A Day in the Life of a Financial Analyst at Berkeley Lab
A Financial Analyst's work at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is "pretty structured and regimented," with a monthly cycle involving data analysis ("crunching a lot of data, doing spreadsheet analysis"), presentations to managers and department heads, and reviewing cost trends. The work involves a mix of independent analysis and collaborative discussions, culminating in a final week addressing "loose ends" and ad-hoc projects.
Data Analysis, Presentation Skills, Financial Reporting, Interpersonal Communication, Problem-Solving
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Calvin Lau
Financial Analyst
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab)
UCLA 2012
N/A
Business Management & Admin
Energy & Utilities, Government & Public Sector
Finance
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Took Out Loans, LGBTQ
Video Highlights
1. Financial analysts have structured, regimented work weeks.
2. A significant portion of the work involves data analysis, report generation, and presentations.
3. The work includes interaction with department managers and division heads to review costs and financial projections.
Transcript
What does a day in the life of a financial analyst look like?
Finance is actually pretty structured and regimented. Depending on the week of the month, I usually know what my tasks are.
For example, week one is a heavy week where we get information from the previous month. I'm analyzing a lot of numbers, crunching a lot of data, and doing a lot of spreadsheet analysis. I'm also putting together reports and presentations behind the scenes.
Week two is a little more interactive. That's where I'm actually doing presentations to individuals and department managers. I also follow up on any questions and raise any costs I've seen that are a little unexpected.
Week three is a continuation of week two. I meet with the division heads and review all of the different departments. I might meet with a dozen different people during week two and week three.
During these meetings, I explain how we're tracking in terms of actual costs, what we're projected to finish at, and what our trends are. Week four is for cleanup, any loose ends, and sometimes ad hoc projects.