Malcolm MacColl
Investor
History and Economics MA; Management, Economics and Politics MLitt (both from the University of St Andrews)
"The working environment throughout Baillie Gifford is very much team based and the trainees are encouraged to express their views and to fully participate in stock discussions."
I was initially attracted to Baillie Gifford given its strong reputation for hands on training and the stability that the partnership structure brings to the firm. I found the graduate training programme to be comprehensive and I was hugely impressed with the willingness of senior colleagues to help deepen my knowledge on a day to day business. I spent my first two years as part of the UK Smaller Companies team, and I quickly found myself in the privileged position of meeting with the senior management of leading companies. The working environment throughout Baillie Gifford is very much team based and the trainees are encouraged to express their views and to fully participate in stock discussions.
As the vast bulk of investment professionals within the firm are brought in at the graduate level, there are always good opportunities for career development. Following my time studying UK companies I moved on to work as part of our North American Investment team where I specialised in areas such as technology and healthcare. Since 2008, I have been working full time as part of a global ‘best ideas’ team.
