My first Hackathon! (DePaul x Northern Trust Case Study) pt.2

However, this is not where this incredible journey ends. Northern Trust was incredibly impressed by what DePaul students on both tracks came up with just after two days of work. This is why after a week of participation, all participants received an email which invited us for a Northern Trust office visit, to specifically look at their Forex trading floor.

And me being incredibly eager to build on the relationships I had at the hackathon, I was quick to RSVP for it.

The Northern Trust office we visited was behind the DePaul Center. The reception area was grand and screamed corporate and class. The first stop we made was on the 37^th floor where we visited different meeting rooms which had wonderful views of the city. I was envious of the employees there who had access to such great views every time they glanced at any window!

Lastly, an aspect that impressed me the most was when I asked Craig Koszwski – Head of FX Technology & Product Development – about a banner which talked about “Charity Trading Day”. He let me know how Northern Trust was able to raise a total of $700,000 for global charities such as Red Cross and World Central Kitchen.

This alongside everything else I learned thanks to the case study is something I will keep in mind for years to come. Hopefully, thanks to DePaul, I will keep getting more chances to build on these connections, which will eventually manifest into a cool future!

– xoTani

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PLEASE READ PT.1 HERE!

After lunch, it was time to present. I had taken over the role of working on the main concept of the application, the PPT and the presentation. It was going to be responsible for 1/3 of our final grade, and I was nervous going in. However, once I started to present, I decided to just feel our product and talk about it comfortably. Just as fast as it began, it also ended.

Our team and I witnessed other great teams present wonderful applications, and I was in nothing but awe at the great talented people I get to study alongside at this university.

In the end, our team did not win but I did get praised by one of the tech track judges for having the best presentation of the day! That was a great token of appreciation which made my day. This was an incredible opportunity which helped me learn a lot about fintech in general and helped me communicate with Northern Trust officials. Overall, I am thoroughly looking forward to participating in next year’s case study competition (and hopefully winning it too 😉 )

Then we made our way to a different floor and explored different rooms such as the calm-down room (for when you wish to just take a second for yourself), the focus pods (for doing work which needs extra focus) or the massage room (to relax if the work gets a little too much).

After this came the real deal: The FX floor where we got to talk with traders, brokers and other experienced professionals. Unfortunately (and for obvious reasons), I was not allowed to take any pictures in this section of the office. I learned incredible things about their decision-making, work ethic and the very cool software they use on a daily. Human intelligence is an aspect Northern Trust values the most, and that is very obvious when you talk with anyone at their office.