I want to keep moving forward

Trying new things in your professional life often takes courage. But Pavlína certainly has no shortage of that. After graduating, she started as a payroll accountant, but eventually ended up in HR, which is where she joined PwC. Thanks to the right people in the right places, she subsequently decided to change her focus, and for the past six months she has been working in the technology team as an SAP SuccessFactors consultant. “It’s a really fulfilling job,” says Pavlína about her current position. 

What were your beginnings at PwC like?

I liked this company for a long time, mainly because of how it presented itself to the outside world. During the interview, I was also impressed by the diversity of the work, so it was a no-brainer. As I already had experience with HR and recruiting new people in the IT sector from my previous job, I was offered a senior HR position as a Talent Acquisition Business Partner focusing on finding talent in the IT field.

You worked in this position for two years. What would you say, immodestly, was your greatest achievement?

I consider the projects that my colleagues and I managed to launch in the area of digitising job offers to be a success. We created this from scratch. Previously, applicants were sent offers that they had to print, fill out, scan, and send back to us. Now, however, everything is done digitally.

Afterwards, you moved from HR to the technology side of the company, where you work as an SAP consultant and focus on the SuccessFactors system. Why such a big change?

It’s not really a radical change, because it’s still an HR module. Although my work is really quite different. I was led to it by SuccessFactors partner Dan Smola, who offered me this position earlier, but I didn’t want it at the time. Later, I realised that had nothing new to learn, so I approached Dan again. He gave me the opportunity, for which I am really grateful. 

Was it difficult to get used to the change?

Not really. The great thing was that I was immediately involved in a project that I am now finishing, and I didn’t have to spend six months just training. This gave me the opportunity to look into the process of implementing systems and transferring data, which was great. I quickly realised that these things fulfil me and are very diverse.

What do you enjoy the most?

I enjoy everything I get to do, from system implementation to migration (data transfer, ed.). I’m also lucky to have a great boss who initially directed me only to the Employee Central module (part of the SuccessFactors system used to manage employee data, ed.). But I was also interested in migration, so we made a deal and now it’s split nicely 50/50. I currently have the best team and manager I’ve ever had. She supports me, gives me regular feedback, and listens. What’s more, I appreciate the greater flexibility and trust. Now I can’t even imagine working somewhere where home office isn’t the norm. 

What would you recommend to those who are afraid of career changes?

If you want a change, go for it. It’s important to be happy in your job. Don’t devote yourself to something that doesn’t fulfil you. Every day doesn’t have to be great, but if you’re doing something you really don’t enjoy, burning out is easy. When it comes to career changes within PwC, the company is happy to have internal candidates. We don’t want good people to leave, so we welcome the opportunity.

When will the next change come for you?

I definitely want to continue growing in my career, and my boss gives me great opportunities. She always asks me if I want to do something new, which is great. I certainly plan to continue my education. Once I’ve mastered the current module, I’d like to learn another one so that I can support my colleagues when they’re not at work or want help with another project.