Meet the Grads - Tristan
We are sharing stories from current and former grads, as they talk about their career experiences so far.
This week we hear from Tristan Bettesworth, who recently completed the Strategy and Operations Graduate Program. Tristan now works as a Strategy Analyst in the Strategy team.
As part of the program, Tristan spent six months in the Kuala Lumpur office. We chatted to him in his final few weeks in KL.
What drew you to SEEK as a graduate?
I was drawn to the rotations. I wasn’t one of those people in university who had a firm view of where they wanted to go. I wanted to try some things out to see what I liked and what I didn’t, rather than committing to a specific career immediately.
In the SEEK Graduate Program I was able to work across Product, Strategy and Commercial, which was valuable. The breadth of the opportunities and its relevance to the business was fantastic, and it really helped me to discover my strengths and my ideal career path.
What rotations have you completed?
My first rotation was in the AI and Platform Services (AIPS) team. I was working on how we can we better manage the ranking of ads in search results, linking closely to the value that we receive from ads.
My second rotation was in Strategy. I worked in the Adjacencies team thinking about adjacent revenue streams, where SEEK could play, and how that would work with our strategy. I had exposure to the mergers and acquisitions due diligence process, which I found exciting.
The third rotation was in the Discover team, which is responsible for the search results page, as well as the home page of SEEK. It was a great introduction to product management. I was part of the team when we launched split view, which was probably one of the biggest uplifts to SEEK’s interface since SEEK began. To be part of delivering something that millions of people will see is humbling.
I’m now in JobStreet Express, based in the KL office. To say this rotation has been interesting, and that I’ve learned a lot, would be an understatement! It’s fast paced and a big learning curve, which I have thoroughly enjoyed.
You’re one of the few graduates from ANZ that has taken the opportunity to complete a rotation overseas. What made that appealing to you?
I was keen to build my SEEK network outside of Australia. That’s important to me – there are lots of talented people across the business, and linking with and learning from them was appealing.
Our Asia business also has the biggest growth opportunity, and I was keen to see this in action. The overseas rotation helped me better understand similarities and differences between Australia and Malaysia, from a customer and product perspective. Even how people search for jobs can be different, and I wanted to understand those nuances.
I was also keen to experience a ‘start-up’ style team. The fast product development environment and the decision making of a start-up has been exciting to be a part of.
What project are you most proud of from your time in the Graduate Program?
I’m most proud of my time in the Adjacencies rotation. I was part of discussions with senior leaders and members of our Executive Team, which was incredibly insightful. I feel like you learn the most when you’re involved with conversations that are well above your head. It’s helps you to play to that level and ultimately learn faster.
The skills that I developed in the Adjacencies team I can transfer across the work I do elsewhere, the financial modelling aspect in particular. Basically, looking at a business, overlaying an idea of how I think that business is going to grow over time, and putting that into numbers. I learnt how to determine the value of a business and how that informs the decisions we make around purchasing it or not.
Has this experience been what you expected coming out of university?
I studied accounting, finance and data science. I wanted some combination of all three in my working life, and I have found that at SEEK. I am very fortunate!
What surprised you about the program?
The focus on development. I’ve been incredibly lucky to have some managers that took a personal and genuine interest in my development. Comparing it to my friend’s stories about other workplaces, I feel very lucky to have landed at SEEK.
If you are interested in learning more about SEEK's graduate program please click here.