‘What I love about the Assurance team is that it's an amazing support network. Your leaders give you both the confidence and the opportunity to go explore what you’re passionate about. If you have a particular interest, they empower you to pursue it. For me, that’s changed my career completely.’
For Carolyn, it was unwavering support that helped her pivot her career after her first parental leave. While caring for her newborn, she became more aware of climate change and what kind of world she would be leaving for her children.
‘I know it sounds cliche, but it took having kids to realise how much their world is going to be different from the world I grew up in. I feel like I would be failing my kids if I didn’t at least try to do something to help improve the situation.’ It was this shift that sparked an idea for Carolyn.
‘More than ever, companies were focusing on sustainability strategies that needed to create value for a broad group of stakeholders; this can be anyone from employees to customers, suppliers or investors, or community groups. These people want transparency, reliability, and quality in the reporting information. That's the space where I work. It’s about elevating the quality of ESG (environment, social and governance) strategies and reporting for our diverse client base.’
As a partner who focuses on ESG strategy development through reporting and Assurance, Carolyn is ecstatic about the opportunity to align her skills to her personal passion. ‘First of all, ESG has made me super excited about my work. I mean, there's always been lots that I've loved about my job - the people, the problem solving, the variety but the ability to leverage my experience in something I’m confident in doing, like auditing, into a subject matter I’m passionate about has been pretty amazing.’
Regardless of what you’re passionate about, Carolyn believes there’s something for everyone at PwC. ‘It’s a huge company. You can use the firm to get many different experiences to build your career. There are so many people to learn from and unlimited opportunities to try. And it’s through these experiences that you start to understand what you like and, equally as important, what you don't like.’
As she looks back on her career, the one piece of advice she would give is ‘take a chance and try something new. I believe that no choice or decision in your career needs to last forever. It’s that mentality that has empowered me to continue to try new things. Just because I’m trying something new, doesn't mean that I have to like it. It’s that kind of sentiment that has allowed me to feel more comfortable taking risks and exploring new opportunities!’
Journeys like Carolyn’s happen every day at PwC. See if your journey is waiting by checking our open roles.
