Sarah O'Donovan, Chief Risk Officer, BUK Unsecured

Northampton, UK

Chief Risk Officer for Barclays UK Unsecured Lending

If you are at all analytically-minded, Risk is a place where you can really stretch and strengthen your mental muscles. There’s always an intriguing problem to solve and, with my background in pure mathematics, that really hits the mark for me.

Banking wasn’t my first choice; as the only girl studying advanced mathematics at school, it was assumed that I would go into banking, so I was initially very open to the idea. In fact, research was my passion and I tried a number of roles, gradually realising what worked for me and what did not. It was only when I joined Barclays and discovered the world of Risk that I knew that this was a place where I could feel at home and build a career.

It isn’t just about the problem-solving, although there is plenty of that every day and coming up with solutions is my idea of real achievement. It’s also about pace: I thrive on deadlines and urgency; I love being part of a dynamic, talented and friendly team.

That’s why I’ve stayed in Risk for the past 25 years, moving from area to area, experiencing Risk from all angles and learning all the time. Retail lending risk has been my speciality for some time now, and I’m proud of that.