If I Had to do it Again

As I look back at my life, every failure/success achieved, emotion felt and decisions made, I have no regrets. I am who I am today because of past experiences. This blog post is a reminder that in order to set yourself up for eternal success in the future, you must not only fight through obstacles in the present but also learn from the hard fought battles in the past.

Consulting New Associate (part of the new rotational program): 6 months in!!!

After my first post, I thought that in this blog I would update you on everything I’ve done in my first 6 months with PwC. This program offers us the chance to rotate through different competencies for two years.

Experiences:

1. Operations project – worked with Lean and 6 Sigma experts from the Operation competency to reduce wastes in different processes of a warehouse.
2. People and Change competency - built a team building event off site for IT senior managers across a large oil and gas company.
3. Financial Service competency – went to Montreal to work on procurement process improvements for the public sector.
4. Operations Competency – assisted in the building of network design models and worked jointly with an inventory management expert for a transportation company out of British-Colombia.
5. Sustainability and Climate Change – did research for a large multinational on the common measures used in their industry to publicly address human rights policy; was part of a research team on the impact of the climate change for insurance companies.
6. Sustainability and Climate Change – wrote two proposals for companies operating in the province of Quebec regarding their CO2 emissions strategy.
7. Operations / Financial Service – worked on developing a proposal for a retail store looking to launch a credit card in Canada.

Keys to success:

Networking:

During my first 6 months at PwC, I truly realized the value of networking. Through my different projects and multiple out of the office PwC events, I have developed a great internal network that saved me precious time at multiple occasions when facing a challenge. People at PwC realize the value of having a great network and the importance of maintaining a win-win relationship.

Team work:

On different projects, the team quickly took me in, coached me and gave me responsibilities. The “teach-don’t-tell” approach was often applied and was definitely one of the reasons why I felt involved and was able to contribute to the success of the team.

Attitude:

People at PwC are fun to work with! It does not matter if you work with senior associates, managers, directors or partners, people here bring their best attitude to work and it’s contagious! Not only does it have an impact on coworkers but the clients see it as well.

More than 6 months ago, I joined the #1 professional service firm in the world and was told that my job was going to be fun, demanding, full of challenges, learning opportunities and different experiences. I have been implicated in 4 different competencies and 7 different assignments, worked in Montreal for 6 weeks and built an internal network full of people willing to help at anytime.

All of that said, I still play hockey, train every week and manage to ski in the Rockies on the weekends. What does an opportunity of a lifetime look like to you?

More Than Just Accounting - Sean's Amazing Race Canada Audition Tape!

This past week I entered into the Amazing Race Canada with my long time friend Kevin Shaw. If you haven't checked out our video, please do so at: Sean and Kevin - Amazing Race Audition Tape but what most of you will not be aware of, is how the final product was drastically different than what Kevin and I initially had envisioned.

Accountants are busy – it must be tax season right?...not exactly

Every January, when I have to begin to tell family and friends that work is starting to get really busy, they’re reply always is “Oh right, tax season is coming up.” The reality is that most people assume that accountants are busiest during tax season. However, the truth is that a lot of accountants define their busy season as the time between January and March. So why are we so busy during this cold, mostly uneventful time of year? And what does PwC do to help us through it?, read below to find out.

Hear from the 2012 Consulting New Associates

My colleagues and I will echo that the Consulting New Associates have ignited our Consulting Practice with youth, enthusiasm, fresh and brilliant talent and they have simply been amazing to work with!  We have recently completed hiring for the 2013 Consulting New Associates and I wanted to say a special congratulations to all of you who have accepted your offer with us.  Continue reading below to find out more about what the 2012 Consulting New Associates have to say about PwC.

I've sent out 3 questions to the 2012 Consulting New Associates to obtain their feedback about their PwC experiences in the past 2 months.  Here are some of quotes directly from them:

PwC Acceptance Party

 

Last week I was invited to the PwC BC Region Acceptance Party for the candidates who accepted an offer to start with us in 2013.  What a party!  We boarded the bus around lunchtime, which whisked us out of drizzly, grey Vancouver, along the gorgeous Sea-to-Sky highway, and dropped us off at one of my very favourite weekend destinations – Whistler!  

Everything is Bigger...

...in Texas! Just arrived in Houston, Texas to begin my 6-month secondment with the Houston office. I am very excited to meet new people, experience new adventures and see what life in Texas is all about. The one thing I can say about my very brief time here (arrived last week) is that the people at PwC are consistently helpful and great to work with...and of course, everything is MUCH bigger in Texas.

Your Tips For An Excellent Group Assessment

First, I want to wish the individuals who passed the assessment process for the Brilliant Futures Program thus far a huge Good Luck!

The group assessment will be a unique evaluation process to allow PwC to gain a better insight on your personal aspirations and goals, your fit to the PwC values, your thought process, people interaction and presentation skills.  There will be 3 parts involved in the assessment process that will allow you to showcase these skills.

Here are some of the tips and tricks that I've used to survive the various assessment centers that I participated it either during my University Tenure during Case competitions or while interviewing for jobs after I graduated from the Asper School of Business.

1) Stay cool, calm and collected - It is ok to be nervous, but do not let your nerves get to you.  Take a deep breath before you start

2) Review your resume and cover letter - make sure to know the details of your personal brand depicted in your cover letter and resume.  Remember the stories you will tell to showcase your experiences and fit within the PwC culture

3) Avoid 2 major mistakes.  Key is to balance
a. Analysis Paralysis - this is when you have read your case study over and over again and you keep analyzing to a point that you burn precious time to develop your solution
b. Solution Polution - this is when you are already solutioning before you even complete reading the case
Simply put, the best way to manage a case is to read it, take notes of the key issues, outline your potential solution and pick the best one.

4) Manage your time wisely - the truth is that you will have a set time to complete your case.  Try to come up with an outline of your solution before going into details.  You want to showcase that you have a plan in solving the problem rather than have an incomplete case solution.

5) Be articulate in explaining your solution - it is the combinations of your thought process, explanation and content that sometimes matter.

6) Interact and collaborate with other people in the session - in a group assessment your ability to connect, work with and leverage other people's point of view and skill-sets allows you to stand out.

Our Audit Approach

At PwC, we constantly review our audit approaches and attempt to be even more efficient and effective in our work and the service we deliver to our clients. We focus our efforts on how we work (what we do, when we do it and who does what) and how we provide value to our clients.

Top 8 Signs Consulting at PwC Is Right For You?

I've been asked many times, "Why Consulting? And Why PwC?" If you are an experienced person, graduating or someone in between careers unsure of what to do, here are some signs that you belong in Consulting at PwC.

1) You have a passion for people: Simply put, you love working and collaborating with people from a diverse set of competencies, cultures and professional backgrounds. It is what one of the things that make consulting at PwC a great place to work.