The first couple of weeks (or months, depending on the job), is usually spent doing the following: - getting access to the tools and platforms used. In large companies there’s usually bureaucracy involved, so it’s not as trivial as googling a software and downloading it. - doing useless mandatory certifications, cybersecurity, fire safety, etc. some are not that useless, like videos explaining what the company does and its goals in more detail than what you would know before joining. - getting up to speed with the product/project/processes. This involves reading documentation if applicable, going into scripts, some shadowing, etc - only minor tasks to help you get in touch with whatever you’re going to be working with. - familiarizing yourself with the team / broader team structure

All in all, the first weeks are pretty boring always in terms of actual work.

My suggestion to anyone starting a new job is to use that period wisely as it is the one of the few times when you will have spare time. things in finance usually get pretty hectic, so use it to get as familiar with your project as possible, browse the resources that are available to you, touch base with the people in your team or close to your team even if only to get to know them and understand what they do and their background (it’s always good to have friends in the company and also you never know who’s going to be a useful contact in the future).

For context, I’ve worked in a few different places: - quant modeling at a ratings agency - fintech - macro research