PWC or EY ?

lightspeed

Hi all I have 2 interviews coming up, one for EY and one for PWC. Probably jumping the gun a bit as no guarantee i will get a job with either just cause I got an interview.

Id just like to highlight a few questions about both and would love to hear from others who know first hand what it is like to work in either.


PWC

- Seems to have a better reputation than EY from what I read here on boards so far.

-PWC offices has a gym, can anyone comment how big it is and how difficult it is to get on to a machine? Is it packed early morning or late at night? Them having gym seems quite a good perk but that not much good if it so packed, you cant really use it.

- Does PWC have a much more serious and dry atmosphere to work in than EY?

- Is the training provided in PWC much better than EY ?


EY

- I have met with people from EY and they all seem really genuine and happy there. Everybody seemed real nice and I got a really good feeling about the company.

- EY have vision 2020 where they intend to grow from $25 billion a year to $50 billion a year by 2020. Im assuming this could mean much more likely chance or promotion to higher positions in EY than in PWC or any of the other big 4 firms.

- Is there more likely to be secondment opportunities in EY than with PWC given that it has more global offices?

milkrounds1516

Hi

I've heard from people who used to work in EY that they had an awful experience and they've advised me to take any of the other big 4 if I have the choice. I've heard they don't pay for overtime or allow you to set it off against study leave like the other firms do. Now a lot of these people are a 2-5 years qualified now and EY may be a much different place so take that with a pinch of salt.

I haven't heard much negativity about PWC, apart from that whole hot/not list email thing a few years back. Personally I want PWC above all the others but KPMG would probably be my second choice, it's a bit of a tie between them and Deloitte for me.

You can use the interviews to get a feel for the firms and really you take whoever is giving you the best offer.

I think they're both equally likely to have secondment oppurtunities they are both global firms.

I can't comment on the atmosphere in either but I think it will largely depend on your department.

I don't know if the training provided is better but being the bigger firm with the better reputation, future employers may think traiing with PWC is better than EY. But to be honest having any of the big 4 on your CV is good.

AdamD

EY have time in lieu now

lightspeed

Im actually quite used to working longer hours so it would not really be that big a deal for me to work a few hours each day without extra pay or time in lieu.

If it was a choice between working longer hours in a place i do want to work in, doing something i liked with a decent learning environment, I would prefer that to a place with a less fulfilling environment, working similar hours with overtime pay or time in lieu.

To date that seems to be the only negative I heard people here comment about EY.

If anybody else can add anything else about either firm, id really appreciate it.

ted2767

Most big 4 firms are pretty much the same.
You'll be doing similar work in each as a trainee if you end up in a similar department.
I work in Deloitte and in similar departments in PWC, KPMG and EY you would be doing pretty much the same work.
What's probably more important is to assess during the interview which seems like the best fit.
Ask questions, you'll spend 3/3.5 years there so it's a good idea to try and get as good an idea about the possible.
Ask your lecturers, people who were a ye ahead of you in college they'll be your best source of information.
Remember though that at the end of the day what you want is to qualify and get the best experience possible, this will make you desirable candidate once your contract is up and you want to move on.

tomfoolery60

The time in lieu makes a huge difference on the pay you will be on as a trainee - though if EY now have that it removes black mark against them. KPMG and PwC are the dominant firms in Ireland but you will get good training everywhere.

See if you like the people and if you will be placed in the department/industry you most want to be in and make your choice.

TG860

Hi,
Good luck in your interviews, I remember how difficult it was to decide between companies last year.
I'll try and address what you're looking at with the benefit of some hindsight. I joined EY just to be transparent! :P


Have a look at what clients each firm has.
In my own experience, if you want to work on certain clients/industries, that can usually be arranged.
http://www.top1000.ie/auditors can be useful for this.

Seems to have a better reputation than EY from what I read here on boards so far.

This cropped up for me last year too. From what I've gathered since starting there, things were bad a few years ago.
I don't think they're any worse than the other Big 4 today.
There's been a conscious effort to make it a nicer place to work over the last few years and my impressions when interviewing last year were very good.

As mentioned above, Time off in lieu of overtime is in place, just like the other Big 4.
Study leave is as good/better than the rest of the Big 4.

-PWC offices has a gym, can anyone comment how big it is and how difficult it is to get on to a machine? Is it packed early morning or late at night? Them having gym seems quite a good perk but that not much good if it so packed, you cant really use it.

Are you applying for audit? If you are, you'll probably be sending 90% of your time away from the office on client site, so don't let things like this influence your decision much. That said, PWC's offices are new and nicer than EY's. (Though EY has nicer lunch options nearby IMO, it's all trade-offs!)

Does PWC have a much more serious and dry atmosphere to work in than EY?

Can't comment on that as I haven't worked in both places to compare.
You'll just have to trust your instincts on that one!

Is the training provided in PWC much better than EY ?

