How has your career developed since
joining the firm?
I’ve been with the firm a couple of years now
and my career has progressed very quickly. I joined the
Transaction Advisory Services team as an executive and have since
been promoted to the position of assistant manager. I’m essentially
a financial adviser to the public and private market. It’s my job
to provide due diligence services to clients carrying out
acquisitions. I’ve had the chance to get involved in business
development too.
What’s been your best
experience?
My assignment in Barcelona was a definite high
point. It was a fantastic learning curve and presented numerous
challenges. I enjoyed every minute of it. A Japanese
client of ours wanted to acquire a number of independent car
dealers in the city. Not only did I get to put my language skills
to the test, but I got to see what life in Spain is really like.
Some of their customs – like their two-hour lunch breaks – took a
while to get used to. I was too busy to have a siesta myself,
alas.
How would you describe the training
and development here?
I started my accountancy career with a small
firm, where the training on offer was very limited. By contrast,
the training I’ve received at Grant Thornton has been exceptional.
There’s a wide range of courses on offer here and the national
training centre is also excellent. Not only does it allow you to
escape the distractions of day-to-day work and concentrate on your
studies, you also get the chance to meet people from other parts of
the business and build your internal network.
How does Grant Thornton make a
difference to the wider community?
As well as carrying out community projects we
take part in quite a lot of charity fundraisers. This year we
had an Apprentice style contest, where each team had to come up
with innovative ways to make money for their chosen charity. My
team was raising money for Help for Heroes. All of us ran around
Central London in combat gear and sold raffle tickets to the
public. All in all, the various teams raised about £8,000 for good
causes.
Tell us something surprising about the
firm.
A lot of people are surprised by how busy we
are here. We often advise on more transactions than any other
adviser.