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This week as part of our ‘meet the people behind Shenward’ series, we caught up with Olivia from our Leeds office to gain insight into why she chose to be an accountant, her life inside and outside of Shenward, and who her dream celebrity client would be.
Tell us about your role at Shenward?
It’s great, I love the variety. Working in the Audits and Accounts department means I primarily spend my time completing client facing work and company secretarial duties. Some days I can have my head stuck into preparing financial statements, other days I will be completing and filing Corporation Tax returns, VAT returns and self-assessment returns. Each year, I also get the opportunity to complete multiple audits for our clients, which I love.
What inspired you to become an Accountant?
There are a few reasons really, the first being that it runs in the family. Both my mum and my grandparents are accountants, so you might say it’s in my DNA!
I also recognised it would be a great career in terms of stability and the fact that whilst on the job you develop a good understanding of what it takes to run a business and the taxes involved, which will be useful wherever I go in life.
What first attracted you to Shenward?
I was instantly impressed by the fact that the Leeds office had a small team. I felt it was possible to really get to know your colleagues because of this. The beauty was, despite it having a smaller team, Shenward still offered the training I needed to get qualified.
During the interview when I learned that my role would involve so many different tasks and responsibilities, I knew it was the role for me. The variety is what keeps an accountant’s job interesting.
What’s a typical day in the office like?
From a work perspective, that’s hard to define. No day is the same in terms of the work I need to do due to the differing client we have on our portfolio. Typically though, the office atmosphere is relaxed, so we are able to chat but also get our heads down and work.
If you weren’t an Accountant, what would you be?
I enjoy working with computers, so maybe something in IT. I’d also like to be an author because I love writing!
Tell us about who Olivia is, what do you enjoy doing etc?
In my free time I enjoy creative writing and playing video games. Family and friends are important to me, so I prior to covid, I would enjoy spending time with them. It’s certainly been difficult over the last year.
Which celebrity would be your ideal client?
Tricky one! They would need to be funny and easy-going, so maybe Dara O’Brien or Bill Bailey.
Funniest moment in your career?
Hard to pinpoint actually. I think the funniest moments come from conversations with my colleagues. We all get on really well, so days are never dull chatting with them.
What one piece of advice would you give to business owners reading this?
Tax planning is EVERYTHING, so make sure you pay attention, it could save you a lot of money!
If you’d like to join Olivia and the rest of our amazing team, please email Sherad@shenward.com to find out more about our current vacancies.
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