No, I don't think any big 4 training is better than any other. All your real learning is "on the job" and the work is pretty much the same in all companies.
I'd pay more attention to the type of clients you're working on.

- I have met with people from EY and they all seem really genuine and happy there. Everybody seemed real nice and I got a really good feeling about the company.

- EY have vision 2020 where they intend to grow from $25 billion a year to $50 billion a year by 2020. Im assuming this could mean much more likely chance or promotion to higher positions in EY than in PWC or any of the other big 4 firms.

Good to hear!
The ambition of Vision 2020 struck me as I didn't get that sense of movement from any of the other companies. EY are easily the fastest growing Big 4 in Ireland right now (17.3% growth this year). So yes, there should in theory be plenty of opportunity for promotion in the firm.

Is there more likely to be secondment opportunities in EY than with PWC given that it has more global offices?

A common question for graduates. Difficult to really give an answer on this one. It really depends on what clients you are working on and a bit of luck.
Obviously if you put yourself out there as wanting one, you're more likely to get one. But it's not common in any firm, no matter what the recruitment people tell you.
(Not to mention that business travel is not as glamorous as it appears. Airports, bland business hotels, and working in an office with a different view out the window for the most part! :P )


If you want to get a further sense of each company, has a quick scan through their Transparency Reports. (Big 4 equivalent of an annual report)

EY - http://www.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/EY-Ireland-Transparency-Report-2014/$FILE/EY-Ireland-Transparency-Report-2014.pdf

PwC - http://download.pwc.com/ie/pubs/2013-transparency-report.pdf

http://mgrad.ie/interviews is useful for the interviews.


Best of luck and if you have any other questions, I'll try my best to help.

Risk analytic

Can anyone share their experiences with EY Graduate program Advisory program?

GazzaH

You'd want to double check the time in lieu - it is very important.

My understanding is that PwC is unlimited time in lieu.
EY is capped at 80 hours regardless of what hours you work. Then depending on the department you are in you need to use it for study leave. Some departments require you to work over the 80 hours for study leave (can be over 140 hours for CAP 2 and over 180 hours for FAE) - so no real time in lieu. You only get the 80 hours when you have no exams.

I worked in EY until recently. The atmosphere was very bad. No one seemed pleased to work there. EY Ireland had one of the worst employee satisfaction survey results of any EY firm in this years Global People Survey (EY do a survey every two years).

I'd say 99% of people who work for EY received no offer from any other big 4 firm.

charliehotel

GazzaH wrote: »

I'd say 99% of people who work for EY received no offer from any other big 4 firm.

Have heard similar from people who said only the worst performers in the graduating class were the ones who ended up in EY

T L

charliehotel wrote: »

Have heard similar from people who said only the worst performers in the graduating class were the ones who ended up in EY

I'd be extremely wary of listening to the above, I have direct knowledge of multiple high performing, talented people who work/have worked for EY.

gabbytheking

KPMG, facetious OR REALISTIC?

ZeroThreat

That viral 'kmpg daddy girl' video scared me away from them

AuditAgain

A few things I'd pick out from what people have said that I would tend to disagree with:

"The training is the same in all Big 4 firms, and only the on the job training is what matters". I imagine given the huge amounts invested in training within the Big 4 that this isn't exactly true. I would agree that most of what you'll ever learn will be on the job, but from a Big 4 firm I'd expect a significant L&D program to help with this (especially at the beginning).

On the idea that some firms have "the same or more study leave" than others. Surely this is pretty factual at this stage? As in, could people not lay out the different firms study leave policies this year for full transparency so that graduates can factor this into their decisions.

Also, I completed my training contract in Big 4 audit, and maybe it's just my experience, but for me the idea of being 90% out of the office on client site would be a bit of an exaggeration. I'd say I would have averaged closer to 60-70% and I was non-FS. Would maybe have been out 90% of the time in first year, but I found as you got more senior you spent increasing amounts of time doing planning and completion sides of things etc. in the office. Point being, whereas I definitely wouldn't have the office/location being your deciding factor, I would say it will have an impact on you.

Dellboy2007

Every firm has that same 2020 vision. Don't believe the hype. They are also saying they are the fastest growing firms. Unless they publish public accounts (which they don't) you'll never for certain if this is true and the basis for making such statements is more than likely on skewed or biased data.

This is one thing you'll learn when you enter the big 4, they are all the same. There used to be differences but nowadays it's all the same really, I have friends in everyone of the big 4 as well as GT and other small firms so I think I am abled to make this assumption.

You will all get more or less the same money, you will all get more or less the same study leave there are not any SIGNIFICANT differences in this regard. Go with whatever one you want to go with, pick the one that you got a good feeling from. Don't pick GT though - they are sh1te (JOKE)!

Risk analytic

Can someone tell me if BDO Ireland sponsors work permit for students?