KPMG for working parents

[mmmmm21]

I've been offered a job at KPMG and I wondered if any working parents could let me know how they find working there.

What are the hours like? Is your NWD respected? Do you work a lot of evenings?

Thank you!

Your question as it stands may be too general for meaningful responses.

Someone’s experience in audit may be very different from another person’s experience in tax. Likewise, whether you’re London or the regions will have a bearing. If you can be a bit more specific you may get better answers.

Good luck with your decision-making!

Well, for audit, I refused to try for a child until my husband left because I wasn't interested in being a single parent. He said all the people who succeed there are single, or have very "traditional" family set ups.

He attended meetings virtually whilst on holiday - did a 40h working week, in fact. I call it an achievement that I didn't wander in and call his manager a cunt.

He coached a female colleague on how to interview for his new employer. She's much happier out now.

I left several years ago. A lot depended on the partner you worked for. However i wouldn't describe it as family friendly.

It depends massively on your grade and who you work for.

In terms of hours. I worked in corporate finance so not quite the worst in the firm but regularly 12 hours a day and evenings until 1am and weekends.

If you have been very very clear during hiring about your expectations you might be fine.

A few family members work there. They are all parents of young children. It really depends on the department and level of seniority. Higher management level, office-based role is easier to work around flexibly than more junior/partner level audit roles. I only know about London, not the regional offices where the culture can be unrecognizably different.

My dh worked for over 10 years at KPMG, including for the first few years of DS' life. He worked in indirect tax, and got increasingly more senior over that time.

Lots of long hours and stress and in terms of childcare, it was only feasible as I was a sahm until DS was 4. This was pre Covid so no homeworking.

He works within a business now doing tax rather than at one of the big 4.

I’m a partner in another big 4 - but in transactions tax in London. So it’s quite long hours and fast paced. I do manage with one dD and expecting another shortly - their policies are really supportive about work life balance and family life but obviously work needs to be done and so it can be be difficult

I rarely work weekend or holidays - but I will have to log on until late relatively frequently

so the answer to your question will depend on location and team

I would also add that their culture really, really isn't for everyone. They invest heavily in their brand (always have done long before it was really a thing in the UK). Many zombies wandering about thinking that they work for the best firm on the planet thanks to all that programming training.

Thank you everyone.

It's a tax role based outside of London SM level.

My husband works there in consulting. He works from home 4 days a week.

You'll need an after school nanny working on 10-15 hours per week. It's not family friendly at all.

DH is ex-EY (left last month) and SIL is KPMG. I've never known either of them to be in a position to do school pick up or cancel an office day to wfh with a sick child.

People don't take jobs at KPMG for the work life balance.

My DC has just started a job with kpmg in audit.
It is in his contract that he could be expected to work an extra 13 hours per week for no extra pay (so close to two days unpaid per week)
However online reviews suggest that in busy times it is more like a 60-70 hour working week. On the plus side he should have all his ACA exams after the 3 years, but it is a daunting prospect to be working so hard for less than £25k per annum. Luckily he does not currently have a partner or children.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11163069/Ernst-Young-death-fall-young-woman-Sydneys-EY-tower-lifts-lid-Big4-workplace-culture.html

@Frog, don't forget his 3 hours studying every night

I was an SM at a Big 4 after I had a child; DH is a Director at another Big 4. We were pretty easily able to balance our schedules to manage with nursery etc. Would work in the evening sometimes but it wasn't horrendous. I moved into a non-profit last year and it's far worse for work/life balance.

@newtb yikes! I hope he copes with it. Accountancy really was his dream job, he does not have a plan B so fingers crossed it works out.

Depends on the team - who is running the show and the size of it in terms of support

as I say I’m a partner in one (and a director until recently) and no issues at all with wfh if nursery was off

if there were client meetings we have a team that can handle

Yes - and audit is like that

and tax can be like that too - you get the work done together as a team

it’s not a 9-5 job - but that doesn’t mean it’s not flexible in terms of when those hours are and where you work from

the big 4 are moving on a lot compared to eg law firms - there is an expectation that employees need some work life balance or they will simply leave

To add another perspective, I was a senior manager in tax in the regions and actually found it fine (not KPMG but another big4).

my hours were far better at senior manager level as I held the client relationship and could sort of set my own deadlines. Wfh and flexible working we’re absolutely fine as long as I delivered.

I usually did 9am - 6ish with the occasional late night but I never in my entire 10 years there worked at a weekend.

Is this outside London? They were paying that much to trainees decades ago. Regardless, I am surprised.

Yes I think it was £23k starting in London 25 years ago! Astonishing if it hasn't gone up significantly since then. If it's outside London, hopefully that may mean slightly less intense? Also the study blocks used to be fairly segregated - so full on work for a couple of months, then full on study. You wouldn't be expected to come back after a 13 hour day and study.

@Croque @Schoolchoicesucks he is in Birmingham and the exact salary is £24400p.a. so while not in London it is still quite expensive to live there comparative to his wage.

It is his aim to live and work in London after the three years training so hopefully his earning potential will have risen considerably by then.