quickly. Just a few weeks ago, I was covering our front desk on a Saturday afternoon when our sales staff was still open for business. I recognized the person approaching the door as a customer that had recently purchased a new vehicle. He stormed through the door, placed his keys on the counter in front of me and said that he demanded a refund on his new purchase because the check engine light had already come on inside of the car. Knowing off the top of my head that his new vehicle was under a full warranty, I calmly let him know that his car was under warranty and that I'd have a member of our sales staff come out and take a quick look. I also let him know that our service department was not working that afternoon and, if needed, we could schedule him for a diagnostic test at his earliest convenience. After our salesman went out to take a quick look and not seeing anything obvious, we ended up giving him a loaner vehicle so his new car could be taken care of on Monday morning. He ended up leaving pretty happy that day and I know that my patience in hearing him out really helped."

In a front facing role with DRW Trading Group where you will be interacting with clients on a daily basis, your interviewer wants to be ensured that you have the skills to resolve client issues with ease and they'll look to do so with this question. In your answer, let your interviewer know that you can take ownership of any situation by talking about a specific time where you did what was necessary to alleviate a difficult situation with a client. Talk about the resources that you used and your interpersonal skills that helped turn a potentially bad situation into a successful one.

"A couple of years ago, I was asked to work with a very high profile client for his financial advising services when he came to our firm because my CEO trusted I could handle what he felt would be a difficult task. From my first meeting with the client, he demanded that we provide more returns than the previous firm that he worked with and he was rather rude with our front desk staff. I took the approach of taking the time to listen to his needs and speak to him more about what my firm could provide. I laid out my experience and track record for him to help him build his trust in me. I knew that with him, I would need to take time to walk through my decision making processes for his investments and he really appreciated that. As of today, we are still working strong together and his wealth is growing."

What types of compensation structures have you worked under in the past and do you have any expectations for this role with DRW Trading Group?

"In the current role that I have been in since graduating from college, I started on a base salary for three years guaranteed that also had a bonus structure tied in for performance. At the the end of the three year base salary period, I was moved to a straight commission and have been on that for almost five years now. I am very confident in my ability to be a high performing advisor on commissions and bonuses and find that I have a very high motivation to succeed in this atmosphere."

Compensation for Financial Advisors can vary from a straight salary, straight commission, salary plus bonus or a fee-only structure. You can speak openly and honestly to your interview about the types of compensation you have received throughout your career up to this point, but it is always important to do your research on DRW Trading Group and how they pay their advisors when you elaborate on the compensation model that suits you best. In the end, it is important to match your expectations with the compensation structure of DRW Trading Group.

"As an experience advisor that has spent time working with a large firm, a small independent firm and being self-employed, I have worked on pretty much every pay structure possible for our profession. At the point that I am at in my career with an aging family and grandchildren on the way, a salary plus bonus structure is what I'm seeking during my job search. From what I understand about this position, the compensation you are offering falls within those parameters. Are you able to expand on the bonus structure so I have a better understanding of how it works?"

If hired for this role at DRW Trading Group, I want to be sure that I'm hiring a motivated individual. What motivates you in your daily work and your career?

"I find myself the most motivated on the job when I am being challenged and when I can continue learning new things. From what I've learned in talking to others that currently work here at DRW Trading Group, the fast paced environment and continuous changes in the industry would keep me very motivated in my work and you'd never have to question if I were truly enjoying and being motivated in my work."

In the financial services field, you should have strong personal motivation to succeed in your work and your interviewer is asking this question to see what it is that make you tick while on the job. While being open and honest in how you stay motivated on the job, make sure that your answer doesn't include collecting a paycheck every week or two. While money is certainly a motivator in this field, make sure that you use it in an appropriate context if you decide to talk about the financial piece of this business as being a motivator. In the end, your interviewer is looking to get a sense of how he or she will be able to keep you hungry for more if you are hired for this role.

"At a young age, my father taught me to do what I love and love what I do and I know that as I approach the middle years of my career that I made the right career choice. The personal finance field has really blended my love of helping others succeed and my passion for statistics and computers. In this role with DRW Trading Group, I'll be working with your clients everyday on helping them achieve financial success and that alone is all of the reason I need to get out of bed every morning."

Among the common issues that are faced by Data Analysts in their work, which one or two problems do you feel really challenge analysts in the financial industry?

