My Job Smart Edge (BUSS6102) Consulting Skills Bootcamp experience: Zoe Fang

Zoe Fang, Master of Commerce (Business Analytics and Finance) student, has recently participated in a 'consulting skills bootcamp' as part of a Digital Industry Project for an accounting software client. This project was part of the new Job Smart Edge in-curriculum unit BUSS6102, designed to assist with developing employability skills. 

When I engaged in a marketing consulting project with a client who provides accounting software, as a team of four, we were required to develop innovative marketing options to grow the business. I found it exciting, inspiring and enjoyable.  

Our initial challenge was to provide an analysis of the business for the client. Our client is a supplier of cloud accounting software, so this is a business with a lot of competition as well as opportunities! To construct our report more systematically and professionally, we were able to use business frameworks such as a SWOT Analysis.

Zoe Fang

Developing skills through remote teamwork

Our team was an online team, which meant we had to develop some different and additional interpersonal skills. We had to learn online etiquette, and how to manage our work remotely to a professional standard. This was actually a great part of the experience, because more and more workplaces are operating remotely with virtual and global teams. Experiencing this as part of an online consulting team gave me a valuable insight into how effective online teams work. 

What I learned

I learned about the importance of feedback in an online environment.  Engaging the whole team in discussions, looking for positive points rather than focussing just on negatives and emphasising team goals were key learnings. Also don’t forget the traditional simple things like scheduling meetings, being on time and meeting deadlines!

Developing these interpersonal skills will assist me beyond the area of giving feedback. Soft skills such as self-confidence, team-working ability, and high levels of communication skills are the key capacities that employers expect from graduates. 

I suggest to my fellow students that if you have the opportunity to develop soft skills like these as part of your university experience, then take the opportunity. Learning these has been such a valuable experience for me and I know I will be able to use these skills during my studies.  I have also developed my employability skills so I feel more confident about engaging in a professional setting. I would really recommend any of the Work Integrated Learning (WIL) Hub programs!

Like to know more about the WIL Hub Programs? Visit the WIL Hub Canvas page for current students or the Internships, Industry Placements and Experience page for prospective students.

What it's like to work as a Junior Business Analyst at Westpac: Industry Placement Program

I did my Industry Placement Program at Westpac as a Business Analyst. I worked in the Rapid Digital Transformation Project which mainly focused on Business Lending. I consider myself lucky that I was able to work in a cross functional team comprising of the best talent from Westpac Bank, St. George Bank and McKinsey. I felt excited and nervous that I would be working and learning from the best. For example, my colleague Tom who was studying the same major as me but who was doing his course part time made me feel at ease amongst the team. Moreover Andy, the project manager, motivated me when he told me about how he didn't actually know how to operate a photocopying machine when he started working.

My work environment was interesting. The RDT team was isolated from the rest of the building which made me feel like I was part of something confidential. There were no walls to separate the various streams. It was designed this way to encourage knowledge sharing.

Unlike other IPP students, I did not get any formal induction training. My first day involved a 3 hour meeting where I tried my best to make sense of what was going on. This was a big achievement for me considering my short attention span. After the meeting, my manager clarified all the terms and jargon that I noted down which I didn't understand from the meeting .

My main focus going into the program was how I would make an impact in the workplace. In the very first week, I took the opportunity to give a thank you speech to the team for organising the weekly drinks event (after which everyone knew there was an intern in the team). I made full use of this opportunity to not only network on a professional and personal level with my co-workers and managers, but also to learn a diverse range of skills from other areas. For example,working as a Business Analyst meant that I worked closely with I.T Analysts which enabled me to get a good understanding of backend processes. I believe this was really beneficial for me.

Throughout the program, people would ask me how I was able to manage my time with uni. To be honest I was not impressed with my time management skills. I compromised some of my study time for work and social life; so I was disappointed with some of my exam marks. The most difficult task during placement however was doing a presentation on Agile project delivery methodology. It was a skill that was well sought after in the industry but one that I didn't have any prior knowledge of. Nevertheless, I knew I wanted to complete the project because it would push me out of my comfort zone and challenge me. My colleagues helped me to get a good theoretical understanding of the framework. My approach was to step back from the issue at hand and to look at it holistically in order to identify the areas of application and areas which could be improved. After the presentation I was considered one of the agile gurus in the workplace. I believe this skill will be beneficial for me when I enter the corporate world as a Business Analyst.

Towards the end of the placement, Westpac offered me the opportunity to continue with the team until the completion of the project. Upon completion of the project my Linkedin connections went from 0 to 150 and I have been continuing my communications with my co-workers and managers. In addition, my colleagues recommended that I apply for a role at McKinsey. It was a big sense of achievement to receive this kind of recogition from a big 4 bank and the world’s no. 1 consulting firm.

I’m surprised with how much I have grown both professionally and personally over the duration of the placement. I can still remember the night before the placement when I was asking my friends about what it was like to work in corporate. Now, I have experienced it myself and feel confident in my career goal: to become a well-known Business Analyst.

A casual Friday lunch with the team

Sakkaf Mohammed
Current student at the University of Sydney Business School

KPMG International Case Competition: Team Ignite Advances to the Nationals, with a Chance to Compete Internationally in Brazil

Entering a competition while at university was something that each of us had on our bucket lists, so when we heard about the annual KPMG International Case Competition (KICC), we knew we had to give it a shot.

KICC is a global competition run by KPMG that replicates the work that KPMG consultants do, calling for teams of four students to analyse a case study, develop solutions and pitch it to their consultants - all within three hours. This year, the winning team of both the state and national heats has the opportunity to represent their country in Brazil for four days of competition and networking.

As great friends, and having worked as a group for the Business School’s management consulting capstone unit, we formed Team Ignite. Our team consists of Jeremy Dean (Accounting & Finance) as our IT expert, Matt Juchau (Finance (Hons.) & Accounting) as our finance guru, Charles De Souza (Marketing & International Business) as our budding management consultant, and myself, Katie Russett (Accounting & Law) bringing the accounting focus. 

In our application, we were able to convince the judges that we had the necessary skills and experience to potentially be the top team for Australia, and were invited to the state heats.

To kick off the competition, we had a day of training at the Sydney KPMG office, consisting of an intensive workshop on how to analyse case studies and solve business problems. The next day, we faced our first case study: a 20 page case asking us to advise TripAdvisor on how best to ensure their success amidst a rapidly changing environment in each of their lines of operation. Despite seeming reasonably achievable at first glance, after taking half an hour to simply read through the case and the details of the appendices, we realised that this was really going to test our business knowledge and whether we could put what we had learned from university into practice. To complicate things further, we were not allowed any internet access or notes. Despite our best efforts to budget our time, it was definitely a rush to the finish, and at the three hour mark, we had to face the judges, hoping to convince them that we had the best solutions for TripAdvisor.

To our delight and amazement, we won the state heat! And now, a few months later, we will face the national finals this Friday, with the prize being the chance to represent Australia in São Paolo, Brazil.

It was such a great experience working under intense pressure and seeing how we were able to perform, so we were happy to have just participated in the competition, let alone be announced as the winner for NSW.  Credit also goes to Team Monopoly, another University of Sydney team, who were announced as the runners up.  Now, with a chance to represent Australia on the line, it is back to the study notes and practice case studies for us, and fingers crossed for Team Ignite from NSW!

Katie Russett
Current student at The University of Sydney Business School.