Audit Trainee Review

Throughout the year I have played an important role in multiple client facing engagement teams, working on a range of audits for Grant Thornton’s clients in a hybrid mix of both remote and in-office/ on client site working. Whilst working with these teams I have successfully built trusting relationships with a diverse range of clients and colleagues, which has helped to expand my professional network whilst being able to put my studies into a real-world context. This has meant having the opportunity to experience a range of industries and contrasting operational environments. I have undergone various trainings during my placement which has helped me to build the foundations of key auditing techniques, required for undergoing financial statement analysis and providing me with a base to build on post-university when studying towards accounting qualifications such as ACA. In the later stages of my placement I have begun to understand what it truly means to adopt a professionally sceptical mindset, something required of all successful auditors which is gained through constant exposure to clients and their differing accounting procedures.

Over the course of my placement, I have noticed that the amount of responsibility delegated to me has gradually increased to a point whereby I am working on audits independently for weeks at a time, as a result the progress of the audit during the period is solely reliant on me which has definitely been a challenge to embrace. It has meant progressing WP's and organising client calls to ensure I am efficiently allocating time. This has not meant that I have been isolated, as I am still able to ask colleagues who are working on other engagements as many questions as necessary, often colleagues are pro-active in asking if I am getting on okay, thanks to the team culture that GT has established.

During my time with GT I have begun to develop essential skills relevant to both accounting profession and the wider business world. From working in a professional environment, I have been able to expose myself to situations which have allowed me to gain further understanding of communicational, organisational and other professional skills largely through client facing work and also via consistently requesting feedback from peers and managers with an emphasis on points of improvement. Working with diverse teams week in week out has given me constant opportunities to ask questions and learn from like-minded people who are at later stages in their careers, which has assisted me by providing important insights as to what my post graduate career could entail.

GT has a great system when it comes to support and guidance, often the first port of call is to ask a more experienced team member, before then asking one of the managers, however I have not come across a colleague at any level who is opposed to answering even simple questions, in fact more senior colleagues sometimes welcome it. GT has an open office culture whereby even the most senior staff sit in the same open-plan office, making them widely accessible. There are also other methods of obtaining answers, and the Intranet Oneplace page is very useful for all things GT/ accountancy, providing information on specific workpapers to more holistic financial/legal standards.

I could not fault the culture at Grant Thornton, and I'd struggle to believe that any of it's competitors have a more inclusive and enriching people culture. As I mentioned prior, the open-plan nature of the offices remove the physical and mental barriers to interacting with more senior colleagues, and this also helps to make the social events & activities that bit more fun, getting to know colleagues in a less formal manner then you might have previously. The company is highly involved with charities and sustainability initiative, and more information is available on the company website.

I really enjoyed the 12 months at Grant Thornton, and the time has sped by. At some points the work can seem stressful and monotonous and I would mention that people who are not interested in finance and using IT programmes might struggle to stay motivated throughout the year, however I would also emphasise that much of your time is spent client facing, having conversations with people and getting to understand real world businesses which is hugely enriching. I look forward to returning to the fast track graduate scheme after obtaining my degree.

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