"From my two years of experience as a Data Analyst in the financial industry, of course the common issues of overlapping data and duplicate entries did come up. But I've found the biggest issue to be the collection and implementation of real-time data to be the biggest hurdle. With markets continually changing on a daily basis, I've had to be diligent about updating reports for my advisors that I work closely with because what may be valid and real one day may be out of date the next."

While the challenges faced by general data analysts makes for a pretty long generalized list, this question is allowing your interviewer the chance to see your critical thinking skills by having you talk about which challenges you feel will be critical in the financial field. While there isn't necessarily a right or wrong answer in this question, make sure that you are able to speak intelligently about your answer and provide ways with how you can meet the challenges in your work with DRW Trading Group.

"Having some very close contacts that are already working in the financial field in data analysis, I understand that manual data tracking can be a pain point due solely to the time needed to complete. Being highly educated in automated processes and utilizing machine learning in other industries, I think the knowledge I could bring to the team here at DRW Trading Group would really help advance your data analysis practices within my first six months on the job."

How would you define what working capital is for a company and what does its measurement mean?

"In my current role, we measure working capital to gauge the ability of a company to pay off its debts quickly. In working with many industries, from retails to the public sector, the determination of a company's ability to do so based on calculation can differ greatly from industry to industry. To calculate, a range of line items from the company are used to take their current assets minus their current liabilities. In the retail industry, seasonal spikes in business create the need for a much higher working capital and if hired for this role, I have a great understanding of each industries specific needs."

As a Financial Analyst with DRW Trading Group, you will be asked to help measure working capital of organizations. In your definition that you provide to your interviewer, ensure that you give them at least the basic definition of the calculation being current assets minus current liabilities. Then, talk about real situations that you've used the measurement to make critical decisions in the work that you've done in the past. This will confirm with your interviewer that you have the ability to use the measurement in this job.

"In a very broad sense, working capital is found by subtracting an organization's current liabilities from their current assets. In my current role, I utilize a more focused calculation of adding accounts receivable plus inventory and then subtracting accounts payable. The more focused calculation give a better idea of total working capital for organizations when trying to get a better overall picture of their health and efficiency when projecting out towards the future."

At DRW Trading Group, we expect our advisors to be available to speak with clients in person, over the phone and through email. What are your experiences in working with clients through different communication methods?

"Looking back on my career, I can honestly say that success as an Advisor is really due to my passion for finance and my desire for interactions with other people. Being a people person at heart, I love working with clients in any way possible. My communication style with clients is to get to personally know them so I can relate my advising to them personally. While I definitely prefer to interact with my clients face-to-face, I do have a lot of experience communicating both over the phone and email as well. If hired for this position, you'll see very quickly that I have excellent writing skills."

Customer interaction is the name of the game at DRW Trading Group as they rely on excellent customer to service to retain and grow their client base in a cutthroat market. For this question, your interviewer is looking to get a sense of how you use your communication skills to your advantage in your work and how those skills will benefit DRW Trading Group. As you answer and talk about your experiences in communication methods, try to show that you thrive on client interactions and have the ability to be both persuasive and trusted with those interactions.

"As you can see from my resume, I have taken advanced training courses in public speaking and written communication to help further me in this career field. In my early days in finance and making the move to financial advising, communication skills were my area that needed the most professional development. Today, I am confident in my abilities to work one on one with clients directly in person, over the phone or through email and have experience handling clients in all three ways. In my current role, I'd estimate that over 50% of my interactions are through email with the remaining interactions split between face-to-face meetings and phone calls."

We want our advising team at DRW Trading Group to be happy and healthy. How do you manage the day to day stress of being a financial advisor?

"To begin with on the job, I consider myself very excellent at handling stress. Being a goal oriented person, I find happiness in obtaining goals and consider any necessary stresses in pursuit of a goal healthy. Outside of work, I am a very active person that trains for marathons and spends a lot of time outdoors with my family. I find that these activities help cleanse my mind and heal my body to prepare for a new week on the job."

The daily stressors of a career in financial advising can be burdensome, overwhelming and lead to burnout on the job. To get a sense that you can handle stress in a safe and healthy manner and be able to come to work each day with a clean slate, your interviewer is looking to delve into your personal life a bit to see how you manage stress. When answering, you can certainly talk about the things you do on the job to keep as stress free as possible, but also be sure to talk about the things that you do outside of work to avoid burnout. Point out that you have the resources and ability to care for yourself to keep you at the top of your game on the job.

