software engineer

analyst

examiner

software test engineer

senior analyst

Finra

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) is the largest independent regulator for all securities firms doing business in the United States. It is a non-governmental organization that performs financial regulation of member brokerage firms and exchange markets. Dodd Frank act introduced significant changes (consolidation of regulatory agencies, new oversight council to evaluate systemic risk, Comprehensive regulation of financial markets, Consumer protection reforms) to existing FINRA systems

Responsibilities: 
RAD Sustainment System
•	Lead testing efforts for PFRD (Private Fund Reporting) and IARD (Investment Adviser) systems
•	Created Automation Scripts and maintained Regression Threads for CRD (Central Registration Depository) system using QTP
•	Devised Automation Optimization Plan which focused on Automation Tests Breakdown(into smoke test, regression tests and test suites), Hardware and Software Streamlining, Data Setup Optimization and Managing Automation Backlog
•	Presented a MOBILE APP TEST Strategy/Solution, which included identifying different mobile operating systems, basics of telecom, types of mobile apps testing, capabilities of simulators and emulators and exploring tools like Monkeytalk and PerfectoMobile
•	Developed Visio design workflows/documents which when used with JTAF automation framework was used to automate an entire test suite of application called QUALS that lead to automation execution time reduction
•	Built, maintained and executed automation scripts using Jenkins/Hudson. This involved creating views for different environments, configuring machines to run the scripts, creating build files, start remote execution and report execution results
•	Proposed using Data Dictionary approach to centralize the maintenance of various validation and completeness check messages in the PFRD application
•	Developed detailed test strategy to test Finra’s EFP (Electronic Fingerprint Processing) system with simulated FBI response
•	Used STARTEAM to capture and organize Change Requests and Defects, assign work, and follow team activity. Proposed custom fields that help capture meta data to produce custom reports on QC team workload and testing status

Mortgage Licensing System 
•	Created Test Plans for EMS (Education Management), UST (Uniform State Test) and ACN (Advanced Change Notice) systems for which the project used AGILE method
•	Enforced the QC team members to create HLTS (High Level Test Strategy) documents for every major functional component which was then reviewed and signed off by all teams
•	Piloting JIRA to capture and organize issues, work assignments, and follow team activity. Designed and managed dashboards to monitor other teams – Dev, Data, BA, CM
•	Designed many web pages and presented QA related documentation and content to both internal and external in CONFLUENCE
•	Proposed automation test strategy to reduce automation execution time by moving away from GUI based script execution to XML and Data Level script execution
•	Migrating Test cases from DOORS when Quality Center was adopted as new test case repository
•	Developed SQL Queries and executed Triggers and Stored procedures to validate the database and back end of the application. 
•	Performance Center – Created Views and Groups for load testing, assigning number of users, define load generators and load test schedule. Performance tests, included load tests, volume tests, stress tests, endurance tests, scalability tests. Reported Defects.
•	Posted discussion threads on critical and priority unresolved items based on design feedback and requirements at the Team discussion site for every release. Participated in frequent meetings with End user to obtain feedback and improved QA processes to accommodate changes
•	Completed education courses on following topics every year- Document Integrity Training, FINRA Technology Records Training, Information Privacy and Protection Policy

Environment: MS Dotnet, MS Visual Studio 2010, TFS, VSS, Oracle11g, MS Lync, MS Visio, MS Office, JIRA, JTAF, TOAD, Confluence, XML, Jenkins, Hudson, DOORS, Quality Center , Performance Center, XMLSPY,STARTEAM


In Fixed Income Investigations you are asked what schedule you would like (7:30-4; 8:30-5) and you are expected to STICK to it. Please don't show up 15 minutes past your start time; you will soon see an email from your boss asking you to explain your whereabouts so they can report to their boss about why you were late! Yes, seriously.

In Fixed Income Investigations, the management team will hire ANYONE to be a team leader/manager, qualified or not! Knowing the job and products regulated or not! So long as they get some chump they can push and poke and force to stress their team members until they conform.

In Fixed Income Investigations, turnover is high. As in the most senior staffer could be in the role for as little as 1.5-2 years. For most analyst, the 'honeymoon' period ends after 3-6mos, and after a year...you are looking for a job somewhere else. Most persons are out the door after they reach 2 years.

One thing FINRA never mentions during the interview is the company's use of STAR, a time tracking program that requires employees to represent how they spend their time each and every day. In some groups this is not a big deal. However, in Fixed Income Investigations, staff members are asked to enter their time on a daily basis. Managers are required to review time on a weekly basis and then submit a report to their boss noting any issues with their staff and how they have addressed the problem. So there's a lot of "you spent too much time on this case...."

Micromanaging is they way they prefer to do it. There is no team camaraderie, and moral is in the toilet. (as evidenced by the survey results discussed at the annual All Hands Meeting).

FINRA, particualry Fixed INcome Investigations, is a decent place to work for stability, a set schedule, and great benefits, but, if you want to apply for a job here, find someone who can give you the skinny before you accept an offer. They do a good job of selling the positions but it will suck the life out of you!

Working here has provided me with a great deal of responsibility and authority which was really positive from an experience perspective. I have been able to spend a lot of my day learning valuable skills for on the job, as well as about the securities industry as a whole. I lead teams in conducting examinations of everything from 1-man shops to the largest investment banks in the world. So there really is no "typical" day here- every day is different and your opportunity to learn is as big as you want it to be.

I have worked closely with senior management to make decisions on how to handle staff, exam planning, and findings from exams, as well as other sensitive issues. I find the management at a more local level is approachable and reasonable, but I have found that above that, the management loses touch with what is happening. It is not the worst thing in the world, but it does affect your job from day to day, and not in a positive way. Overall the people who work at FINRA are incredibly nice and professional. I believe the connections I have made there will last a lifetime.

