Analyst - Turnaround & Restructuring Strategy Review

I am an Analyst in the EY-Parthenon Turnaround and Restructuring Strategy (TRS) practice in Manchester, dealing with formal insolvencies alongside informal independent business reviews (IBRs), options analysis and contingency planning. During my time at EY, I have worked on a large insolvency in the steel manufacturing industry which required me to work away for 3 or 4 days a week.

During my time at EY, I have improved my commercial awareness and understanding of the restructuring/insolvency market by being exposed to some of the largest UK insolvencies of the last decade. I have also improved my report writing skills by being given responsibility to prepare reports for our client, for review and feedback from senior colleagues. As part of my apprenticeship, I study for the ICAEW ACA qualification and so far have completed around two-thirds of my exams.

I enjoy my programme, despite it being difficult at times. I work in a collaborative team in Manchester, but have had opportunities to work closely with other teams around the UK. I now have a network of colleagues across the UK from the projects I have been engaged to. Sometimes it can be difficult to balance studying with work, but my managers have always been supportive of my studies and allowed me to prioritise studying around the time of my exams.

My programme is organised in some ways, but not in others. We have three cycles per year for which we have to receive feedback, and update our apprenticeship skills & behaviours forms before each deadline. I have had no issues with Kaplan throughout my programme, I have always received study materials on time. On the other hand, I find that internally the student experience team is a little disjointed, and at times they have provided little instruction as to how to update our ICAEW training file. Sometimes, I have to do some chasing to find out my college dates as they are not always updated in the system.

The support I receive from the team around me is great. I only speak with my apprenticeship contact once a year, but can reach out to them at any time. Everyone at EY is assigned a counsellor who is effectively your "line manager" and keeps you on track, reviews your feedback, and is generally out to support you from a work point of view.

The tutoring at Kaplan is generally quite good. Throughout COVID we studied online, which Kaplan made work, however I found that some tutors taught better virtually than others. At times I found it difficult to interact with the tutor and have my questions answered. The courses are sufficient in length to cover the required material and the structure of the course is really clear. The courses typically start with a "Knowledge" phase, which covers the basic material and recaps anything from earlier modules. The "Application" phase covers new and trickier material. The "Exam Preperation" phase is usually the week before the exam and is dedicated to exam question practice with the tutors. There is also a support team available 7 days a week where you can call/message/email questions and a tutor will help you. I found this really useful, particuarly for the tricker exams whilst studying at home.

Although the ICAEW ACA qualification does not directly cover any restructuring or insolvency modules, I find that having an understanding of a companies financial statements, financing, tax etc. is really useful in restructuring. In restructuring we have to be able to identify a companies problems by looking at their financial information, so understanding the financial statements is crucial.

There are lots of societies to become involved with at EY, however, it is not always clear how to join them so sometimes it feels like a closed door. In TRS, we are encouraged to network so every team member is given a budget of £100 per year that can be used towards networking events.

Yes

EY is generally a good place to work. At times we have to work long hours, but in my time I find that my work is always appreciated. It's really rewarding in TRS to be able to help our clients and add value to their business. At times we have been able to save thousands of jobs through our work.

The application process for apprenticeships consists of: an application form; online assessments; telephone interview; EY experience day and finally a partner interview. It is important not to overthink the questions in the assessments by second-guessing the answers. In the interviews, just be yourself: EY thrives from having a diverse community and all people are welcome so don't try to be the "right fit". The EY experience day is now virtual from my understanding, but throughout you will still be working in teams. Don't think as the other people as your competitors, as they likely are not going to applying to the same office/programme/team as you are.