I’ve been passionate about working as a professional in an international company since childhood. There wasn’t necessarily a burning desire to be an auditor – more an inner curiosity as to what lay behind the numbers.
I was advised to enrol in ACCA by a fellow member who described the recognition the qualification has in the global workplace.
As I was graduating from college and getting ready for the real world, I sought the insight of a lecturer about how to start my career. His advice was to explore the Big Four firms first, which led to positions with Deloitte for almost two years, then EY for nearly eight.
After a few audit assignments, I realised that auditing is very dynamic and provides valuable business knowledge of a vast spectrum of clients across all industries.
I’ve been fortunate that the support of my fellow partners has greatly helped my progress in the firm
When I was considering my next career move after EY, I was offered the opportunity to join Mazars as a senior manager, which was a milestone for me, and then in late 2018 I was made partner. At Mazars, I’ve had the opportunity to not only work on audit assignments but to lead and be substantially involved in initial public offerings, due diligence and internal control reviews.
Exposure to many clients and industries has taught me, firstly, that businesses never sleep and, secondly, to expect the unexpected. My role as auditor has become more intense and challenging; this will likely only increase, as the profession faces a pivotal and inevitable transformation due to technology and changes in professional standards.
Frankly, I am still learning new things every day and the only trade-off is to upskill my knowledge to stay relevant.
I’ve been fortunate that the support of my fellow partners has greatly helped my progress in the firm. I have been blessed in my career, with many opportunities to work with great leaders who have been willing to give me chances and have challenged me to explore my full potential.
It’s difficult to choose my biggest achievement to date, but if pressed I’d say it’s my overall progress, which owes so much to valuable experiences and being in the right place at the right time for job opportunities. I’ve also been lucky to have made some good friends along the way.
If I wasn’t an auditor, I’d love to work in forensics – not just for the accounting, but for the art of investigation and fact discovery. After all, the devil is in the detail.
