Working in this role, my main responsibility is to prepare tax computations for my clients. This requires me to pair already established analytical skills with a developing knowledge of tax legislation in order to ensure that not only do my clients comply with legislation, but that they also receive the most tax effective treatment possible. Currently, I am responsible for a portfolio of around 100 clients. To manage my portfolio effectively, I have greatly developed my time management and organisation skills, learning when to prioritise work to ensure deadlines are met.Alongside working full time, I am currently studying towards my Chartered Accountancy qualification with ICAS. I passed all 7 of my TC exams on my first attempt, recording a 100% score in my Financial Accounting course. I have now started the second level of ICAS.

During my time in this role I developed my interpersonal skills and gained vital experience in face to face sales. As a Shop Assistant, my main responsibility was to greet and assist customers in a friendly and professional manner, providing product information, recommendations and personalised assistance to enhance their experience. This required extensive product knowledge in addition to clear communication skills in order to successfully convey this information. Providing tours also allowed me to further develop my public speaking skills. Working within a B Corp certified organisation highlighted the importance of company culture and responsible decision making in achieving sustainability based goals.

Within this role, my primary responsibility was the safety and wellbeing of customers using the facility. To maintain a safe environment, I developed key concentration skills that allowed me to quickly identify potentially dangerous situations and act decisively upon them before they developed further. In order to deliver within this role, I took part in rigorous weekly training to ensure as a team we were able to work efficiently and decisively in life threatening situations such as in-water spinal rescues. Through situations like these, I developed the ability to remain composed and communicate clearly in high pressure events.As a leisure assistant another of my key responsibilities was to provide excellent customer service. To achieve this, it was essential that I managed my time effectively to ensure that activities and sessions were set up on time. I was also the first port of call for answering any customer queries and solving any issues that they had.

This internship was my first step into the world of finance and accounting, with all previous workplace experience coming from an engineering background. Within this role I gained a grounded understanding of the inner workings of small businesses by preparing their accounts. This role taught me the importance of maintaining a high level of attention to detail whilst working under strict time pressures. Throughout this internship I was required to correspond with clients on matters regarding their accounts. This allowed me to greatly improve my communication skills, both in-person and online.

Within this role, my main responsibility was to design sustainable energy and water solutions for a large group of around 20 whisky distilleries in the North of Scotland. Initially, this would involve visiting distilleries and identifying areas for potential improvement by observing the process and asking operators questions. Upon identifying areas for improvement, I would source current and historical data to analyse in depth by performing calculations upon using software packages such as Microsoft Excel. Having understood the data trends, I could then consider a range of potential solutions to our issues, allowing me to further develop my problem solving ability. For each solution I would consider a spectrum of criteria such as: the impact on the environment, the costs (both fixed and operational), the ease of implementation, the ethical considerations and the potential energy and/or water savings.With initial designs and the advantages/disadvantages of each solution noted, I would then pitch my solutions to management and finance, trying to persuade them of the solution I believed was best. When doing this I demonstrated the ability to break down complex design principles so that members of the team who were not experienced in the field could understand and make an informed decision. Finally, after a solution had been chosen, I would produce further initial designs detailing required specifications for contractors to base their design off of.