EY provides professional services to a vast array of industries across the world. These services can be categorised into four main areas: Assurance, Consulting, Tax and Strategy and Transactions.
I’ve been working in Assurance for the last seven months. My main role as an auditor is to help enable EY clients to meet their regulatory requirements, and to help ensure that their financial statements are depicting an accurate and fair representation of their financial position. This has great societal importance, as this financial information is being relied upon by stakeholders and investors to base crucial decisions upon.
Depending on the engagement, I will be assigned a number of key accounts to work on. For example, there have been many instances where I have worked on both the fixed assets and cash accounts. My work involves having to carry out procedures to help ensure that the material balances of these accounts, that are stated in EY client’s financial statements, are in fact true.
I was born in Durban, South Africa and moved to New Zealand in 2001. It was my parent’s choice to make the move for better opportunities, and I’m very grateful to be able to call New Zealand my home.
I studied a Bachelor of Civil Engineering/Bachelor of Commerce conjoint degree in Auckland. For quite some time, my career aspirations were set towards Civil Engineering. However, after some experience in the industry, I realised Engineering wasn’t the right fit for me. Accounting had always been my strength throughout my studies, and I’ve always been business-minded, so it made sense to pursue accounting as a career. I don’t regret studying a conjoint degree as I believe the problem solving, thinking out of the box and analytical mindset that I developed throughout my engineering degree has definitely been beneficial in my role as an auditor.
I applied to join the EY Graduate Programme which involved undergoing psychometric testing and an assessment centre, including a two-on-one interview, a group activity and a networking session (don’t worry, it’s not as daunting as it sounds!). I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to begin my Graduate Programme mid-way through last year and I have been at EY for seven months to date. It has been incredibly challenging and rewarding.
Yes, definitely! Although the job can be technical at times, I believe if you have basic accounting knowledge (definitely need to know your debits from your credits!), are eager to learn and willing to work hard, you can have a successful career in this industry. One of the best things about EY is its resources: highly experienced and knowledgeable staff, access to databases of information regarding prior year engagements, current accounting and audit standards, and the EY audit methodology. You never feel disadvantaged or out of depth in your role, help is all around you.
What I love most about my job is the exposure to many different industries. Most of the time we are on-site with EY clients which provides an amazing opportunity to see the ins and outs of how a business operates. This enables us to understand the many complex processes and systems that underpin a business.
This also means you are less likely to be bored on the job. The fact that you are always working in different teams and on different clients brings new challenges and insights which keeps your day interesting!