Having initially worked in law and insurance, Umar joined KPMG in 2012. He was attracted by the firm’s reputation and by the breadth of opportunities and the quality of the clients KPMG works with. He specialised in PPI for two years before moving over to Know Your Customer (KYC) which is where he’s working now.
“Contracting is really energetic and lively. You have to deliver quality and results and I thrive in that sort of environment. I’ve also had the opportunity to learn lots of new skills – for example, moving from PPI to KYC involved me developing new knowledge. I have grown a lot in my time here, not only in terms of my technical skills but also my softer skills too, like communication.
In my KYC role, I get allocated a number of cases and they are at different risk levels. I’m currently investigating high risk customers. Essentially, we need to establish that each client is following the correct rules and regulations.
“You get a sense of just how important your work is from the training provided. You learn about the risks and the impact. Each country has their own regulations, but the knowledge we need to manage the differences is shared with us right from the first day.”
For me, the stand-out aspect of life as a Contractor at KPMG is the welcoming and inclusive culture. You really do feel part of the bigger firm. The management style drives this type of culture and I feel very much appreciated.
Having the opportunity to say you work at KPMG is beneficial in its own right. And the values about diversity and culture are definitely something people live and breathe.
We’re provided with all the resources we need to do our job well. For example, we have tools to quickly extract a lot of data and information from websites rather than having to go in manually. I am currently working from home and, even with this way of working, time is always set aside to make sure we feel like a team.”