Graduate Blog

Ana - Assurance

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Ok so last time I said hi, I said I couldn't tell you anything about the work, let me tell you that's changed!! I've been working on the audit of a Hedge Fund for four weeks now. There are seven of us working on the team, reporting to a manager, senior manager and partner. This in itself is a change from BWS where the largest team I've worked with was four people reporting to one manager and partner. But out here it's considered a small team - some of the other secondee's are working on a team of 40, and that's before you count the managers and partners!!

I felt like the new kid on the block all over again for the first few days but my team have been really helpful and friendly and I think I'm finally getting to grips with the work. The main differences are in the way a fund company operates compared to for example a manufacturing company; i.e. buying and selling financial securities as opposed to physical products. However, the basic principle of the task of auditing remains the same, which I guess is why people say having an accountancy/auditing qualification is like having an international passport.

I hope you are all enjoyed the snow back home. The American's I am working with think it's hilarious that the country practically shut down over 5" of snow when 10" here is considered no big deal!!

Niamh - Assurance

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Hi there my name is Niamh and I am currently working as a Senior Associate in my second year here in PwC. I started working the firm at the end of September 2007, after completing a BA in Accounting and Finance and the MBS at DCU. Like everyone else who starts with PwC through the Assurance practice, I attended the three week induction training. There we were introduced to all of the PwC systems and the various tasks needed to be completed on a job as an Associate. This was a really enjoyable start to my career as it is where I met most of my closest friends from work, and many of the colleagues that I work alongside on a daily basis. As a result it made starting my first day in the Spencer Dock office that employs about 2,000 people much less daunting!

Unlike most people in Assurance I am one of the lucky few that has gotten to experience two different departments in PwC. I initially joined PwC and working in the Insurance department, and last October 2008 I transferred into Business Wealth and Services (BWS). In the Insurance Department I worked on many different types of audits from small businesses set up solely to insure one firm, to multinational companies insuring the public. As an Associate I found that the work was similar to that of my peers in other departments, however I knew that from the experience of writing my thesis on charities, I was very interested to get a chance working in BWS going forward. Like Insurance, I found BWS to be a small department where the people are very close which makes working together very easy and enjoyable. BWS is a market group that works with a variety of clients in many different industries. The majority of these are small to medium Irish companies, there are both Governmental and Non-Governmental organisations and of course there are lots of charities!

Some of the jobs I have worked on since I joined BWS in October are a large technology company and a consulting company in Dublin, a beverages company in Wexford, an explosives manufacturer in Kildare and four charities where I worked from the office. My next client is in Liverpool so as you see there can be travelling involved in this department. It is now busy season in the Assurance department as many clients have a 31st December year end and need their accounts to be audited before publishing them so there is a lot to be done, however I will keep you updated with the goings on!