Ann-Kathrin Beck, Germany
Mundus MAPP candidate,
Class of 2017
Intern, German Cluster, Indirect Tax Compliance Centre, KPMG Global Services, Budapest
After interning with non-profit organizations for the last three years, I wanted to "go corporate" before finishing my graduate studies. So, I was delighted to have the opportunity to work for the Indirect Tax Compliance Centre (ITCC) of KPMG Global Services Hungary (KGSH).
I learned a lot from this glimpse into the corporate and accounting world. In the past, I have done primarily project-based work. At KPMG, however, the focus is on processes. Standard operating procedures and strict control mechanisms ensure that KMPG is able to deliver high-quality services. I had never worked in tax compliance or finance before, so my learning curve was pretty steep. Thanks to this internship I now know a lot more about taxes and how tax schemes are implemented. I found the training sessions that KPMG offers its employees to be particularly useful.
A highlight of my internship was talking to Mike Glover, who has more than three decades of work and leadership experience and is now a senior partner at KPMG. He has led ITCC in its rapid growth from 12 to more than 300 employees. He shared his vision for the company, strategies for future growth, and leadership philosophy.
Seeing the world through a service provider's lens has helped me understand how consulting and accounting companies work. This experience has also made me realize that I prefer to do project-based work. While I plan to return to the non-profit sector after I complete my master's degree, I hope that I can connect the dots at some point in my career and work in development consulting. My experience with KPMG will definitely be an asset then.
Being in a work setting with mostly Hungarian colleagues enabled me to pop the "CEU bubble" in which I was living. By the end I was sad to leave amazing co-workers and friends behind. We got together once a week to play football, celebrated KPMG's annual summer sports day, and met up in the evenings.
I am now doing a second summer internship, which I am truly enjoying, with the German Embassy in Astana, Kazakhstan. I am very pleased that I was able to do two completely different internships during the course of my graduate studies. I have been able to see for myself how my degree is preparing me to work in different fields.
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