Meet Haykal Khaled
Joining PwC Middle East virtually, Haykal didn’t know what to expect. From taking on responsibilities within his first week, to digitally upskilling himself and meeting colleagues from all over the region, here’s the story of his journey with the firm.
How has your journey with PwC Middle East been so far?
Around a year and a half ago I moved from my hometown in Lebanon to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and joined PwC Middle East as a Manager in the CIPS (Customer and Industrial Products and Services) business unit, which sits under the Management Consulting service line.
During this time, I have been constantly evolving and growing my skill sets, either by being with my team helping our clients to achieve their goals or with myself, learning and acquiring new functional and technical skills. It’s been eye-opening to be part of a community of solvers who are coming together to build trust and deliver sustained outcomes for our clients, as witnessing a transformation is great, but implementing it is much more rewarding. I am really impressed with how the teams really pull together when it gets busy and, even though I find the learning and development curve with the firm to be very attractive, I enjoy working with diverse colleagues at the most - I’ve also had a lot of support from them which made my journey smoother.
Your onboarding to the firm was an immersive virtual experience - can you tell us what that was like?
I got access to outstanding tools and resources that supported me from day one with the firm, starting with the immersive onboarding experiences to compensate for our inability to meet in person. As a matter of fact, I found the virtual onboarding much more interesting than the in-person one since I got to meet the new hires from across the region, and not only my new colleagues based out of the same office.
The week I joined, and right after my virtual onboarding, I received a call from my director informing me that I was to be assigned on a new project with a governmental body. The project involved two other lines of services, multiple work streams were identified and many resources working from abroad and on site were assigned. I still remember the mixed feelings I had: excited for my first project, yet worried considering the topic was new to me. Thanks to the partners, directors and the team, who involved me in most of the administrative and functional project elements and helped me ramp up quickly and efficiently, I was on the ground running in no time.
How are you achieving sustained outcomes for your clients?
I took part in the Data Booster Programme, one of the optional digital upskilling programmes that the firm is providing. This programme allows us to build our capabilities in data automation, visualisations and insights to support us in bringing a more data-driven and efficient approach to what we do.
This programme has been life changing, as it has opened my eyes to different ways of working and supporting clients, it has introduced me to countless colleagues, widened my thought process and supported me in my digital upskilling goals. Since the programme is self-paced, it has also taught me to manage my time, deadlines and expectations. I also now happily belong to the internal digital community named “the Digital Solvers,” made up of more than 1,200 people from PwC Middle East who are also undergoing their digital upskilling journey.
As a consultant, how are you able to lead a work-life balance?
I am happy to be part of a firm that puts well being first, in good and challenging times, by also raising awareness through implementing relevant initiatives and programmes. As such, to enjoy my career, I ensure a parallel commitment to my hobbies and sports activities. As a crossfitter and a Muay Thai student, I try my best to close all the rings of my sports watch on a daily basis. Some tips that helped me establish more balance:
- Spend time with your family, friends and loved ones everyday
- Focus on your hobbies as they’re a great way to relax and refresh
- Be vocal about prioritising mental well being by reaching out to colleagues or scheduling time with a professional if needed
“I got access to outstanding tools and resources that supported me from day one with the firm, starting with the immersive onboarding experiences to compensate for our inability to meet in person. I found the virtual onboarding much more interesting than the in-person one since I got to meet the new hires from across the region and not only my new colleagues based out of the same office.”