PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS

Investing in students and employees, because people make the firm

By Paula Fagerberg

PricewaterhouseCoopers is the largest global network of professional services firms, offering a wide range of assurance, tax, and advisory services to many of the world’s largest and most prestigious companies.

EMPLOYEES: The PwC network of firms is composed of more than 130,000 partners and staff in 148 countries and territories around the world. In the U.S., PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP employs 29,000 partners and staff. We also hold the leading position as auditor to the Fortune 500, auditing 33% of Fortune 500 revenues.

DIVERSITY PROGRAMS: At PwC, diversity is more than just words on paper…it’s more than just talk. Our focus on diversity and inclusion is about making PwC a great place to work for all of our people. It’s about being a place where you are not only welcome but valued for the unique contributions you bring. A place where you know you will receive the coaching and development you need to advance in your career. Some of the programs we have in place include women’s and diversity networking circles and a scholarship program for diverse college students—eXceed.

WEBSITE: Interested in joining us? Please visit our unique campus recruiting website at www.pwc.com/bringit. If you are interested in applying, please complete an Online Career Profile (OCP).

Tell us about your career at PwC.
It’s been great! I started in L.A. as a new associate, then I had the opportunity to transfer into a special business unit within PwC. I was on a large engagement in the L.A. office, and the client was acquired. I had always wanted to go into Risk & Quality ever since I was recruited, and so this phenomenal opportunity opened up for me to get in on the ground floor of a new role. There have been some interesting, wonderful challenges with this. I’m from L.A., and I had to make a transcontinental move to New Jersey…then everything was new, with my role still being formulated. I was trying to fit the needs of the firm while making it something that I’d be happy with. There were 17 other professionals in the same boat with me, and I must say that the firm is very good at listening to what we have to say about enhancing our experience within the firm and supporting its objectives.

Can you talk about the Diversity in Business Leadership Conference?
This was my first year attending this conference, which is a unique experience designed for PwC staff and our eXceed scholars. Students selected as eXceed scholars get a $3,000 scholarship, participate in our internship program, and get to come to New York for the conference. There were more than 50 participants from schools around the country; typically internships come when you’re juniors and seniors in college, so this was a great opportunity for students to get internship experience at a large company early. To apply, students fill out an application and go through interviews; the selection is determined by how they present themselves. The eXceed program is such a wonderful opportunity even for students who aren’t sure yet what they want to do—to just go and meet with professionals who have been in the firm and the industry for a number of years gives them networking opportunities and lets them make informed decisions…and see what a great firm PwC is!

What do you love most about working there?
It’s what attracted me in the first place—the people. Dennis Nally, our CEO, has really emphasized that people matter, and all of the initiatives that have followed from this have strongly enhanced our commitment to the firm. For instance, we have Flexible Fridays, where in the summer you can work your work week within four days and take Friday off, so that with some planning you can say Hey, I’d really like to attend this training, or take some time off to watch my kid play sports, as a lot of people in our office do. All of that has really made me feel like a more valuable member of the firm, and makes me want to continue to be a top performer here.

What drove your decision to come to PricewaterhouseCoopers?
The single most significant driver for my decision was the people. What I’ve recognized throughout the course of my career is that it’s the people who make the firm, not the other way around. I had the opportunity to meet a number of individuals here who impressed upon me the commitment, dedication, and care that they take to make sure that their people have and are able to do what it takes to be successful.

What was it like to join the partnership?
It was surreal, and exciting, because I had making partner as a career goal—not so much for the title as for the opportunity it affords you to impact other people’s lives. It’s not so much about the money or the status, but being able to do various things to help. The challenge now is to help the professionals know that you’re still the same person, approachable, with the same interests as they have, helping them to be successful—you’re just now in a better position to help them and help the firm.

Let’s talk specifically about diversity at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Certainly. All of the firms obviously have a program centered around diversity, but what distinguishes PwC is that you have individuals strongly involved in diversity who aren’t minorities. Of course it’s important to have minorities making a significant contribution to the diversity effort, but also important to have the full spectrum of individuals involved, because that is true diversity. Our student initiatives at PwC include a concentration around historically black colleges and universities, and participation in a variety of associations like the National Association of Black Accountants, ALPFA, INROADS, and others; once you get to the firm, there are also a number of programs (that I certainly benefited from)—the mentoring partnership, and our diversity and women’s networking circles, which are centered around increasing the appreciation of the value and talent that exists within the firm in achieving the goal of true diversity.

What does it take to succeed at PwC?
One of the things that I’ve learned over the years is that in order to be successful here, you have to have an entrepreneurial spirit. Not only must you be able to deliver services to our clients so that they’re happy, but you must manage other aspects of the client relationship that are important, and administrative matters that go along with running the business—so the entrepreneurial spirit must pervade how you manage your career and your business. Success is based upon your performance, your contribution—in other words, earning the status and the success that you attain. I operated under the criteria that the firm held out for an individual to be a partner, which also allowed me to work in a manner that was favorable to me, favorable to the people I was able to attract to the firm, and also favorable to the clients, because I was able to do the things that I thought would be successful for them but also would be a good reflection on the firm.

What are you proudest of about working there?
I’m proudest of the people that I’m able to assist at the firm, and the people I’m able to influence into the profession and into the firm—because again, it’s recognizing that it’s our people who make the firm. We have a lot of talented individuals, and one of the things that we have really held out as a model now is trying to be the distinctive firm. That’s being achieved by letting people be themselves, which allows them to do their very best. It allows me to do my best in serving my clients, in attracting and retaining talent and in turn allowing  them to achieve their goals. And that’s good for everybody.