"When I maintain a healthy diet, exercise regularly and spend as much time as possible outside of work with my children, any unnecessary work stresses are put on the back burner and often relieved immediately. I'm a firm believer in a healthy work-life balance, even though it can be very tough to do in our field. Having the ability to answer a client email or phone call during off hours while unwinding has made our work lives better as well."

As a Trader with DRW Trading Group, you will be trusted to take a very diverse approach with our clients. How would you explain the limitations of using solely a P/E Ratio approach to purchasing stock to a client?

"One aspect that I really love about working as a Trader is client interaction and using my knowledge and skills to help educate them in building towards a solid financial future. When I've had clients that tried to educated themselves that bring up P/E Ratios, I will commend that ratio for being an accurate predictor when used in the right context, but I'll also point out that the ratio is only effective when looking at companies within the same industry. That can be useful when I know that an upsurge in a sector like energy will occur, but its not useful when looking at companies within the market as a whole. This is my opportunity to bring new insight into the equation when helping clients."

Oftentimes, clients at DRW Trading Group will come to the table with the expectation that a single market metric will be the determining factor in their investment decisions. Your job as the Trader may be to educate them on the potential dangers of that approach and this question will be used to test your ability to do that. When answering and giving the specific limitation of the P/E Ratio approach, be sure to talk about the importance of weighing several factors in any investment decision.

"While the P/E ration of a company can be effective at times, I would explain to a client that the ratios use of hard data from the past is not always to most accurate predictor of where things will go in the future for them. As well, if the ratio is using projected earnings like in a forward P/E, there is not a guarantee that the estimates used will be accurate."

In SQL, how do you explain the differences between clustered and non-clustered indexes? Can you name a time that you used each?

"In the simplest of terms, a clustered index order records in a table the way that they are physically stored. There can only be one clustered index per table. Non-clustered indexes do not store data to match the physical order that it is stored. Rather, it can hold up to 249 indexes per table. Both types come with their own benefits over the other. In my experience, clustered indexes are suited best for programs that use primary key as an identity integer column. On the other hand, non-clustered make the most sense for programs that need JOIN and WHERE clauses within them."

DRW Trading Group uses indexes to improve query performances within their software and for this question, your interviewer is looking to hear that you have a basic understanding of both clustered and non-clustered indexes. Explain the differences between the two types of indexes and be sure you can either speak to relevant times that you've used each or when would be the appropriate application to use each.

"In my experience, clustered indexes are faster to read but very slow when it comes to update data within. Non-clustered indexes are just the opposite in that they are slower to read but much fast to insert new data into them. In my current role, I mostly use clustered indexes when large numbers of rows need to be retreived and when insert operations are important. Most other times, I will use non-clustered as the standard."

This position at DRW Trading Group has generated a lot of interest from applicants. What do you feel is the one quality that sets you apart from others we are speaking with about this position?

"As I've talked about during this interview process and from what you can see on my resume, I have all of the technical skills needed to grow your financial advising practice here at DRW Trading Group. What sets me apart from my competition is my drive to succeed in this industry and I'd love to bring that drive to DRW Trading Group to help working with your highest profile clients possible. Growing up and continuing to this point in my life, I've always been a very competitive person. I've played many team and individual sports my whole life and my drive to win in those has definitely carried over to and been a huge benefit in my work as a Financial Advisor. I'd love to bring this competitive spirit to your team."

This question is the perfect opportunity for you to highlight the one key quality that makes you the best person for this position, so be sure to really think about what this one quality is ahead of your interview. While there are many ways that you can take you answer to impress your interviewer and seal the deal for you in getting the job, be sure to avoid making assumptions about the other candidates in your answer. As well, be sure to avoid anything in your answer that points to this job being convenient for you personally or the fact that you'll be getting compensated for this work. Those are quick ways for you to go to the bottom of the candidate ranking list.

"From what I understand about this role in Client Services with DRW Trading Group, my day to day work will include a lot of client interaction and I really feel like the job description was written with my skills and abilities in mind. But the thing that will really set me apart for being the perfect fit for this role is my experience on the sales side of things where I spent five years of my working career in the retail sales industry. In sales, I have developed key skills like product knowledge and selling skills that would be very beneficial to this role."

Do you have experience working with different CASE tools? If so, what do you have experience with?

"In my current role, I regularly utilize both diagramming and web development tools. The diagram tools assist our software projects by outlining the system data and components in a graphical form for us and this saves us a great amount of time while also being very reliable. The web development tools greatly help me visualize site changes that I am making because I don't have a deep background in web development. If hired for this position, I'd look forward to learning other CASE tools for prototyping, quality assurance and maintenance."

