Meet Bridget O'Donovan

JOHN LEWIS FINANCIAL SERVICES

Bridget O'Donovan

"it's okay to be flexible, just take it one step at a time."

Can you describe your job in a few lines?

I work for John Lewis Financial Services. We offer a range of products like credit cards, insurance, and investment. I work in savings and investments, helping people save for the short and long term to give themselves more financial security in the future.

What does your typical day look like?

It’s a mix of desk work and meetings. I work with lots of other teams across the business to launch new products and services. Or I might be watching customers talk about how they manage their money. Or I might be talking to external partners about how we could launch a new product together.

What is your career highlight to date?

I’ve had two favourite jobs. Both were moments where I felt I made a direct impact. The first was designing a range of breast pumps for Philips. I remember one event we had people trying to sneak them out in their handbags they loved them so much! Having a baby can be such a stressful life change and to be able to make something easier for people was so wonderful. The other highlight was developing an introduction to cash savers into investing for the first time. We developed a ten-minute journey to help them understand investing, the benefits, the risks and understanding how to weigh them. Cash savers went from being terrified of investing to “actually I could do this”, in ten minutes. It was so rewarding!

What is the one piece of career advice you would give your 20 year-old self?

I’ve made a lot of changes over my career. I went off to do a Ph.D. (thinking I wanted to be a lecturer like my dad) only to be 6 months in and thought “What have I done? This is totally wrong!”. I persisted, finished my Ph.D. and moved into business. And I’ve made many more jumps since across industries and had a really interesting career. So, to my 20-year-old self I would say chill, it’s okay to be flexible just take it one step at a time. You don’t have to have a 5-10 year plan; it’s okay to change your mind and do something else.

Have you mastered a good work-life balance? How do you switch off?

My first job was working for PWC in strategy and consulting for long hours, partners overpromising to clients and you having to work your weekends to deliver. After three years I swore I was never going to have that kind of job again. Because of this, I am very strict about my working hours and when I go home, I don’t check my emails. I think you have to make yourself your first priority, balance is so important.