"What matters is the willingness to learn, curiosity and intrinsic enjoyment of the topics."
Release date: 15 April 2021
"What surprised me most was the willingness to support and share. I can always be sure to get support when I need it. I’d heard about this aspect of the zeb culture even before I joined and can confirm it really exists!"
Quynh became aware of zeb during one of our Excel workshops at the University of Mannheim and then completed an internship with us during her Master's program. This gave her the opportunity to experience zeb as an employer. After successfully completing her Master's degree, Quynh decided to join us directly as a Consultant and in the meantime has even been promoted to Senior Consultant. In this post, she talks about her experiences with us.
How did you get your position at zeb?
My first contact with zeb was an Excel workshop at university. I was in the second semester of my Bachelor's degree and had no idea yet what I wanted to do after graduating. I hadn't really considered consulting up until that moment. Since zeb's blowfish notepads were my favorite and I therefore knew the slogans on the front by heart, I immediately thought of zeb once I realized that I wanted to work in risk management. And so I applied for an internship—and got it. I was able to assist a large team for ten weeks and was lucky to have found my dream employer in my second internship. So it was a "no-brainer" for me to join zeb after graduation—and I am very glad that it worked out.
Why did you decide to take the job as a Consultant at zeb?
As a recent university graduate, I wanted to start with a job where I could experience and learn a lot. Starting in consulting was therefore ideal for me. Since you spend a relatively large amount of time with colleagues in consulting, it was particularly important for me to have a nice team around me whose company I enjoy and that I can have fun with. My time as an Intern and experiencing the great team atmosphere made the decision easy.
What does your (typical) week look like?
My working week effectively starts on Sunday evening: I iron my shirts, pack my suitcase, prepare sandwiches (for breakfast on Monday) and order a taxi. Monday starts relatively early—between 5 and 6:30 am for me, depending on where my project is located and how long I have to travel. On the train—if I'm lucky and there's not much to do yet—I can often take a nap before the week really gets going. In general, we spend four days a week on a project—i.e. we are at the client's from Monday to Thursday. How long we work per day largely depends on the project and the project phase. If I have time, I try to exercise a bit in the evening. Team events (going to dinner, bouldering, badminton, pub crawls, etc.) are also held every (second) week, giving us a great opportunity to spend time with colleagues outside of work. A week actually goes by very quickly, as we already head home on Thursday evenings. On Friday we have the choice to work in the office or from home. As a rule, we work on internal topics, e.g. topic development or pitch preparation, on Fridays. When I go to the zeb office, I also spend a relatively large amount of time in the lounge drinking coffee with colleagues who are assigned to other projects. So Fridays are generally quite relaxed and also short—around 5 p.m. we tend to head off for the weekend.
What have you learned as a Consultant in Finance & Risk?
Expertise is important. But what matters more is the willingness to learn, curiosity and intrinsic enjoyment of the topics.
How would you describe the atmosphere at zeb?
Relaxed, family-like, open and friendly.
What surprised you most about zeb?
The willingness to support and share: when people talk about consulting, many people think of an environment with a lot of stress and a strong focus on performance. Challenges are part of my everyday work, but I can also be sure to get support when I need it. If I get stuck on a task or don’t know how to deal with a client, or if I simply have questions, I can always approach my colleagues and they are happy to make time for me. Not only do they usually answer my questions; they often explain the background in more detail. So I feel truly integrated into the team and never have to fear being left alone. I’d heard about this aspect of the zeb culture even before I joined and can now confirm it really exists!
