5 things we look for in great candidates (Spoiler: it’s not just your CV)

Let’s get one thing out of the way:
Yes, your CV matters.

But it’s not the whole story.

At thisbank, we’re not just hiring for skills. We’re hiring for humans (they’re the centre of everything we do). People who are curious, thoughtful and care about doing good work for real people. Fancy titles and perfectly mapped-out career paths can be great, but what really makes someone brilliant to work with is how they show up every day.

Here are the 5 (okay, 6) things we really look for in great candidates 👀

1. Curiosity

You ask smart questions. You want to learn. You don’t just follow instructions and call it a day.

Curiosity shows up when you:

• Want to understand why things work the way they do
• Ask thoughtful questions instead of nodding along
• Care about getting better, not just getting by

We love comfortable people saying, “I don’t know… yet.” That mindset goes a long way.
2. Values fit
Skills can be learned. Values are harder to teach.

We look for people who care about why we do things, not just what we do.
That might show up as:

• Treating people with compassion
• Wanting to build things the responsible way, not just the fast way
• Caring about fairness, transparency and doing good work

When your values line up with ours, work feels easier, more meaningful and way less forced.

3. Problem-solving skills

Real work is rarely neat and tidy.

We are big fans of people who can take a messy problem and break it into smaller, solvable pieces. You don’t have to know the answer straight away, but you should be comfortable:

• Thinking things through
• Trying things out
• Asking for input when needed

Bonus points if you don’t panic when things get a bit complicated. Growth usually lives in the messy middle.

4. Trustworthiness

This one is simple:
If you say you will do something, we trust that you will do it.

That doesn’t mean being perfect. It means being honest, reliable, and open when something is not going to plan. We value people who:

• Follow through
• Speak up early if there is a problem
• Own their work and their mistakes

Trust makes teamwork easier. And work more enjoyable for everyone.

5. Self-management

We hire adults. We treat you like one.

That means we look for people who can manage their time, energy and priorities without needing constant supervision. You do not need to have everything figured out, but you should be able to:

• Take responsibility for your workload
• Ask for help when you need it
• Stay organised enough to not drop the ball

We believe great work happens when people are trusted to own what they do.

6. You care about the customer

Yes, this is number six. We’re rebels like that. We left the best for last.

At the end of the day, we do not build things for job descriptions. We build things for real people. A human-based approach is what we’re all about. We love candidates who:

• Think about how their work affects customers
• Care about making things clearer, easier, or better
• Want to solve real problems, not just tick tasks off a list

When you care about the end user, your work tends to matter more. And it shows.

Ready to see where you could fit in?

If this sounds like your kind of place to work, we would love to meet you.
Take a look at our current roles on the Careers page and see what is open right now.

👉 Explore our open roles and apply today.