The world of software engineering has greatly benefited from advancements in computer aided software engineering tools. Because DRW Trading Group is at the forefront of the industry, your interviewer will be looking to hear which tools you have experience with. Make sure not to concern yourself with providing a correct answer here, but rather focus on your flexibility to learn new aides when needed while explaining what you have experience with.

"During my career and in my experience with CASE tools, most of my experience is in the lower CASE elements that focus on coding and testing the software after initial development. CASE tools have certainly made life as a software engineer more efficient and effective and I'd look forward to learn any new CASE tools if hired for this position here at DRW Trading Group."

What programming languages would you consider yourself fluent in?

"From the start of college, where software engineering grew into a passion for me, I've become very fluent in Java, JavaScript and C++. My current role has me working primarily with C++, but I pride myself on my ability and passion to learn new programming languages and would be able to do so if hired for this role with DRW Trading Group."

While this question gives your interviewer insight into the diversity of your programming language experience, they most importantly want to know that you are adaptable and able to learn on the fly if needed. Talk about the different languages that you consider yourself fluent in and, if possible, do as much research into DRW Trading Group as you can prior to your interview and try to speak to the specific languages that they work with.

"During my training to be an engineer and then in my current role since graduating, a majority of my experience falls within Python. My current role delves deeply into artificial intelligence and Python is awesome with this advanced technology. As I understand it from talking to another engineer here at DRW Trading Group, a requirement would be for me to learn Scala. Though I haven't worked directly with Scala, I believe my experience and willingness to learn would have me up and running in no time if hired for this role."

I'm giving you one minute to give me your best pitch on a stock that you would buy or sell right now. Go!

"Right now is the time to buying in big technology and there is no better buy than Alphabet. You are obviously familiar with Google and some of its subsidiary companies. What you may not be familiar with is that Alphabet is the conglomerate that came about as a part of Google's restructuring. With Google and other tech subsidiaries under Alphabet's umbrella growing rapidly, the purchase of Alphabet's stock is really a no-brainer right now."

As a Trader with DRW Trading Group, you will be expected to have a concise sales pitch that takes the important aspects of a complete stock story and summarizes it into a very convincing case for your clients. In essence, you are a salesperson and your answer should be as convincing as possible. Following your pitch to your interviewer, be prepared to answer quick witted follow up questions that they'll likely throw your way that will show your ability to think on your feet and further sell your case as you would likely have to for the clients at DRW Trading Group.

"Seeing that you are heavily invested in Netflix right now, and rightfully a great choice in recent years, my advice would be to get out while the stock is likely at its peak right now. As consumers continue to cut their cords from cable giants across the world, the streaming television service market is growing exponentially and the market will soon be flooded with more companies like Hulu. This will significantly cut into the profits of a giant like Netflix."

If I were to hand you $100,000 to invest today, where would you put that money and why?

"If the money was given personally to me to invest for myself, I would go for a 50-50 split between stocks and bonds being that I'm 37 years old. This would provide a good mix of funds that could be placed into aggressive IT and healthcare type stocks with a lot of growth potential while keeping half safe in the bonds market."

As a simple tool to gauge how you will both satisfy clients and make a profit for DRW Trading Group, your interviewer is looking to hear how you would invest money right now if given the chance. While there is no right or wrong answer for this question, show them your knowledge of breaking up assets based on age if possible. As well, don't hesitate to call out your knowledge of specifically allocating funds into different sectors or individual businesses or industries. In the end, make sure to give a full explanation of why you are choosing what you are to sell it to your interviewer.

"Being that I am young and willing to wisely be aggressive with money invested for myself, I would look for gems in certain industries like social media and internet retail sales. Amazon is expected to see prosperous growth and so are places like Pinterest and Facebook. I'd be wise with these investments while being sure to pay close attention to futures forecasts as those could change quickly, meaning a shift in my direction as well."

What tools of the trade do you find most useful in your work as a Trader?

"I pride myself in saying that my career is my passion and this started at a young age back in a high school economics class. Since that year, I've subscribed to an read publications like the Wall Street Journal, Money Magazine and Barron's. All of these publications still help me to this day to stay on top of my game in the trading business. I also don't hesitate to utilize some of the more reputable online and software programs. Elite Trader and Daily Stocks are great sites that I check daily for new industry news. As well, I'm very proficient in my use of Matlab to analyze market data for use in buying and selling stocks."

