Delia Beyeler

Delia Beyeler is a Partner and Capital Market and Accounting Advisory Services specialist at PwC Switzerland. Here, she talks about her professional journey, travel partners and her return to PwC. And she also talks about how everyone benefits when the doors remain open.

When detours broaden your horizon

For me, life is like a journey. You’re on the road, you get to know others as well as yourself, you expand your horizons, and then you move on and sometimes even come back. My own journey was and still is an adventure, and I wouldn’t want to miss any of it.

Of apprenticeships and learning curves

After my commercial apprenticeship, I studied accounting and reporting part-time at a university of applied sciences. Without knowing exactly what a Big4 does, I took an accounting job at EY. This was followed by training as a chartered accountant and a move from Bern to Zurich – a massive trip at the time. After seven years in audit, I wanted to see the other side and create the numbers myself instead of auditing them.

But which company fit me and my interests? At Zurich Airport, I was always fascinated by the smooth operations, the arrivals and departures and the dynamics of it all. On a Sunday airport tour, I applied for the controller position at a Swiss subsidiary. Within 48 hours the application process was complete, and I held my employment contract in my hands. The tasks were wide-ranging and challenging and my supervisor was inspiring.

However, after two years I began to miss the dynamic consulting environment and the extensive professional network. This led me to consider a move back to a consulting firm. Interactions with various potential employers revealed that PwC's values align with mine, and the consulting position being offered was exactly what I was looking for.

As well as consulting, I was supposed to assist in auditing urgent cases. The urgent audit assignments quickly overwhelmed me, and the consulting projects dwindled away. As lots of discussions over several months didn’t bring about any change, I decided to leave PwC and move to a smaller consulting firm.

As soon as I handed in my badge on my last day of work, I knew that this was probably not the best decision and that I would regret it – and this would soon prove to be true.

Welcome back

After a few months with the new employer and lots of talks with my former (and future) supervisor, I made the decision to come back to PwC. How would colleagues react to someone coming back? Instead of being judged, I was welcomed with open arms.

Throughout the process of being promoted to director, some people advised me to prepare myself for questions from people critical of the journey I had taken. However, this never happened.

This is about us

I did get asked a different question though: why did you come back? There were a lot of important reasons at the time but one of them was key: PwC is a company with a strong 'we' attitude. We support one another, exchange ideas, learn from each other and join forces to offer clients the best possible solution.

Profession: Giver of answers

Collaborating with various specialists is at the heart of my everyday life. PwC’s Capital Market and Accounting Advisory Services team advises clients on all topics related to accounting and reporting. These can be the possible effects of a transaction on accounting, the implementation of accounting standards or preparing for an IPO. Customer queries are often complex and require a wide range of expertise. As such, collaborating across disciplines is important to me, both within Switzerland and with PwC colleagues abroad. I'm convinced that diverse experiences, perspectives and personal backgrounds create value for our clients, our teams and our firm.

In the best of company

I have learned an enormous amount from my professional journey and have made countless connections. I cultivate these contacts because they are important to me. Younger colleagues often ask me what I would do differently in my professional and private life. There are certainly some things I would change, but more important is what I would do the same again: be curious, try new things, and connect with as many people as possible. As well as this, whenever I made wrong decisions I would have the courage to stand by them and push for change. This is because there’s always a way, even if it might not be obvious at first glance.

Go and return

My professional journey has given me a lot of valuable knowledge, priceless experiences and lifelong relationships. If I had a second go, I would do it all over again. If you want to come back, all doors should be open to you, and at PwC, they are.