Hamish Pepper – Senior Analyst, Financial Markets Department

Hamish completed a BCA (Hons) in Economics at Victoria University in Wellington, and says the work he does at the Bank has strong links with work he completed during his Honours year. “I joined the bank in 2007 as part of the modelling team in Economics. I found that what I studied was immediately relevant and enjoyed having the chance to apply it in a real world situation.” As part of the graduate rotation scheme, Hamish moved to the Financial Markets Research Team in the Financial Markets Department at the beginning of 2009 “I have particularly enjoyed the challenges of my new role. This is where the tyre really hits the road in a monetary policy sense and I have learned a lot about the different aspects of financial markets.”

Team work is important at the Bank, and Hamish appreciates the chance to work collaboratively with his colleagues, particularly those who hold senior positions in the Bank. “I really value the fact that I am continually learning and working in a supportive environment,” he says. “You are given a lot of responsibility from the very first day and senior people listen to you and talk with you about things. There is real respect at every level.”

One thing that surprised Hamish when he started at that the Bank was its thriving social scene. He was a member of the Bank’s Social Club for two years and helped to organise its monthly events, including quiz nights and the mid-year ball. “It definitely seems to have the best social scene compared to other places my friends are working,” he says. “I had worked in a few jobs where I was the youngest person by a long way. It’s nice to work somewhere where there are other young people to hang out with.”

A day in the life of Hamish Pepper

First thing

If I am covering international financial market developments, my day will begin around 7am. The key task for the first part of the morning is to prepare for our morning meeting at 8:30am. This is where interested parties from around the Bank are able to get an update on international and domestic financial market events over the last 24 hours. Preparation will usually involve reading market commentaries, analysing relevant economic data releases and digesting overnight movements. This information is then presented at the morning meeting and in the case of international news, will usually cover equity, bond and commodity market developments for the main Northern Hemisphere markets.

Morning/Afternoon

Following the morning meeting our team will send out a short email to Bank analysts which covers the developments in international financial markets overnight and what’s happening over the next 24 hours. The rest of the morning is spent examining these events in closer detail which will usually involve further analysis and research. This information is then distributed to policy makers at the Bank in our Daily Financial Markets Report which also covers domestic financial market news as well as foreign currency market developments.

Our team plays an important role in the formulation of monetary policy at the Reserve Bank and regularly updates the Monetary Policy Committee on key financial market developments. Leading up to a Monetary Policy Statement, our team will provide a more broad overview of financial market developments to help assist with the Committee’s decision making. In addition, we report relevant information gained through regular communication with a range of market contacts - including traders, strategists and economists.

In between all of this, I’ll attend some of the many seminars hosted by the various policy departments within the Bank. Speakers range from visiting international academics, to industry experts, to Reserve Bank analysts.

At other times I’ll be working on research projects which often culminate in Discussion Papers or Bulletin Articles and are published by the Reserve Bank.

Lunch

With the Reserve Bank building located right in the centre of Wellington, I often go for a run along the waterfront or up into the hills of Kelburn before having lunch. On other occasions I play in one of the Reserve Bank’s indoor netball or soccer teams, which compete in the local social competition that includes other business teams from around Wellington.

Late afternoon

If it’s a Friday, the Department usually ends the week with a few drinks together and once a month Simon Tyler (Head of Financial Markets) will give us a brief overview of what has been happening at a higher level. This is a great time to catch up with other people in the department, talk about plans for the weekend and generally unwind after a busy week.