is this the same as for internships?
i got through to assessment centre, which is final stage for audit internship
but they said it would only last 9:30am - 1:30pm which sounds too short to have all of these.

there are still no slots available yet either.

Reply 45

bt_1000

For internship, as stated on KPMG website, there is only report and etray

Reply 46

dreamer04

I have an AC with KPMG for the Risk Graduate Programme this friday. Can someone who has done the analytical exercise please tell me whether this is an exercise to be written by hand or on a computer. I would appreciate a response a lot. Hoping its a written exercise since I am quicker at that tham typing.

Reply 47

bt_1000

Original post by dreamer04

It is all done on the computer

Reply 48

Sweety_pie

Original post by dreamer04

On a very small laptop with no spell check. It's a little hard to get used to if you work on bigger laptops like I do. However, it is manageable.

Reply 49

ilovejking

I was just wandering, in any of the client meetings can you bring up any previous experiences that you've had, i.e. work experience etc to support what you're saying? or would that not be the best thing to do?

Reply 50

Kemik

Original post by ilovejking

In meetings with clients you are not allowed to talk about other clients by name but may refer to them descriptively. E.g. Top 5 technology company. Otherwise you breach client confidentiality.

Reply 51

Mark13

Original post by ilovejking

You're being judged on how you handle the client, not on your own experiences, so it's unlikely to be a useful thing to bring into the conversation.

Reply 52

cc-24.

Thanks for everyone who commented on this! I had my AC for a vacation scheme (internship) in Audit and passed :biggrin:

Good luck to anyone who is still in the process of applying!

A couple more tips (apologies if I'm re-iterating what others have said):
- WRITTEN EXERCISE: focus on quality, not quantity. I only wrote around 400-500 words I think whilst others in my group wrote almost double that. Saying that, don't spend too much time reading the booklet and try to start quickly. Also don't forget to write a conclusion to help structure your report.
- VIRTUAL OFFICE EXERCISE (ETRAY): some of the items have a time limit on them (overall time limit is 1 hour but you are told to submit some of them in the first 30 mins or first 50 mins for ex. It doesn't mention this at the beginning so look in the paper booklet/open the items as soon as they appear to double check)
- PERSONAL COMMENTS ON HOW YOU THINK YOU DID (have 10 mins to add this after each task): I put anything else I could think of that I didn't have time to write during the task. As well, I assessed myself very objectively discussing things I could have improved on (keep competencies in mind here too, if you think you're falling down on one of them - address it here and explain that you are aware of it and what you would have done next time)
- GENERAL: focus on the competencies (as someone else mentioned) as much as possible. Also there is quite a lot of info on the internet now about the AC, I made sure to read as much as possible, PREPARATION is everything for these sorts of things! You could look online for practice E-trays, or ask your Uni Careers Service as mine had a practice one I could do (wasn't very similar to real thing as KPMG's is very interactive but still really helped me consider things). Also the computer doesn't have a spell check so a couple of proof reads are v imp!

Sorry if this message is a bit of a jumble - wanted to write it up ASAP as I can imagine places are filling up now. It took them 5 days to email me saying I got through and then a further 2/3 weeks for the official offer email, so don't worry if you havn't heard back quickly.

SO YOU KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT:
- AC was quite relaxed. I turned up 5 minutes early and everyone else was already there (only 5 other people), they all knew each other from Uni so I kept pretty quiet as I was so nervous! Was worried I'd get marked down on this but it was fine. One staff member overlooked the whole process, told us what to do etc. There's plenty of time in between tasks and you get a break. The time limits for the tasks were about right (I was running out of time tho as I like to be very thorough!).

Good luck to everyone! You can definitely do it! :biggrin:

Will post shortly about my full experience with KPMG, a very nice company in that they paid all my expenses including a very nice hotel stay (as the only AC they could offer me was in Glasgow - over 3 hours away from where I live!). Only bad points were waiting times for interviews however all the companies are very busy at this time so I understand that.

Reply 53

studiousme

Hi all,

so I feel like I need to give back to everyone what I gain from this website...

I went to the assessment centre at KPMG recently

The 4 tasks (as stated on the KPMG website) are:
1) written report
2) E-Tray (similar to Deloitte's but a little different and quite a bit easier)
3) Role-play meeting with client
4) Role-play meeting with Line manager

Basically the whole day works in that all the tasks are based around the same situation. You are working on behalf of an imaginary advisory firm. This firm is looking at advising a firm as it needs to tender to obtain it's contract. That is the scope of the whole day. For each of the 4 tasks, you will get information given to you there and then - about what competencies they're looking for, the background info you need to complete the task etc.

