Pat Hayes, who heads up State Street’s hedge fund business in Ireland, meets with members of its 1,000 strong workforce through an employee townhall meeting that brings together local employees and the teams in Jersey, Poland and the US. The townhall meeting gives him a chance to meet with employees and brief them on the company’s performance. State Street’s hedge fund business services a significant proportion of the 40 per cent of the world’s alternative investment funds that are adminstered in Ireland and Hayes says ‘we will continue to grow the business and provide opportunities for the many talented and highly qualified people in Ireland.’

A lawyer working in financial services needs to be able to think laterally, says Michael Barr, a partner with A&L Goodbody, as 'clients do not want just a legal answer but rather someone who will work with them to get their product into the market in a successful and cost effective way'. Other attributes required include being able to take in and understand quickly new concepts and ideas, and the ability to work well with people at all levels within an organisation, to get the deal done.