Oliver's story: The value of an internship

I am proud that my parents both worked in the public sector, my dad a civil servant and my mum an NHS nurse for 40 years. They sacrificed a lot to give me the best opportunities possible to meet my potential, and I will forever be grateful for that. My family did not have any ‘connections’, nothing was going to be handed to me on a plate, and so I had to work hard to create opportunities for myself, make a positive impression, and take pride in my work. Coming from a family with no ‘corporate’ experience, an internship was a fantastic way for me to a real insight into the corporate world.

I had a huge Excel document helping me track my applications during my second year at university and Grant Thornton really stood out. The overall application process was really engaging, and everyone I met throughout the process made me feel valued and welcome. This was only reinforced on the internship, where I joined a hard-working but highly sociable team. After the six weeks, I was offered a place on the graduate programme, and did not apply for another role between then and re-joining in January 2021.

It sounds cheesy, but I always wanted a job where I would wear a suit. Some people may find that their worst nightmare and would happily walk around the office in much more relaxed clothing than me. But that’s what makes Grant Thornton what it is. No matter what your background, your connections (or your dress code!), you are valued on what you can bring to the table.

What helped me most through the exams was the continued support of the people around me.

Studying alongside working

There were undoubtedly highs and lows along the ACA / CTA journey for me, including having WiFi drop out halfway through an exam paper during Covid times. It takes finishing the trainee programme to truly take stock and reflect on what progress you have made in the past few years.

What helped me most through the exams was the continued support of the people around me. I was fortunate to have a great intake of fellow graduates who would go through the stresses and strains together, as well as people in the year or two ahead of me in the programme, who could provide experience and insight. My team were also excellent in allowing me to set clear work boundaries for the ‘crunch points’ in the final weeks prior to each exam sitting. I now seek to replicate this mentoring and supportive role when coaching and managing new trainees within my team.

So many of the exams are time pressured, and so you need to be sharp on the day. My way of maintaining that was keeping my social life at a steady level. Of course, there are some plans that have to be missed or nights where you have to work late to complete a mock exam, but it is definitely possible to keep a healthy balance.

My tip for any new trainees is to have an approach of open communication and check ins, as it will make your life a lot more managed and structured. The key skills that I learned through my time as a trainee were time and expectations management. The trainee programme isn’t easy, and there are times where it can all feel a bit too much. However, if you communicate effectively with managers and ask for support when required, your team will understand and be able to help guide you through this.

Opening up a world of opportunity

I’ve had some amazing opportunities since joining the firm, including the chance to join 40 other Transfer Pricing professionals from across the EMEA Grant Thornton network for overseas training in Warsaw. The training was designed for us to boost our technical knowledge and understanding, as well as an opportunity to meet other transfer pricing professionals from across the GTI network.

It was a brilliant experience for me and the two other GT UK attendees, where we got to work in small teams and present back to the wider Group. This was the first EMEA in-person training since 2019, and you could tell that everyone had such a fantastic time. The range of experiences was also vast, with some participants being fellow recent graduates, whilst others had joined the transfer pricing world later on in life, and had to get home to their young children the day after! I hope that one day I can assist in facilitating similar training for trainees and consultants in the future, as they are a rewarding experience for all involved.

Building international connections

Transfer pricing involves the analysis of multinational groups in terms of their functions performed, assets held, and risks assumed, in order to determine a fair (‘arm’s length’) price for transactions between related entities, in order to ensure each country in which they operate gets a fair share of the corporate taxation. In this way, transfer pricing is by its nature highly international, and we will see a great deal of collaboration with other Grant Thornton member firms when going to market and servicing our clients’ needs.

I have built upon this by taking on the role of German Tax Desk within the Corporate and Multinational tax business line, supporting a Director in driving collaboration with our member firm in Germany. This has involved joint client targeting, knowledge sharing, and technical training sessions (thankfully not wholly hosted in German!) and has been a great way to build on my experience and incorporate my cultural heritage – being a quarter German.