Deal Advisory Intern Review

I thoroughly enjoyed the KPMG Women In Deal Advisory Insight experience. Despite the virtual nature, the programme was very engaging and insightful. I feel as though I learnt a lot not only about the firm's culture, but the industry in general and different areas of deal advisory. The programme was fairly interactive and we were able to collaborate and work alongside other participants for small presentation projects, which was exciting. However, the actual programme was only 2 days (as the 3rd day was an assessment day for a summer role) and so I feel like it could have been longer.

I felt quite valued during this experience as KPMG made a great effort to emphasize their support and encouragement for women within the industry. We were able to speak to senior employees in small break-out rooms and hear their personal anecdotes, which was incredibly insightful and made me feel as if they had really dedicated their time towards us. Beyond this, on our last day of the programme (where we were being assessed), the firm dedicated a portion of the day to a session on keeping a positive and healthy mentality, which was really thoughtful and valuable.

As the programme was only 3 days long, it was difficult to receive a large amount of support and guidance. However, this was not really an issue as the sessions were very well planned and everyone leading the sessions was incredibly friendly and more than willing to answer our questions. However, on the last day (during our assessment stage), I believe we could have potentially had a little bit more guidance with what to expect as many of us were slightly confused.

I think this programme ultimately helped me with a lot of my interpersonal skills as due to the virtual nature, it was vital to be able to communicate effectively in order to extract information in depth and make the most of the sessions. I also improved my teamwork and problem-solving skills as we delivered a group presentation on the second day, based on a fictional scenario. During the assessment day, I improved my presentation skills further by delivering a case study presentation to a senior member and answering Q&A. Whilst not directly correlated with my studies, the programme helped me expand my comfort zone and ability to communicate professionally to audiences.

The insight programme was very well structured. We recieved a timetable of each day beforehand, alongside the relevant material and links to every session in order to ensure we had all the information necessary to participate. The sessions also had adequate time for Q&A towards the end, which I think is quite important for students with little prior knowledge. As well as this, there were carefully planned breaks and more relaxed- sessions, which meant the intensity of the programme was well managed.

The general atmosphere was very welcoming and engaging. I was apprehensive due to the virtual nature, but pleasantly surprised as the insight programme was still interactive and exciting. I managed to meet some incredibly lovely people (from other participants to senior employees) who were very easy to talk to and helpful during the 3 days. I think there was a good balance between technical knowledge/learning sessions and more social/conversational sessions, which made the atmosphere productive yet friendly.

As the programme was 3 days and we had all come from different degree backgrounds, there wasn't a large focus on 'training' and more so a greater focus on increasing our understanding of women in deal advisory. We were able to improve our communication, research and presentation skills through a group project that we completed on the second day, but the feedback was quite niche. On our 3rd day, where we completed our assessments, we also did not really recieve much feedback until they contacted us after the programme to state the outcome.

I thought the insight really helped me understand what it would be like to have a full time role with the company as we were able to speak to employees who worked within all fields of deal advisory. This was beneficial as it meant that we could understand the day-to-day tasks in depth and how they differed in different teams. By talking to so many representatives about their experiences and journey, I also felt as if I could understand the culture well.

The insight programme was really helpful in improving my understanding of the company culture as this was something that all speakers touched upon during their sessions/ elaborated on during Q&A. Everyone was incredibly open and approachable about their experiences at the firm and shared many anecdotes about their journey. A lot of the speakers also elaborated on why they chose KPMG as opposed to other firms on a cultural level and this comparison was quite insightful.

It is difficult to make career-based decisions based on a 3 day programme but the experience definitely helped me to narrow down what I felt as though I would enjoy/not enjoy. As we were able to speak to employees from different teams within deal advisory, I could envision myself in different positions dependent on what skills they required, which was useful. Beyond this, I also understood the importance of a friendly culture within a workplace and how comforting it can be to have down-to-earth and supportive colleagues.

We were actually paid for the programme, which I didn't realise until after the programme ended. This was incredibly nice as with some of my other virtual experiences with firms, any reimbursement was retracted due the virtual nature. There was some confusion as there were regional differences in our pay dependent on the office we had applied to, although we had all ultimately completed the same online experience together. Despite this, I am grateful that KPMG treated us like actual employees during our experience.

Whilst were not any specific 'networking' sessions, there were plenty of opportunities to meet employees and form bonds ourselves. We were able to have small break-out room sessions with groups of 4/5 participants and 1 employee, which was really helpful as this made it easier to start long and meaningful conversations. During my assessment day, the interviewers were also incredibly friendly and willing to network with us after our sessions with them, which was really helpful.

There weren't many social event opportunities due to the virtual nature of the programme and the fact that it was only 3 days long. However, all the attendees were incredibly friendly and willing to connect with each other external to the programme, which added a nice touch as I still managed to make good friends. I think there could have been a few more social opportunities organized internally and between our daily timetables, to break up the formality of the sessions.

I did not really find out about activities that employees got involved in outside of work. This is understandable as I think the focus of the programme was to understand the type of work that they did and understand their day-to-day routine as opposed to extracurricular activities. If the programme was longer, I would have expected elaboration on this part of their life but with the short nature of the experience, I think it was adequate.

I would definitely recommend this insight to a friend. It was really enjoyable and the people were very talkative, warm and encouraging. I was able to improve my knowledge of Deal Advisory as a division and build my network, creating long lasting and meaningful connections. After the programme, I felt empowered as a women attempting to enter the deal advisory industry and felt as though KPMG had successfully shown us their support for our journeys.