The written report was quite tough I found. I was pushed for time massively and the end of my report was VERY basic and too rushed.

The E-Tray is quite straight-forward, it's a simulation of an office environment with emails, tasks, video calls and voicemails to reply to.

The 2 role-plays... the first is with the client - you are in charge of leading the meeting and finding out information from the client.

The second is with your line manager who leads the meeting and you're relaying info back to your manager about the other meeting with the client basically.

We had a simple lunch of sandwiches in the office with some graduates which was good, none of these fancy lunches I've seen posted on here (which I was quite happy about!). Also, you all do the tasks in slightly different orders. we all started off with the written report first, then it changed. I did the 2 role plays first, then the e-tray later. If you do it that way round, you finish at around 3:30/4pm (earlier than the 5pm they state).

Also, it's important to note the self-review after every assessment you do. You have to say what you did well, poorly, and what you would change if you were to do it again. What I did was be honest - then for example, as I said I had poor time management in the first task, I ensured my time-management was good in the others and stated this all in my self-reviews. These self-reviews ARE assessed, as they want to see how self-aware you are.

I think that's all the info I have, it was pretty relaxed. AND YOU CAN'T PREPARE FOR IT! I did not preparation.....

And i Found out the next day that I was succesful

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 54

Kemik

Original post by studiousme

Which office did you do the AC at? I have a feeling it was Reading :wink:

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 55

Shub90

I have my AC for audit vacation on friday this week :smile:

. Will share if I pass :smile:

. Anyone else did their AC for vacation programs?

Reply 56

zeh

i have an etray tomorrow for deloitte and i would like to ask you something.. in the written exercise how did you structure your sentences... I was thinking of writing something like that...

Dear Mr. X,

After thorough analysis of three possible target companies, I came to the conclusion that Trafford Lea should choose company A, because ...

Although company B has...., I believe Trafford Lea would benefit more by choosing company A since...

Although company C has...., I believe Trafford Lea would benefit more by choosing company A since...

As a result, I would recommend Trafford Lea to proceed with company A...

Kind Regards

(I just made the sentences up now (plus I am not a native speaker).. Any suggestions? I know this is for deloitte not for kpmg but i thought since the written bits are similar you might be able to help...

Reply 57

Laura Duggan

I know this thread is quite old but it really helped me to prepare for my AC with KPMG yesterday so just thought I would share my experience as it's more up to date.

All the advice on this thread is still really relevant as it is exactly the same AC but I did read on the target jobs website that they recommend in the self review at the end of each exercise that you don't talk too much about the positives as the assessors are going to see what you've done well anyway. I don't know if this has changed but now there are designated sections of what you did well, what you didn't do well and what you would do differently next time. This is a timed exercise and 10 minutes goes by quick so get your points down and then go back to flesh them out if needed. Be honest here as one of the key competencies is 'strives for continuous improvement' so they want to know you're aware of your strengths AND weaknesses.

The laptops are quite a lot smaller than a standard laptop (mine is a dell inspiron which is quite a lot larger) so you will need to get used to where the keys are and constantly check for typos as there is no spell checker.

I would also recommend you get a friend to practice role plays with - it doesn't matter what scenarios you do just get used to these situations. This was my first AC and I was thrown by nerves especially in the first role play. KPMG use professional actors for the 'client' and 'manager' role but when I get nervous I want to giggle and everything about the situation is very alien. However how well the actress played the role of the client threw me again and put me on the back foot and I think in places I lost control of the situation. I was much more prepared for the second meeting and felt I did a lot better in that.

Other than that just try to relax and enjoy yourself. I was extremely nervous as it was my first AC and I didn't manage to get a lot of sleep. When I walked in I was ten minutes early and still the second to last to arrive. I was the only girl amongst four other guys who all wore suits and most were older than me. Although initially I felt very out of my depth none of them were in the same stream as me and the facilitator said at the beginning on a good day we could all be successful and on a bad day we could all be rejected so at no point do you feel you're being pegged against someone else. The facilitators were both really friendly and were open to any questions. Even the assessors in the role play were friendly and made you feel a little less nervous.

I'm still yet to hear back and I'm worried I stuffed up the first meeting. Will be absolutely gutted if I failed but nonetheless it was a really great experience! If anyone wants any more info feel free to PM me or reply on the thread :smile:

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 58

Laura Duggan