Anne, Senior Reporting Engineer, Skanska Costain STRABAG Joint Venture (3 year break)
I obtained a degree in Civil Engineering in 2006 in Kazakhstan. In 2015 I qualified as a UK Chartered Accountant and worked as a Cost Control Engineer. After having my daughter, I had a short career break, but nonetheless, carried on working from home on a small scale and studying part-time before applying for the SCS Return to Work programme. In 2019 I completed the part-time programme Masters in Finance Degree for post-qualified experienced professionals here in London.
Working in Project Controls from the start, I have been involved in the development of the crucial procedures and work instructions. I am also involved in the reporting process and, in particular, compiling and developing the Integrated Project Board (JVB) Report. The procedures and work instructions related to cost management and project controls are facilitating the work on the project.
I was eager to get involved in this area of the business, because despite my financial background and accountancy qualification, this type of work was relatively new to me. While I had plenty of experience producing financial reports, I needed to hone my skills when it came to these particular documents, which in order to complete often require analysing systems, processes and really understanding the project. I was keen to start with these documents because they are important and strategic, plus I also thought it was a good way to accelerate my learning curve here. I have also discovered that I can do it well, but for some reason a lot of people seem to think I have been doing it previously in my career.
I am passionate about my work and love what I am doing. I’m very grateful to have been given the opportunity through the SCS Return to Work programme. It’s a lot of work, but I really love it, and I am also in the Mirror Leadership Team Development Programme, which is exciting. There will be some changes to my responsibilities next year after the completion of key procedures and work instructions. I am really happy to continue developing my career here.