Finding work, life flexibility and the importance of upskilling: My journey as a PwC Canada Assurance intern

Applying classroom learnings to a professional environment

Hi! My name is A.J. Sachdev and I recently finished my second-year studying Commerce at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. Outside of the classroom and the “office”, one of my biggest passions is playing hockey. I’ve played goalie for my hometown (Oakville) since I was 8 years old and am continuing to play intramurals at Queen’s. Given how hectic university is, maintaining a balance with work and personal life is incredibly important to me. I also love to travel and, contingent on travel restrictions, I’m excited to go on exchange in Winter of 2021 to Singapore!

At Queen’s, I was fortunate to be an Orientation Week Leader and had the opportunity to welcome Queen’s Commerce Class of 2023 to campus in September 2019! Additionally, I’m part of two clubs on campus, the Queen’s University Investment Counsel and the Queen’s Finance Association Conference. Both of these clubs have been fantastic experiences, which helped me develop leadership skills, make new friends and apply what I’ve learned in the classroom in a professional environment.

Many opportunities to grow

I’ve really enjoyed my experiences so far at PwC Canada. The first two weeks consisted of a thorough virtual onboarding, which allowed me to meet other interns in an informal environment and helped orient me with the firm. Following training, I was assigned to client engagements. From my client experience thus far, I’ve found there are many opportunities to grow, both technically and as a professional. For example, on my first client engagement, another intern and I were tasked with creating a workflow in Alteryx, which would automate administrative tasks and open more time for the engagement team to critically analyze the data. This was a great personal experience as I had the opportunity to collaborate with another intern and learn on the fly to solve an important problem for the engagement team.

I’m working in Assurance at PwC Canada. Coming into the summer, I was looking forward to (1) working with a variety of clients across industries, and (2) thoroughly analyzing financial statements. So far, I’ve been able to do just that — many of the tasks I’ve worked on entail analyzing a specific component of the financial statements and I’ve worked with two clients in different industries. Also, I’ve enjoyed the level of technology integration, specifically surrounding tools such as Alteryx and Tableau. Learning how to use Alteryx has been a fantastic opportunity because it forced me to critically think about the problems I was tasked with, the end goal, and logically working to achieve the intended result. From an Assurance strategy perspective, PwC Canada’s open-minded approach to technology is very useful as these tools enable engagement teams to spend more time on value-adding activities and strategic planning.

Finding work/life flexibility

The flexibility offered by the firm allows me to step outside for a walk and disconnect from the screen periodically throughout the day. Additionally, I always look forward to the Summer Advance Program sessions as I can socialize with other interns and listen to presentations from a variety of leaders at PwC Canada.

The importance of upskilling

My upskilling journey has been a fairly steep learning curve, but I’m glad I was given exposure to new tools and am happy that PwC Canada embraces new technologies. The primary tool which I was introduced to was Alteryx. Initially, I was convinced that Excel was a more appropriate tool for many of the tasks I was assigned. However, as I began to work on client engagements, the Associates on my team coached me through applicable uses of the tool and allowed me to recognize how much time can be saved with Alteryx. Through these first-hand experiences, as well as listening to presentations surrounding PwC Canada’s commitment to technology, it’s become clear that embracing new tools is imperative to producing quality work. Overall, my experience at PwC Canada has shifted my perspective on the importance of upskilling.

So what’s next?

My most memorable experience happened during the first week with the firm. My formal “buddy” reached out to welcome me to PwC Canada and offered to answer my questions. During our call, it was clear that he was genuinely interested in getting to know me and wanted to ensure that I enjoyed my time at the firm. We spoke about my goals for the summer and both of our experiences at Queen’s. Our conversation helped make me feel confident that I can contribute to the team, and instilled PwC Canada’s culture which promotes mentorship.

If I was asked in January what my plans for the next few months would be, I would’ve guessed very wrong. So, I’ll refrain from trying to predict what’s next for me as I might miss the mark again. However, I’m excited to continue my journey with PwC Canada for the rest of my internship and am looking forward to my third year at Queen’s!