The hardest part of my job, most often, is having difficult conversations. A huge part of being a regulator is relaying information to people who do not want to hear it. Juggling a team of examiners who report to you, while trying to meet a deadline, and handling firm personnel's expectations and record production is tasking at times, but telling people they are going to be cited, when you know they meant well, is tough. However, at the end of the day, my job has been to ensure compliance with the rules.

The most enjoyable part of my job has been having the ability to learn anything I want. I've gotten exposure to so many products and business lines, as well as a number of compliance systems. I understand how the securities industry works and what must be done to maintain compliant processes, and I have been able to do this while working with the highest level of executive leadership at firms all over Wall Street. It's been both exciting and fulfilling.

A typical day at FINRA is mundane, repetitive, and largely unfulfilling. Most of the work involves routine tasks that lack creativity or meaningful impact, making it difficult to stay motivated or find a sense of purpose.

If there’s one thing I learned during my time there, it’s how to be a “good soldier” — follow orders, keep your head down, and avoid questioning the inefficiencies or inconsistencies around you. Unfortunately, initiative and independent thought are rarely encouraged or rewarded.

Management, in my experience, was one of the weakest aspects of the organization. Leadership often appeared incompetent and disconnected from day-to-day operations. Favoritism is prevalent, and cliques thrive, creating an environment where advancement depends more on who you know than on the quality of your work.

The workplace culture suffers as a result. Morale is consistently low, and many employees seem disengaged or simply counting the hours until the end of the day. The micromanagement style only adds to the frustration, making it difficult to feel trusted or empowered in your role.

The hardest part of the job is dealing with the constant oversight from micromanagers who seem more focused on controlling minor details than developing their teams. Ironically, the most enjoyable part of each day is leaving at 5 p.m. — the one time you feel truly free from the stifling atmosphere.

In summary, FINRA offers stability, but at the cost of professional growth, morale, and job satisfaction.

Contracted for over eleven years with FINRA, and initially worked with a number of smart, technical people, but later upper management decisions (technical or otherwise) and requirements analysis left much to be desired.

After working there for eleven years and doing good work for them in the process, I was down-shifted to a project that was primarily refactoring poorly written code that didn't really didn't take advantage of my skill set. That left a bad taste in my mouth which I expressed in professional manner for the first time ever in what I thought (and was told) was an environment conducive to feedback. After being on this particular project for about four to five months and told earlier in the year it had funding for at least another year and a half, another management decision from high up on the chain came down the pipeline saying too much budgeting was allocated for the project, and I had to be let go. This irritated me considerably, especially since it has occurred during an inopportune job environment due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In technology: not sure about the business side.

Upper management plays lip service to the value of people, but doesn't back it up. A culture of giving added responsibilities but then they have to "wait and see" whether how you do before they can compensate you for it. Toxic culture is ignored, and people promoting toxic culture are promoted. They make a big deal about the bonus, but it's really just a means to defer compensation. Base pay is low because of "the bonus". Management will tell you stories about how HR prevents them from promoting / increasing compensation, but those stories aren't actually true, as it's management who actually has the final say.

All that said, lots of good people work there: talented, intelligent and professional. Work is interesting / challenging, and they use a lot of new, modern technology. 

I would come in to the office, make my breakfast, set up the conference rooms for whatever event that will take place that day, Check the calendar to see who is expected into the office, run my daily reports, answering phones, process and hand out the mail, file, photo coping, faxing, order lunch, contact person for office machine issues, order office and kitchen supplies, prepare out going mail, plan employee morale events,
The most challenging part was multi tasking having to stop one duties and start something else all the while getting interrupted all day long while having to remain upbeat and pleasant. 
I love the variety of job tasks, here was never a dull moment, there was always something different to do everything day, management was laid back, fun and friendly, it was a diversity and I learned how to perfect my skills everyday,

•	Responsibilities included assessing financial solutions and cost estimating for the Invoice Tracking Contracts management workflow, federal regulations incorporating 508 compliance, C&A certifications and Privacy Impact Implications (PII) requirements for Office of Research and Finance.
•	Drafted Prospectus, Business Cases, Project charters, Project Schedules, WBS task plans, WBS Dictionaries, Risk assessment plans, Metrics & Milestones monitoring dashboards and Presentations on project success for FESWG.
•	Designed and implemented framework for Business Process Analysis based on ITIL and BABOK standards.
•	Responsible for developing “as-is” and "to-be" business processes models and use cases using Agile (Scrum) Methodology using DOORS for all projects in the Office of Research Finance (ORF) division.

A job that I was able to grow, turned into a job in a box. The problem was there was way too many layers of management with many managers not having a clue what they were doing or talking about.

Some SVP's are so scared to push out and try new things, that they live in their little boxes and this I feel holds FINRA back from being a successful growing company capable of doing some really good things.  The rank and file of the company is fantastic.  Some really great minds there, that are being held back and not allowed to grow.  

Too many upper level SVP's in technology especially, love to point fingers because they know very little.  This company could be a great company if people would get out of their own way.  Some are not only scared of upper level management, but they actually know very little about what should be done.

Leadership strives to be very fair to each staff member by treating everyone with consistency, respect, and transparency. Decisions are made based on clear expectations, established policies, and open communication rather than personal bias. Leadership takes the time to listen to individual concerns, understand different perspectives, and ensure that everyone feels heard and valued. When addressing performance or workplace issues, the focus remains on facts and constructive feedback, providing equal opportunities for growth and improvement. Leadership also prioritizes recognizing achievements and contributions across the team, ensuring that credit is given where it’s due. By maintaining a balanced and approachable leadership style, the goal is to create a positive work environment where staff members feel supported, motivated, and confident that they are being treated fairly at all times.

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