As part of your interview for the Trader position with DRW Trading Group, your interviewer will be looking to get a sense that you are very resourceful in your approach to studying the market and other assets so their clients can benefit the most from your approach to trading. As you answer this question, try to be as diverse as possible as you talk about your approach to gaining insightful information that will best suit your clients. Make sure that your interviewer walks away knowing that you know and enjoy the Wall Street Journal just as much as you enjoy different websites and software available to you in your work.

Talk to me about a challenging situation you had to handle on the job that involved another colleague. How did you handle that situation?

"A couple of years ago, we had hired a new Junior Advisor on to our team and I was tasked with being his mentor. Having mentored several other thriving Junior Advisors prior to him starting, I was excited for the opportunity. Within the first week of him being on the job, I overheard a colleague of mine talking very openly about his disdain for the hire of this new Advisor and witnessing him personally criticizing him in a face-to-face encounter. Immediately, I spoke to my colleague in a private office about my concern over his actions and words towards the new Advisor. Having been a part of the interview process and his early mentorship, I knew that he had the skills to succeed and I reiterated that to my colleague. After agreeing to back off on any private criticizing of the new Advisor and a promise to help mentor him, I learned that direct conversations are the best way to handle workplace conflicts."

At the heart of this question, your interviewer is looking to hear how you use solid interpersonal and relationship building skills to diffuse a difficult situation with a coworker when on the job. No matter what situation that you talk about, make sure to focus your answer on a positive mindset and the steps that you walked through to turn a potentially hazardous situation into a good one. As well, talk about lessons learned from that situation that you keep with you to this day on the job.

"f"A couple of years ago, I approached a colleague that had missed a deadline or a big audit we were conducting and she completely blew up at my during our conversation. At first, I was very taken aback by her response because I had never witnessed that from her in many years of working together. While remaining calm, I allowed her the opportunity to vent to me and it turns out that she was going through a lot of things in her personal life that were impacting her work. While keeping our project deadlines in mind, I also took a personal approach in letting her know that she could bring these issues to me as both a colleague and a friend and we could work through them together in the future. This approach is vital to any conflicts that can arise with colleagues and one I don't hesitate to take when needed."

If hired for this role at DRW Trading Group, how would you help make sound investment decisions for our clients?

"In my current role, we have a great team that considers many factors in our investment decisions for our clients. Our engineers have developed mathematical models that gauge the markets and their propensity to shift over time. We have a team of market experts that rely on the new and current times to predict future fluctuations. As the Portfolio Managers, we weigh information from all of these teams to make decisions moving forward and this allows for the greatest confidence in our overall decisions."

While certainly an open ended question for you to run with, your interviewer is really looking to get a sense that you are resourceful in your decision making processes and that you don't rely too heavy on quantitative or qualitative information to make decisions. In your answer, talk about the sound use of data while also relying on your experience and judgement to help in your decision making processes. As well, if you are open and experienced in a team based approach among fellow colleagues, talk about that as well.

"While all of our decisions for our clients are based on assumptions, my experience has taught me to weigh in many different factors when making investment decisions. Looking at historical data to predict futures carries some weight and can be accurate at times, but having firsthand knowledge of different businesses and industries like I do helps put that historical data into perspective when trying to predict the future. If hired for this position at DRW Trading Group, I'll have that ability to make the best decisions possible for your clients."

List the top 3 skills that you have acquired in your last role.

"In the past few years I was able to upgrade my education while still working full time. The biggest skill that I gained was my ability to multi-task as I worked the dual role of employee and student. I also have strong skills in a variety of Microsoft programs such as PowerPoint and Excel."

You have likely gained many valuable skills in your career. Share with the interviewer which skills you value the most. Be sure to include skills that will potentially benefit this potential new employer.

"There are many skills I gained in my most recent position as I had a great training program and my boss was a strong mentor. If I had to choose three top skills I would say that the biggest ones were effective multitasking, solid closing skills, and cold calling abilities."

At DRW Trading Group, our clients are the lifeblood of our business and we do everything in our power to make them happy. What does the term customer service mean to you in your work?

"A pursuit of a career in the financial field really suited my two passions in life of mathematics and problem solving. In this role, helping clients solve problems in an efficient manner and with a smile on my face would be the drive to succeed that I need. At the end of the day, if I see that my work helped a client grow their wealth and achieve their financial goals, I know that it was a job well done."

