• Each day, hundreds of billions of dollars change hands on the major securities exchanges. This money is used to invest in securities, such as stocks, bonds, or mutual funds, which are bought and sold by large institutional investors, mutual funds, pension plans, and the general public.
• Most securities trades are arranged through securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents, whether they are between individuals with a few hundred dollars or large institutions with hundreds of millions of dollars.
• The duties of sales agents vary greatly depending on their specialty.
• The most common type of securities sales agent is called a broker or stock broker.
• Stock brokers advise everyday people, or retail investors, on appropriate investments based on their needs and financial ability.
• Once the client and broker agree on the best investment, the broker electronically sends the order to the floor of the securities exchange to complete the transaction.
• After the transaction is finalized, the broker charges a commission for the service.
• The most important part of a broker's job is finding clients and building a customer base.
• Thus, beginning securities and commodities sales agents spend much of their time searching for clients, often relying heavily on telephone solicitation, or “cold calling,” from a list of potential clients.
• Some agents network by joining civic organizations or social groups, while others may rely on referrals from satisfied customers.
• Investment bankers are sales agents who connect businesses that need money to finance their operations or expansion plans with investors who are interested in providing that funding in exchange for debt (in the form of bonds) or equity (in the form of stock).
• This process is called underwriting, and it is the main function of the investment bank. Investment bankers have to sell twice: first, they sell their advisory services to help companies issue new stock or bonds, and second, they sell the securities issued to investors.
• Perhaps the most important advisory service provided by investment banks is to help companies new to the public investment arena issue stock for the first time.
• This process, known as an initial public offering, or IPO, can take a great deal of effort because private companies must meet stringent financial requirements to become publicly owned companies.
• Corporate finance departments also help private companies sell stock to institutional investors or wealthy individuals.
• They also advise companies that are interested in funding their operations by taking on debt—often issued in the form of bonds. Unlike a stock, which entitles its holder to partial ownership of a company, a bond entitles its holder to be repaid with a pre-determined rate of interest.
• Another important advisory service is provided by the mergers and acquisitions department.
• Investment bankers in this area advise companies that are interested in being acquired, or interested in merging with or purchasing other companies.
• Once a potential seller or buyer is found, bankers advise their client on how to execute the agreement.
• Generally both buyers and sellers have investment banks working for them to make sure that the transaction goes smoothly.
• Investment banking sales agents and traders sell stocks and bonds to investors. Instead of selling their services to companies for fees, salespeople and traders sell securities to customers for commissions.
• These sales agents generally contact customers and their agents to discuss new stock and bond issues.
• When an investor decides to make a purchase, the order goes to the trading floor. Traders execute buy and sell orders from clients and make trades on behalf of the bank itself.
• Because markets fluctuate so much, trading is a split-second decision-making process. If a trader cannot secure the promised price on an exchange, millions of dollars could potentially be lost.
• On the other hand, if a trader finds a better deal, the bank could make millions more.
• A small but powerful group of sales agents work directly on the floor of a stock or commodities exchange.
• When a firm or investor wishes to buy or sell a security or commodity, sales agents relay the order through their firm's computers to the floor of the exchange.
• There, floor brokers negotiate the price with other floor brokers, make the sale, and forward the purchase price to the sales agents.
• In addition to floor brokers, who work for individual securities dealers, there are also independent brokers.
• These are similar to floor brokers, except that they are not buyers for specific firms.
• Instead, they can buy and sell stocks for their own accounts, or corporate accounts that they manage, or they can sell their services to floor brokers who are too busy to execute all of the trades they are responsible for making.
• Specialists or market makers also work directly on the exchange floor, and there is generally one for each security or commodity being traded.
• They facilitate the trading process by quoting prices and by buying or selling shares when there are too many or too few available.
• Financial services sales agents consult on a wide variety of banking, securities, insurance, and other related services to individuals and businesses, often catering the services to meet the client’s financial needs.
• They contact potential customers to explain their services which may include checking accounts, loans, certificate of deposits, individual retirement accounts, credit cards, and estate and retirement planning.

• Consolidation of the financial industry, mainly stemming from recent global financial problems, will be the largest inhibitor of employment growth.
• Increased levels of industry consolidation often result in duplicated tasks among workers, a scenario that is expected to result in layoffs of many broker, sales, and investment banking positions.
• Additionally, the deregulation of financial markets in past decades has broken down the barriers between investment activities and banking, resulting in competition between traditional banks and securities companies on all levels.
• However, many of the major investment banks are now owned by large banks and most major banks also have brokerages, which allow their customers to quickly and easily transfer money between their personal banking and investment accounts.
• The ability of customers to access accounts online, as well as manage their personal investments through the Internet, will result in fewer brokers as well.
• Competition for jobs will continue to be keen with more applicants than available openings.
• Additionally, the recent financial crisis has resulted in mass consolidation in the financial industry, a scenario that will likely result in fewer positions as companies attempt to streamline operations by eliminating duplicate tasks.
• Entry-level sales agents, particularly those with previous sales experience, should face better prospects in smaller firms, as opposed to larger firms, where many positions have recently been eliminated.
• Investment banking is especially known for its competitive hiring process and candidates will face particularly keen competition for the relatively few openings.
• Having a degree from a prestigious undergraduate institution is very helpful, as are excellent grades in finance, economics, accounting, and business courses.
• Certifications and graduate degrees, such as a CFA certification or a master’s degree in business or finance, can also significantly improve an applicant’s prospects.
• Competition is even greater for positions working in exchanges.
• Employment in the securities industry is closely connected with market conditions and the state of the overall economy and is highly volatile during recessionary periods.
• Turnover is high for newcomers, who face difficult prospects no matter when they join the industry.
• Once established, however, securities and commodities sales agents have a very strong attachment to their profession because of their high earnings and considerable investment in training.

Other jobs requiring knowledge of finance and an ability to sell include financial analysts; Insurance sales agents; Loan officers; Personal financial advisors; Real estate brokers and sales agents.

• BA in Business Administration
• BA in Economics
• BA in Finance
• BA in Accounting
• MBA is a plus