What’s It Like Being a Client Associate at a Leading Bank? One Woman Shares Details

At Bank of America, they are committed to attracting and retaining top talent globally in order to continuously deliver together for their customers, clients and communities. Along with taking care of their customers, they want to ensure that they are a great place for people to work, and they strive to create an environment where all employees have the opportunity to achieve their goals.

One such employee who is reaching her goals is Christine Alexander, a Wealth Management Client Associate for Merrill, a Bank of America company. Alexander loves the inclusive and supportive culture, saying that “I have had several incredible women mentors throughout my career thus far, and, as a first-generation American millennial woman myself, simply having such strong representation — including young women and women of color — at all levels of our organization has been such a driving force! Bank of America/Merrill is truly focused on investing in female talent at our company, as well as supporting the economic empowerment of women around the world.”

This representation is key, since as Alexander puts it, “If you can’t see it, you can’t be it”.

In this article, Alexander shares more about her job, what it’s like being a Client Associate and how Bank of America has supported her career journey. Read on to learn more!

Tell us a bit about your job. What’s your current role and what’s your day-to-day like?

I am currently a Wealth Management Client Associate at the Park Avenue office in New York City… and, honestly, no day is the same! As a Client Associate, my foremost priority is interacting with clients to ensure their satisfaction and help them make meaningful progress on their financial journey. On any given day, I could be: helping a client gift securities to the charity of their choice, analyzing how best to fund their grandchild's college education, or, perhaps, assisting with a quarterly portfolio review. 

There is also quite a bit of flexibility associated with my role, which has allowed me to pursue several leadership opportunities within the firm as well as explore the area of wealth management, which I am truly passionate about.

What appealed to you about the Client Associate role? How did Bank of America support you as you grew within the CA role? 

The Client Associate role has been the perfect starting point to my career since it has allowed me to explore aspects of wealth management (portfolio analysis, business development, financial planning, etc.) that I am most passionate about. After working with various teams, I quickly realized the significance of helping a family pursue their goals through financial planning. My education and focusing on financial planning has been an important goal that I have been so proud, and thankful, to pursue.

I obtained my FINRA licenses (Series 7 and Series 66) in 2017, the CRPC® designation in 2018, the CFP® designation in 2020 and, most recently, the ChFC® designation. The firm and my team have supported me in every possible way while I studied for each of these designations. 

I just accepted an offer to be a Financial Advisor on the team. In this role, I will be helping clients define their short-term and long-term financial goals, while reviewing their annual cash flow, building wealth projections and helping to create a roadmap on how to get there!

How do you manage your work-life balance with such a demanding role?

Above all, I can't stress enough how grateful and thankful I am for the role models I have  (both in my professional and personal development) here at Bank of America and Merrill. I like to think of work-life balance as a continuously evolving cycle, rather than trying to achieve the perfect, equal balance since each of the multiple life roles we manage will require more effort/time than others during different stages of our life.

As an example, I recently got engaged! I have to prioritize my roles and responsibilities accordingly while seeking help from others both at work and with wedding planning. My biggest piece of advice is to take time away from technology whenever you can. Unplugging helps me stay focused on the present moment and truly connect with my loved ones.

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Would you like to hear from other women who are growing their careers with Bank of America. Check out these articles!

• Setting the Tone: Nila Yousufi on Leading and Supporting at Bank of America

• How to Mentor Other Women in the Workplace — Advice from a Bank of America Leader

And, if you’d like to find a career at Bank of America yourself, they’re hiring! Click the link below to browse current jobs.

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