2026 Defined Contribution Pensions Investment A..

2026 Defined Contribution Pensions Investment Advisory Graduate Analyst Programme - Edinburgh

Length of programme: Around 3 years to achieve your relevant professional qualification, however you are employed on a permanent basis from the start of your graduate role.

Qualifications you’ll work for: you’ll work for: Charter holder of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) qualification or equivalent

Location: Edinburgh

Entry requirements:
We are not able to provide visa sponsorship for this position and therefore you will need to be able to work in the UK without the need for visa sponsorship now or in the future.

Working as a Defined Contribution (DC) Pensions Investment Advisory Graduate Analyst at Isio

Our Defined Contribution (DC) team is an area of rapid growth within our Pensions Practice, particularly so on the DC Investment Advisory side. We have a large and established range of existing clients but are winning new work on a regular basis - it really is a fast-moving market. Our DC Investment team provides investment consulting services to both trustees and sponsors of Defined Contribution pension schemes, working alongside our wider non-investment DC specialists to provide joined-up advice and effective scheme governance.

Our DC team sits within our wider Employee Benefits business., we provide a range of services to our clients which are all about supporting them with providing the best possible offering to their employees around Employee Benefits. This includes supporting with benefit design, benefits technology, risk and healthcare broking, pensions, workplace savings advice and governance, and employee support. Isio’s aim is to help our clients bring those offerings to their employees into an integrated proposition.

For graduates, it’s the chance to take the first step towards becoming an expert in your field. Challenging and rewarding, working in DC Investment Advisory requires strong communication skills and financial acumen, paired with the ability to take responsibility right from the beginning. Graduates have the ambition and confidence to take the initiative and develop their own investment ideas. Our environment is one that graduates can thrive in and where getting our best investment ideas into client portfolios, and ultimately delivering better outcomes for members is our priority.

Pension schemes often pose significant financial risks for organisations and trustees, whilst remaining an important part of any reward strategy. Balancing the costs and risks of a pension scheme as well as meeting best practice governance requirements is becoming increasingly complex - yet essential for a business to succeed. The needs of the industry and our clients are ever evolving and at Isio, we constantly look at ways to innovate and develop new solutions to overcome these challenges. You will build your experience and knowledge in:
Financial Modelling - enabling our clients to better understand the risks and expected returns arising from different investment strategies.

Investment Performance Analysis - monitoring and reporting on how our clients’ and their members’ DC investment strategies have performed compared to their objectives and the wider market.

Capital Markets Views - assessing investment opportunities for our clients’ portfolios.

Fund Manager Selection - helping clients to pick high quality fund managers.

Implementation and Transition Management - helping clients to implement our advice in the most efficient way.

DC Provider Selection - advising clients on selecting, implementing and monitoring a DC pensions provider from an investment perspective.

As a Graduate Analyst working in DC Pensions Investment Advisory at Isio you will get involved in:
Preparing and presenting DC pensions investment performance reports to our clients.

Drafting DC pension investment reports on fund selection, default strategy reviews and other DC pension investment client reports.

Researching DC pension providers, investment managers and products.

Supporting DC pension provider reviews, analysing tender responses and drafting high quality summaries and reports.

Sharing knowledge with colleagues throughout the department.

You’ll study for a professional qualification whilst being trained on the job. Your role will see you build up a wide range of knowledge on DC markets and DC investments, through delivering both client work and researching DC pension products and providers.

Training and Development

As an DC Pensions Investment Advisory graduate analyst at Isio, you’ll study for the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exams or equivalent. We recognise the challenges and time constraints involved in balancing work and study commitments, so we’ll support you with a study day allowance and tutorials. Additional support will come from:
Meeting your peers and senior leaders at a Graduate induction event.

Support with developing key personal and professional behaviour.

Regular technical training and o