Give and take

Petra, you have been an auditor at PwC for about 20 years, mainly for multinationals. Where does this staying power come from?

I enjoy my job. Right from the start, I had the chance to work for an enormously wide range of clients from a variety of industries with a wide variety of challenges. Part of my job involves taking a deep look at these companies and exchanging ideas with the C-level and board. My team and all my clients benefit from this experience in turn.

What does assurance mean to you?

We provide security for those responsible. They can communicate this externally and build trust with end customers, other stakeholders and with us. The credibility of the PwC brand helps us a lot here. Every one of us builds on this trust with our expertise and our network.

How does this have an impact on your everyday life?

In every interaction. I take an interest in my clients and take the time to listen to them, I am there in both body and spirit, I get a good grasp of their situation and try to understand their problems. This enables me to find suitable approaches and solutions together with the team and working closely with the clients.

What is particularly important when it comes to relationships with publicly listed multinationals?

That we mobilise our network in Switzerland and abroad for them when necessary. Depending on the task, I can provide them with experts in tax, corporate strategy, digitalisation, law and many other topics. International clients appreciate this a lot. Plus, I get the opportunity to work closely with other PwC colleagues.

What role do these relationships play in the success of our assurance department, for example in proposals?

They play a crucial role. This is particularly the case because our services are interchangeable. Relationships arise from interactions between people. PwC’s enormous diversity enables us to find the right people for each mandate. A pharmaceutical mandate requires completely different strengths than one for a commodities trader, for example. We ought to network our knowledge of departments and companies even more across all lines of service. This can clearly set us apart from the competition and open up opportunities to be exploited.

How do you rate assurance as a professional field?

I think that auditing offers an excellent platform for young people to get a broad education, to gain experience and knowledge and then pass on their knowledge here or elsewhere - for example with client companies. Incidentally, they like to hire former PwCers because they can rely on their know-how and work ethic. Alumni in particular often only realise how valuable their time with PwC was once they leave.

Why is it still difficult to get young graduates interested in assurance?

Younger people are reluctant to make long-term commitments. If you want to continue in auditing after university, in Switzerland you have to expect it to take at least three to four years. It’s also possible that we are not yet really reaching out to the next generation with the benefits of assurance.

What advantages are you thinking of?

Flexibility, a diversified client portfolio, diverse and changing teams, an extensive national and international network, advances in digitalisation and data analytics.

Which of these aspects is most important for you personally?

The high level of flexibility. I understand this as give and take. I have to be prepared to make myself available, even if it’s not convenient for me. In return, I get the chance to work in a management role part-time on an 80% basis. Every Wednesday and between 6pm and 8.30pm is family time. Family time belongs to my three daughters, my husband and myself. Communicating with teams and clients is crucial for this to work.

How is your part-time job received by clients?

They take it well so long as I communicate openly and I’m available when there’s work to be done. Meetings with members of the audit committee or CFOs can be planned a year in advance. For ad hoc appointments, I can organise a substitute. I also make myself available in case anything unexpected happens. I still have to sit my kids in front of the TV from time to time, but that doesn’t happen very often.

What does your family think about it?

The children have grown up with it, so it’s normal to them. My husband and I split the childcare work fifty-fifty. In my opinion there is no magic formula for reconciling work and family life, but only a family solution. This means we talk about things at home and at work with all those involved and that everyone plays their part.

You worked for PwC in the US for two years. How did that come about?

From 2012 to 2014, I worked in Dallas/Fort Worth on the Alcon campus. Before that, I worked on the Novartis mandate. When the group bought Alcon, the opportunity came about for the corporate team to accompany the integration process on site. Surprisingly, my husband also got the chance to do a secondment. So we moved to Texas with our daughter, who was one and a half years old at the time.

What was it like for you?

Intense, exciting and very enriching. I worked hard. I felt a strong sense of togetherness within the team and the Southern hospitality is legendary.

What did you take back to Switzerland from Texas?

A lot of valuable experiences and relationships. I helped build up the pharmaceutical know-how at Alcon. This has strengthened our relationship with our client in Basel. From a professional point of view, it was good for me to be able to hold my own in this environment. The Head of Accounting who dressed like a cowboy took care of his herd of longhorn cattle at the weekend. Other contact persons came from other parts of the US or from Europe. This diversity has taught me to respond better to personalities, to include their backgrounds and agendas, to empathise with reactions and to look at things from a different angle. This has made me more agile and open.