No matter what position you are interviewing for at DRW Trading Group, your interviewer is looking to hear what customer service means to you in your work and how you apply that philosophy in your everyday work life. In essence, they want to hear your story as to why solid customer service is important to you. Prior to your interviewer, be sure to really think about this question to apply what is important to you in how you go about your work. Whether you talk about problem solving or making people happy, this should be reflected in the work that you do.

"As a people person by nature, I have an innate ability to do what is needed to give customers the best experience possible when I'm working with them. This means that I reflectively listen to their needs and concerns and do what is necessary to help them based on what I heard. In my interactions with customers, I am positive, pleasant and nurturing by nature and I've found that customers are very receptive to my style off communication with them. If hired for this role at DRW Trading Group, you'll quickly find that dedicated customer service is one of top qualities that I will bring to you team."

Why would our clients here at DRW Trading Group want you to be their financial advisor?

"Looking back on my career to this point, I can say with confidence that my success, and the success of my clients, has been due to my ability to build trusting relationships. My path for building a trusting relationship consists of education, communication and action. I educate each client on a personal level, I set expectations for them and deliver on what I say I'm going to do. If hired for this position here at DRW Trading Group, you'll be hiring a Financial Advisor that will be great at bringing aboard new clients as I have many current clients that I am confident will follow me here."

As a professional in financial advising, you know that relationships are built on trust and integrity and for the business at DRW Trading Group, this is equally important. For your answer, your interviewer will be looking how to hear how you build trust with your clients to ensure that they are customers for life. In your answer, make sure that trust and integrity are common themes as you discuss how you work with each client's individual needs to build their portfolio.

"Like in any financial advising relationship, confidentiality and integrity are of utmost importance to clients and these are pieces of the relationships with my clients that I hold in the highest regard. My clients know that I can be trusted to safeguard their personal information and use the best resources possible to help make the best decisions for them based on their personal information and situation. I pride myself on the fact that my clients trust me with their personal information and your clients will have this trust in me as well if I'm hired for this position."

DRW Trading Group strives for client loyalty to keep us running strong into the future. What do you feel are the keys to retaining clients for the long haul?

"I learned a few very important things from a senior mentor early in my career that I still hold near and dear to my heart to this day. First, clients expect me to be responsive to their needs to ensure that they keep their business with me. Because of this, I return phone calls and emails as soon as I can, even if that means in the evening, the early morning or on a Sunday afternoon. These small actions go a long way in showing my clients that I care. Another key to the success of my long-term clients is my ability to set and manage expectations for them. Clients desire to have a plan and know what that plan entails and I pride myself on my ability to work with them to set goals and a plan to achieve those goals."

Businesses in financial advising are constantly pushing the limits to ensure that they retain clients and DRW Trading Group doesn't take client retention lightly. One slip up and a high profile client will be taking their business to a competitor. For this question, your interviewer will be looking to hear that you understand your role in the customer retention equation and how you take pride in that in your everyday work. Make sure to hit on the point that doing the small things, like prompt communication and follow up, go a long way towards keeping clients happy.

"Having lost clients in the past that went to another firm, I take that pain personally and do everything I can do to ensure long lasting relationships with my clients. For me, the first key to long term success with my clients is a proactive approach. I don't wait for clients to get in touch with me to make changes to their portfolio, I reach out to them. This action alone shows my clients that I am working for their best interest. Another action I take that shows my worth to my clients are goal tracking and quarterly progress reports that I send out to them. This is particularly helpful for clients that are working with me in their first two years."

In your work as a Portfolio Administrator, what kind events cause you the most stress on the job?

"While overall market volatility does stress out a lot of Portfolio Administrators, I have a very good way of explaining this volatility to my clients to the point where it doesn't stress me out. For me, any stress that I feel is usually put on me by myself in having very high expectations for my work with clients. To help alleviate this stress, I've learned over time that the goals and expectations that I put on my work have to be realistic and attainable when they sometimes weren't early on in my career."

The high demands of a position as a Portfolio Manager or Administrator bring a lot of stress. Market volatility, greed, underperformance and tough clients can all contribute to a high level of stress in this field. For this question, your interviewer is looking to gain insight on how you handle these stress factors on the job by having you talk a bit about what types of things cause you stress. While you talk openly about what it is that causes you stress or discomfort, make sure that you also talk through how you handle that stress in a safe, healthy and good for business manner.

"In reality, our work as Portfolio Managers for our clients is almost like trying to do the impossible. We are relied upon to make sound decisions for clients based on insufficient information, all while trying to maintain confidence in our decisions. This in itself is a daily stressor on the job and one that I don't take lightly. To help myself with this daily stress, I've learned to accept mistakes as they happen, own up to them with clients and work hard to alleviate those mistakes to put my clients back in the best position possible."

