Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Financial manager to investment manager

A financial manager already meets 67% of what the investment manager role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From financial manager
67 % overlap
Strong match
To investment manager
31 You already bring
8 Still to learn
51 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Real move, short list to learn

41.6/ 100

1 How much of what an investment manager is expected to do is already part of a financial manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the investment manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

An investment manager role treats 21 of its required skills as things a financial manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • advise on financial matters
  • analyse business plans
  • analyse financial performance of a company
  • analyse financial risk
  • analyse market financial trends
  • assess financial viability

What stands in the way is 8 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 31 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An investment manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a financial manager background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held manage securities management skills
  • already held manage corporate bank accounts management skills
  • already held manage profitability management skills
  • already held perform stock valuation information skills
  • already held liaise with financiers communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held enforce financial policies management skills

All 31 carried skills, including the 21 the investment manager role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 20 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 business, administration and law 3 required, 6 supplementary
  • still to learn corporate social responsibility required
  • still to learn asset management required
  • still to learn public offering required
  • optional, not held green bonds optional
  • optional, not held impact investing optional
  • optional, not held social bonds optional
  • optional, not held sustainable finance optional
  • optional, not held business valuation techniques optional
  • optional, not held types of pensions optional
02 information skills 2 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn monitor stock market required
  • still to learn obtain financial information required
  • optional, not held analyse the credit history of potential customers optional
  • optional, not held examine credit ratings optional
03 communication, collaboration and creativity 2 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn review investment portfolios required
  • still to learn trade securities required
  • optional, not held apply technical communication skills optional
04 management skills 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn develop investment portfolio required
  • optional, not held plan health and safety procedures optional
05 assisting and caring 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held apply credit risk policy optional
06 information and communication technologies (icts) 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held trading software optional
Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries an investment manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 31 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held advise on financial matters skill
  • already held analyse business plans skill
  • already held analyse financial performance of a company skill
  • already held analyse financial risk skill
  • already held analyse market financial trends skill
  • already held assess financial viability skill
  • already held banking activities knowledge
  • already held enforce financial policies skill
  • already held financial analysis knowledge
  • already held financial management knowledge
  • already held financial products knowledge
  • already held financial statements knowledge
  • already held follow company standards skill
  • already held funding methods knowledge
  • already held interpret financial statements skill
  • already held investment analysis knowledge
  • already held liaise with financiers skill
  • already held liaise with managers skill
  • already held manage securities skill
  • already held stock market knowledge
  • already held strive for company growth skill
  • already held communicate with banking professionals skill
  • already held corporate law knowledge
  • already held create a financial plan skill
  • already held financial forecasting knowledge
  • already held financial markets knowledge
  • already held manage budgets skill
  • already held manage corporate bank accounts skill
  • already held manage profitability skill
  • already held perform stock valuation skill
  • already held tax legislation knowledge
12 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held green bonds optional
  • optional, not held impact investing optional
  • optional, not held social bonds optional
  • optional, not held sustainable finance optional
  • optional, not held trading software optional
  • optional, not held analyse the credit history of potential customers optional
  • optional, not held apply credit risk policy optional
  • optional, not held apply technical communication skills optional
  • optional, not held business valuation techniques optional
  • optional, not held examine credit ratings optional
  • optional, not held plan health and safety procedures optional
  • optional, not held types of pensions optional
75 held skills the investment manager role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role accounting knowledge
  • not needed by the target role accounting department processes knowledge
  • not needed by the target role accounting entries knowledge
  • not needed by the target role accounting techniques knowledge
  • not needed by the target role advise on investment skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on public finance skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on risk management skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on tax planning skill
  • not needed by the target role align efforts towards business development skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse insurance risk skill
  • not needed by the target role bookkeeping regulations knowledge
  • not needed by the target role budget for financial needs skill
  • not needed by the target role budgetary principles knowledge
  • not needed by the target role business loans knowledge
  • not needed by the target role check accounting records skill
  • not needed by the target role collect financial data skill
  • not needed by the target role conduct financial audits skill
  • not needed by the target role control financial resources skill
  • not needed by the target role cost management knowledge
  • not needed by the target role create a financial report skill
  • not needed by the target role debt collection techniques knowledge
  • not needed by the target role debt systems knowledge
  • not needed by the target role develop company strategies skill
  • not needed by the target role develop financial products skill
  • not needed by the target role draft accounting procedures skill
  • not needed by the target role economics knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ensure compliance with accounting conventions skill
  • not needed by the target role ensure compliance with company regulations skill
  • not needed by the target role ensure cross-department cooperation skill
  • not needed by the target role ensure information transparency skill
  • not needed by the target role estimate profitability skill
  • not needed by the target role ethics knowledge
  • not needed by the target role evaluate budgets skill
  • not needed by the target role execute feasibility study skill
  • not needed by the target role financial department processes knowledge
  • not needed by the target role financial jurisdiction knowledge
  • not needed by the target role fraud detection knowledge
  • not needed by the target role handle financial transactions skill
  • not needed by the target role implement strategic planning skill
  • not needed by the target role international financial reporting standards knowledge

35 further entries not listed here

10 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn corporate social responsibility required
  • still to learn asset management required
  • still to learn public offering required
  • optional, not held green bonds optional
  • optional, not held impact investing optional
  • optional, not held social bonds optional
  • optional, not held sustainable finance optional
  • optional, not held trading software optional
  • optional, not held business valuation techniques optional
  • optional, not held types of pensions optional
Index

Other moves recorded from financial manager

Full index of moves from financial manager

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a financial manager become an investment manager?

Yes, and it is a moderate move. A financial manager already covers 67% of what an investment manager is expected to do: 31 skills carry over, 21 of which the investment manager role treats as required.

What skills does a financial manager need to become an investment manager?

8 required skills are missing, plus 12 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by business, administration and law. The single most important is corporate social responsibility.

How hard is the move from financial manager to investment manager?

Its learning distance is 41.6 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.