adela benediktova

I enjoy living life in the fast lane

Adéla Benediktová:

If you feel like you have too much on your plate, you haven’t met Adéla Benediktová yet. As a financial auditor at the Brno branch, she juggles her work with playing volleyball at a professional level – and as if that weren’t enough, she is also studying for a master’s degree. Teamwork is important to her at work; it’s something she is used to from sports – which is why PwC was love at first sight for her. 

What is your current position at PwC and how did you end up here? 
I joined the company in the final year of my bachelor’s degree and I’ve been working as an intern for three years now. It was clear to me that I would be extending my studies because of volleyball – and sport isn’t that lucrative, so looking for a part-time job was a good idea. The Big Four audit firms are partners of the faculty and every year they organise an afternoon with auditors, so I went to one of the recruitment events.  
There were HR people and a manager from PwC there, and I liked them so much that I didn’t even think about trying anything else.

What did you like most about your new environment?
My new colleagues worked well together and communicated with each other. The relaxed and friendly atmosphere was just the icing on the cake. It starts with recruiting new people – HR knows who to choose and how to work with newcomers so that we end up forming a good team. It’s rare that someone wouldn’t fit in with us; we’re similar types of people and get along well, which is great. 
Those who start working at PwC can count on the help of more senior colleagues from the very beginning – whether it’s assigned ‘buddies’ who familiarise them with the day-to-day running of the office, or managers with whom they work on their first projects. High-quality coaching means that the work itself is done faster and better, and no one has to explain anything more than once.

„Managers know that to us, interns, studying is important and they are very considerate about that.“

How long did it take you to get bigger assignments? 
It happened right away, actually. First, there are three weeks of training, and then you are immediately assigned to a project and get started. As junior colleagues, we often perform stock-taking, which is a nice change for us – we get to see the warehouse or the company’s production facilities. We also visit clients for a so-called pre-audit, and together with the manager and a senior colleague, we have the opportunity to meet financial directors and other high-ranking people right from the start, which is also a great experience.

Have you had any difficult moments at work? 
I can’t think of any specific fuckups, but the period when exams coincide with the audit season is definitely more challenging. But even then, you can go to your manager and say, ‘Look, I’m sorry, I’ve got a lot on the plate at the moment and I need to study for my exam,’ and no one has ever said, ‘No, you have to be here.’ Instead, I’ve heard things like, ‘Sure, you’ve got work and school, so if you need to, take a day off and prepare for your exam.’ They’re reasonable and know that to us, interns, studying is also important. 

adela benediktova

In addition to work, you also manage to play volleyball at a professional level. How do you make it all work? 

It’s only thanks to the club I play for, VK Šelmy Brno. It’s the only top club in the Czech Republic that’s open to students, working women and mothers, so even though we play in the top league, we only train once a day instead of twice, which means I can fit in my work.  
I usually get up very early in the morning, go to work at seven to complete my nine hours, then go to the gym for an hour and then to the training. My boyfriend is also a former top athlete, so we’re used to only seeing each other on Sundays, and he respects that. If I was with someone else, it wouldn’t really work. Work, school, and top-level sport... 

Is it still worth it? 
It’s true that sometimes I ask myself whether I’m making a mistake by saying yes to everything. However, when I considered giving something up, I told myself that I want to finish school; I really enjoy my job and definitely want to continue doing it, and volleyball forces me to do something for my body and sharpen my mind, for example, during the audit season. Besides, I haven’t had any free time since childhood, so it doesn’t really bother me the way it is. :)

adela benediktova

Have a look at the offer of vacant positions at PwC.

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