We are looking for the most motivated individuals to join the team here at DRW Trading Group. Where would you like your career to take you in the next five to ten years?

"Now that I am to the midway point of my career, I am looking for my next move to be my final move in finding my work home until I retire. As a successful Financial Advisor today, I want to focus on continuing to grow my skills in advising clients on retirement and private wealth management and it sounds like I'll have that opportunity here at DRW Trading Group. As I continue to grow in my skills and prove my worth to you, a long-term career goal is to be in management where I could oversee the work of Junior Advisors and mentor them towards success."

This common interview question put you in a tough spot where you should talk about your ultimate career goals while also balancing the needs of the position that you are interviewing for and the needs of DRW Trading Group. Prior to your interviewer, try to research the job and DRW Trading Group to the point where you can match your career goals with they DRW Trading Group offers. While your interviewer is looking for a long-term fit for the position they are interviewing you for, it is okay to set your sights higher as long as your goals meet that of the organization's goals. If at all possible during your answer, point out that long-term success with DRW Trading Group is vitally important to you.

"A career in risk analysis has been a dream for some time and this opportunity with DRW Trading Group is really my dream job. If hired here, my goal for the next five to ten years would be to continue to hone my skills and help the work of the department to a point where it is growing and becoming more effective. Down the road, I'm really in a position to be an open book when it comes to where my career with DRW Trading Group would go from there."

Give me an example of a time that you had to solve a problem without having all of the necessary information at hand to do so. How did you handle that situation?

"Back when I first joined my current organization, I was taking a role that had been vacant for many months and I had to start with a backlog of work along with the regular daily activities. This customer service role included logging daily visitors and calls and the interim rep only kept brief notes. After taking the time to walk through training and getting running on my own, I realized that the current workload wouldn't allow me to catch up on the backlog of work that had been missed. While I had ideas of how to play catch up on the work, I approached my supervisor with a few ideas and we settled on having me log hours from home on our system as overtime to get caught up. I worked with our IT staff on getting set up on our network from home and was more that willing to help out with some extra hours."

For this question, your interviewer is looking to test your ability to be analytical and resourceful in a specific situation where you had to dig further to solve a problem. Prior to your interview, try to think of a time in the past where you encountered this specific situation and talk through it by laying out the problem and walking through the step-by-step approach you took to solve the problem. Try to be as detailed you can as you explain how you thought the problem out and worked hard to use the resources you could to help solve the problem. Your interviewer will be relying on these fine details to truly see how you will perform on the job with DRW Trading Group.

"Working for a large financial institution, our advisory staff help cover for each other when we are on vacation, sick or simply out of office for the day. We typically team up in group of three to help provide coverage for each other. A couple of months ago, I fielded a call from a colleague's client while she was away on vacation and completely out of phone coverage. The client had several questions about their personal finances that I couldn't help resolve off the top of my head. I let them know that their advisor was away on vacation but I would take the next hour to research their questions and get back to them shortly. This was a very acceptable path of action to the client and I took the time to get their questions answered quickly."

