Full time analyst, part time dance teacher and 100% fulfilled

When Elisha Torres started exploring career options with Accenture, she knew she wanted to continue with her part-time dance teaching too. Find out how Accenture’s approach to flexible work supports her to blend an engaging career with her personal passion.

I’ve been a dancer since a young child and five years ago, I started ballet teaching. It wasn’t a career I expected to follow, but I find it incredibly rewarding and it’s been a great way to continue with my passion for dance. When I was exploring graduate opportunities with Accenture, I was drawn to its commitment to looking after people, encouraging development and the support for following different interests. This gave me the confidence to bring up my desire to continue dance teaching at the first interview and received nothing but encouragement from the very start.

My interviewer ended up being my career counsellor once I joined. He and my managers have supported me to continue with dance, helping me to navigate how I structure my work hours. Obviously, I always prioritise my Accenture work and am accountable for delivering on deadline. I need to stay organised, but I have the autonomy to control my timetable so that I can head to classes to teach and complete tasks later when needed. I have learned to stay flexible and roll with what each day brings, so that I can fit in everything that’s important to me, personally and professionally.

Flexibility meets opportunity
It’s been wonderful to see how Accenture’s commitment to flexible working and supporting our people comes to life – even for someone at the start of their career. Before joining Accenture, I was the Recruitment Coordinator at a not-for-profit organisation and wasn’t sure if consulting was going to be the right fit for me. I didn’t have a clear direction of where I wanted to go professionally and was a bit hesitant to join a global business with such a depth of talent.

A year since joining, I can confidently say that I am excited to see what’s to come with Accenture. The first few months have undoubtably been a challenge, yet I have learned so much.

My interview process was all online, but I was fortunate enough to spend my first few weeks in the office and meet colleagues, shortly before lockdown sent us back to working from home again. Working remotely has been a mixed experience. As a new joiner, you don’t know what a regular working day at Accenture looks like and admittedly at times, I’ve felt a bit unsure of where I belong. Everyone I’ve worked with however, has been extremely supportive and over time, I have grown in confidence. Every day I learn something new, my network grows that little bit more, and another piece of the puzzle comes together.

Taking part in some of the extracurricular opportunities Accenture offers has also been a fun and fulfilling way to further grow my network and get more out of my work experience. I am part of the New Joiners team, where we help welcome fellow Analysts who are new to Accenture Operations, sharing advice based on our own experiences. I also took part in Deaftember, a new initiative where we started learning Auslan – Australian sign language – as well as how to speak about deafness and people who are hard of hearing, some of the stigmas they encounter on a daily basis, and ways to be a better support this community. I connected with people I wouldn’t have otherwise met, and it was a rewarding activity – plus I’m continuing with my sign language learning, something I have wanted to learn for many years.

I still don’t know what field or industry I want to pursue in the longer term, but I’m enjoying the chance to be exposed to lots of different things at the moment. This is one of the biggest elements that drew me to Accenture. I know if I ask for opportunities and am willing to put in the time and effort, I’ll be able to get to wherever I want to go and I am confident that Accenture will allow me space to find my passions within my career as I learn and develop.

Elisha’s three biggest lessons as a graduate

1. Believe in yourself: It can feel intimidating and a tad overwhelming to join such a large organisation, but I’ve found that you are celebrated for your strengths and the value that you bring, in your own way.
2. Trust the process: There are times when you might question where your career is heading and why you’ve been put on a certain team or project. But reach out, ask the questions and there’s always some form of support.
3. Get involved: There’s a lot of opportunities available at Accenture. Put yourself out there, no matter how scary, and know that there is a wealth of resources – and your colleagues – there to support and guide you.

A career with Accenture gives you flexibility to explore and develop all your interests – personally and professionally. Applications for the Accenture Graduate Program in Canberra are open from 10 to 31 August, don’t miss out, apply now!