SMITHFIELD — Fidelity Investments is rolling out 500 new jobs at its Smithfield campus, with hiring starting immediately.
The company delivered the news Monday alongside state leaders including Gov. Dan McKee, marking his first jobs announcement since becoming governor.
Hiring for the positions, about 90% of which are entry-level, will continue throughout the next few quarters.
Rick Metters, Fidelity’s vice president of Rhode Island regional public affairs and government relations, said the company is looking for candidates with strong customer-service skills, and that being a licensed financial professional is not a prerequisite.
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While Fidelity will look to recent graduates to fill the jobs, Metters said it will also consider candidates who “may be in customer-service facing roles in other industries as well that may have been hit by the pandemic,” calling it “an opportunity to take on a new career.”
McKee praised the hiring news as “a sign of things to come,” noting that the Rhode Island is beginning its economic recovery following the devastation of the pandemic.
Touting the state’s recovery, Commerce Secretary Stefan Pryor billed Fidelity’s hiring move part of the “McKee administration effort to get back to work again.”
Senate President Dominick Ruggerio, who was also present, expressed optimism about the potential for the jobs to retain more of Rhode Island’s young workforce, citing the difficulties recent grads have faced in finding work.
“I’d love to have a dime for every time I heard from somebody who said, ‘There are no jobs in Rhode Island,’ or, ‘My son, my daughter just graduated and they have to go out of state for employment.’ “
Among Fidelity’s entry-level opportunities are investment-solutions representatives, which require experience in sales and client consultation as well as certain industry-related certifications. The company is also hiring customer-relations advocates, which requires no finance background. Fidelity would not share the salaries for the positions.
While the jobs will be part of the Smithfield campus, interviews and onboarding will be remote for now. Metters said Fidelity is “actively developing plans on how and when” employees will return to the office, emphasizing that it is “not a question of if.” However, the company may pursue a hybrid model combining remote and in-person work, he said.
Metters did not specify whether COVID-19 vaccinations would be mandatory for staff, though he said the company encourages employees to receive them.
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