From culture to consultancy

Before I joined Deloitte, I spent five years studying at the Copenhagen Business School; first, a BSc in Business, Language and Culture, followed by an MSc in Finance and Strategic Management and a CEMS Master in International Management. Unlike many of my peers, I never really had that super cool and interesting study-relevant part-time job. Instead, I studied abroad twice in Madrid and Milan. When not abroad, I was highly active as a volunteer in various extracurricular activities, e.g., CBS Case Competition and as part of Corporate Relations of CEMS Nordic Forum. Right before joining Deloitte in September 2019, I was in Stockholm on a two-month internship to complete my CEMS Master.

Client dancing cheek to cheek
My entire day goes side by side with the client figuring out how to solve the challenges we are facing or how to optimise various processes (that’s why “optimising” should definitely be in my fictive title). I cannot believe how fast time goes by. I need more hours in a day. I say “we” because, in my role, I become a very integrated part of the client. I am currently a senior financial controller in the finance organisation due to a lack of resources at the client. That is amazing because, unlike the typical project-scoped consultancy work, I get to establish deep relations with the client, becoming a truly trusted ally while experiencing various work cultures and industries up close.

A deep dive into various industries
Fortunately, I only work with one client at a time, usually for a long time. So, during my three years with Deloitte so far, I have, for instance, spent two years within the energy sector being part of a large M&A project in which I first supported the accounts payable department to become ready for integration from previous to a new owner and afterwards acted as a finance business partner for one of the business units. As of now, I have spent the past half year with a client within the shipping industry acting as a senior financial controller, working closely together with the head of controlling on performing but also on optimising continuous controlling, month-end reporting to the leadership team, internal controls, and interim audit, amongst others.

A busy life full of purpose and amazing colleagues
I love to be busy and tick off to-dos, but only because my days are full of purpose and amazing people contributing to a true teamwork spirit. Yes, I work within finance – but honestly, I could work on anything with the right people. I am a real fan of the Deloitte spirit. It feels like I am still studying at university, where you get to come across so many amazing, inspiring, and ambitious people every day, either over a good cup of coffee from Meyer’s coffee bar, over lunch, or at one of our great social events. I really do believe we have a strong feeling of togetherness, not just within my department, Consulting, or Deloitte Denmark, but across the entire Deloitte.

Sustainability as a hobby
Some people would probably have an opinion on whether sustainability can count as a hobby. However, to me, sustainability has become the one thing I think about every week, every day, and I would even go as far as to say every hour. I stay updated on sustainability news, listen to podcasts, watch documentaries, and spend a lot of time scrolling on Instagram, looking at reels about animals, nature, plastic pollution, climate activism, etc. But I also enjoy being out and active, whether it is a walk around Copenhagen, playing tennis, a long hike, surfing, diving, you name it – and of course, a lot of my time is also spent drinking wine with friends, enjoying a nice dinner with my family and watching Netflix on the couch with my boyfriend.

A work-life balance is something you need to work on
One of the strongest prejudices about working at Deloitte is that we are foot soldiers who work 60 hours a week with no time for our private lives. Every time I have the chance, I really try to state the opposite – at least, my experience does not support that prejudice, but I also believe you need to take ownership of and communicate your preferred work-life balance.