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Accenture Australia and New Zealand

3.8
  • #5 in Management consulting
  • > 100,000 employees

Sky Srblin

Accenture has a career progression model that develops our people from associates/analysts to Managing Directors (executives).

Where did you grow up? Important stages of your life (school, education, experience abroad, jobs etc.)

I am a Melburnian born and raised, however, I have studied all over the world: 6 months in Toulouse, France when I was 15, 2 months in Shanghai, China and 1 year in Quebec City, Canada when I was in university. I went to University High School and then went to the University of Melbourne. I have worked within retail, hospitality and corporate industries throughout my studies since I was 14. Right before I joined Accenture, I was the President of the Melbourne University Student Exchange Society. This voluntary role consisted of leading a committee of students to create events for over 1500 exchange students at the university to help them feel more integrated into the Melburnian culture and lifestyle. Events included laneway bar tours, a surf camp at Phillip Island, a boat cruise along the Yarra River and many other various events. I really enjoyed this experience and would highly recommend university students to participate in such roles. 

How did you get to your current job position? For how long have you had it? 

I applied to Accenture online in early 2018. I’ve been a Management Consulting Analyst for six months (I started in May 2019).

How did you choose your specialisation (compared to others)? / Were you weighing up any other alternatives before choosing this specialisation?

When I was applying for jobs, I was looking for corporate careers that would be related to my degree and interests of psychology, people and culture. After examining many companies and roles in newspapers and on websites such as GradAustralia, I found that consulting, marketing or HR related grad roles seemed to be the best fit. Before I received my offers, I was leaning more towards consulting and HR roles as throughout the interview process, I found that my interests and strengths aligned more within these roles. 

What was your interview process like? What kind of questions were you asked?

I travelled through the normal recruitment process with Accenture including submitting my CV and academic transcript, psychometric testing, an essay assignment, a phone interview, an assessment centre (group assessment) and in-person interviews. It was throughout the interview process that I became impressed with Accenture, as the process was unique to other companies’ recruitment methods. They weren’t generic and measured strengths within a wide range of skills instead of the basic deductive, inductive and numerical reasoning testing methods. I participated in the recruitment process of 15 companies, however, I felt that the interview process at Accenture was the most relaxed compared to the experiences I had with other companies. I felt that the recruiters and executives wanted to get to know me as a person, in addition to my experience. The assessment centre was my first time ever performing a case study.  While a little bit daunting at first, I found it a fun team-building experience. Overall, the interview process gave me great insight into the amazing Accenture culture. It is an encouraging, progressive culture where every individual is valued and respected for who they are. Ultimately that’s what made me choose Accenture. 

What does your employer do?

Accenture is a leading global professional services company that provides a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. 

What are your areas of responsibility?

I am currently working on a cutting-edge, industry-leading innovation project featuring a key digital and technology development initiative. The project includes the modernization and automation of the client’s supply chain process and online shopping experience.  Within this project, my main responsibility as a management consulting analyst is to assess the business current state, identify customer requirements, and to help define the future state business solution.

Can you describe a typical workday? What was the last thing you worked on?

On a typical workday, the first thing I will do is go through my emails to help me comprehend what tasks are my priority for the day, what meetings I have and how I should prepare for them. I will then usually have a team huddle meeting to understand what the team needs to complete within the week. Since joining Accenture, I’ve been supporting the blueprint phase of the exciting project mentioned above featuring the modernization and automation of the supply chain process and the eCommerce platform.  

What are the career prospects with your job? / Where could you or others in your position go from here? 

Accenture has a career progression model that develops our people from associates/analysts to Managing Directors (executives). With this career progression comes more clarity on specialisations that you would like to acquire, more ownership and responsibility for tasks and teams, opportunities to participate in company initiatives and the chance to meet other people working within the company from all over the world. As Accenture is a global company, working interstate or overseas (especially as a consultant) is a foreseeable experience. I know that whatever I do, I’ll be helping our clients innovate to improve the way the world works and lives. 

Could someone with a different background do your job?

Absolutely! I don’t have any background in Tech! You don't need to be super interested in Tech to do this job! All you need is a thirst to learn, an inquisitive and open mind and a great attitude to succeed. It doesn’t matter what your background is or what your strengths are, Accenture understands that hiring from a variety of backgrounds brings a diversity of thought, which adds significant value to any workspace and any team. 

What would your career be if you weren’t doing what you’re doing now? 

That’s hard to say. Before I was applying for jobs I didn’t even know that consulting would be a great fit for me. Nevertheless, with my psychology background and my love of interacting with other people, I could potentially see myself working in HR.

What do you love the most about your job? Which kind of task do you enjoy the most? 

The best thing about my job is honestly the people and the culture at Accenture. I have the best team who are constantly supportive and encouraging. Networking and volunteering outside of my team is also fun as everyone is so genuine. Accenture hosts a variety of networking and volunteering events internally and externally, and I think these are my favourite part of my job. Events I have loved so far have been the monthly social events such as a paella cooking class, volunteering events such as making sandwiches for kids that can’t afford lunch (we made 1500 sandwiches in one hour!), and events with external companies that acted as discovery sessions into what is hot in the industry today and what future projects to look out for. 

What’s the biggest limitation of your job? Do you bear a lot of responsibility? Do you have to work on weekends? Are stress levels high?

Managing client and stakeholder expectations is so important. When working on a project, managing relationships with clients can be tough, however, it is so crucial to establish these strong bonds so that everyone can work as one team to perform well and to deliver strong results. Once you have established those relationships, work can be a dream!

A word to the wise...

Which three pieces of advice would you give to a current university student? They don’t necessarily have to be related to your role or even be career-focused. 

When I was in my last year of university, I wasn’t certain about what I wanted to do. Lots of students may be in the same position, but that’s totally okay as long as you have an open mind to new tasks and challenges and a positive attitude. With these two qualities, you will eventually find your passion at work that will align with your values, and this will lead you onto your career path. Don’t forget to treat people as people, in the workplace and in life in general. This one sounds simple, however, in environments such as corporate, people can get caught up in the hierarchy and politics. At the end of the day, we are all humans who experience the same emotions. I have noticed that people who approach people with this in mind earn more respect in the workplace and tend to be great leaders.