DRW Trading Group Interview Questions

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1. What is the most attractive thing in your eyes about this role with DRW Trading Group?
2. What statistical models are you familiar with and which do you feel would best apply to the financial field here at DRW Trading Group?
3. In this role with DRW Trading Group, we will rely on your organized and methodical approach to provide financial analysis reporting. What does your current reporting process consist of?
4. What statistical analysis tools do you have experience working with?
5. Give an example of a time that you had to resolve a difficult situation with a client or customer. What were the keys to coming to a successful solution?
6. What types of compensation structures have you worked under in the past and do you have any expectations for this role with DRW Trading Group?
7. If hired for this role at DRW Trading Group, I want to be sure that I'm hiring a motivated individual. What motivates you in your daily work and your career?
8. Among the common issues that are faced by Data Analysts in their work, which one or two problems do you feel really challenge analysts in the financial industry?
9. How would you define what working capital is for a company and what does its measurement mean?
10. At DRW Trading Group, we expect our advisors to be available to speak with clients in person, over the phone and through email. What are your experiences in working with clients through different communication methods?
11. We want our advising team at DRW Trading Group to be happy and healthy. How do you manage the day to day stress of being a financial advisor?
12. As a Trader with DRW Trading Group, you will be trusted to take a very diverse approach with our clients. How would you explain the limitations of using solely a P/E Ratio approach to purchasing stock to a client?
13. In SQL, how do you explain the differences between clustered and non-clustered indexes? Can you name a time that you used each?
14. This position at DRW Trading Group has generated a lot of interest from applicants. What do you feel is the one quality that sets you apart from others we are speaking with about this position?
15. Do you have experience working with different CASE tools? If so, what do you have experience with?
16. What programming languages would you consider yourself fluent in?
17. I'm giving you one minute to give me your best pitch on a stock that you would buy or sell right now. Go!
18. If I were to hand you $100,000 to invest today, where would you put that money and why?
19. What tools of the trade do you find most useful in your work as a Trader?
20. Talk to me about a challenging situation you had to handle on the job that involved another colleague. How did you handle that situation?
21. If hired for this role at DRW Trading Group, how would you help make sound investment decisions for our clients?
22. List the top 3 skills that you have acquired in your last role.
23. At DRW Trading Group, our clients are the lifeblood of our business and we do everything in our power to make them happy. What does the term customer service mean to you in your work?
24. Why would our clients here at DRW Trading Group want you to be their financial advisor?
25. DRW Trading Group strives for client loyalty to keep us running strong into the future. What do you feel are the keys to retaining clients for the long haul?
26. In your work as a Portfolio Administrator, what kind events cause you the most stress on the job?
27. We are looking for the most motivated individuals to join the team here at DRW Trading Group. Where would you like your career to take you in the next five to ten years?
28. Give me an example of a time that you had to solve a problem without having all of the necessary information at hand to do so. How did you handle that situation?

DRW Trading Group Interview Questions

1. What is the most attractive thing in your eyes about this role with DRW Trading Group?

2. What statistical models are you familiar with and which do you feel would best apply to the financial field here at DRW Trading Group?

3. In this role with DRW Trading Group, we will rely on your organized and methodical approach to provide financial analysis reporting. What does your current reporting process consist of?

4. What statistical analysis tools do you have experience working with?

5. Give an example of a time that you had to resolve a difficult situation with a client or customer. What were the keys to coming to a successful solution?

6. What types of compensation structures have you worked under in the past and do you have any expectations for this role with DRW Trading Group?

7. If hired for this role at DRW Trading Group, I want to be sure that I'm hiring a motivated individual. What motivates you in your daily work and your career?

8. Among the common issues that are faced by Data Analysts in their work, which one or two problems do you feel really challenge analysts in the financial industry?

9. How would you define what working capital is for a company and what does its measurement mean?

10. At DRW Trading Group, we expect our advisors to be available to speak with clients in person, over the phone and through email. What are your experiences in working with clients through different communication methods?

11. We want our advising team at DRW Trading Group to be happy and healthy. How do you manage the day to day stress of being a financial advisor?

12. As a Trader with DRW Trading Group, you will be trusted to take a very diverse approach with our clients. How would you explain the limitations of using solely a P/E Ratio approach to purchasing stock to a client?

13. In SQL, how do you explain the differences between clustered and non-clustered indexes? Can you name a time that you used each?

14. This position at DRW Trading Group has generated a lot of interest from applicants. What do you feel is the one quality that sets you apart from others we are speaking with about this position?

15. Do you have experience working with different CASE tools? If so, what do you have experience with?

16. What programming languages would you consider yourself fluent in?

17. I'm giving you one minute to give me your best pitch on a stock that you would buy or sell right now. Go!

18. If I were to hand you $100,000 to invest today, where would you put that money and why?

19. What tools of the trade do you find most useful in your work as a Trader?

20. Talk to me about a challenging situation you had to handle on the job that involved another colleague. How did you handle that situation?

21. If hired for this role at DRW Trading Group, how would you help make sound investment decisions for our clients?

22. List the top 3 skills that you have acquired in your last role.

23. At DRW Trading Group, our clients are the lifeblood of our business and we do everything in our power to make them happy. What does the term customer service mean to you in your work?

24. Why would our clients here at DRW Trading Group want you to be their financial advisor?

25. DRW Trading Group strives for client loyalty to keep us running strong into the future. What do you feel are the keys to retaining clients for the long haul?

26. In your work as a Portfolio Administrator, what kind events cause you the most stress on the job?

27. We are looking for the most motivated individuals to join the team here at DRW Trading Group. Where would you like your career to take you in the next five to ten years?

28. Give me an example of a time that you had to solve a problem without having all of the necessary information at hand to do so. How did you handle that situation?