Consultant

Name: Simone Strebel
Age: 37 
Degree: Master of Arts UZH in Wirtschaftswissenschaften (Business Administration); CAS UZH in Urban Management
Profession: Assistant Manager, Real Estate Advisory
Employer: KPMG Switzerland

Describe your job in one sentence.

I work in a multidisciplinary team that advises our clients on property-related issues, e.g. in the area of valuations and transactions of investment properties or in the area of sustainability/ESG.

What are the three main tasks in your job?

1. Valuation of individual properties, property portfolios and construction projects.
2. Structuring and process management of property transactions.
3. Advising our clients on their property-related issues, e.g. sustainability/(ESG), property strategy, reviewing the processes of major construction projects and preparing qualitative and quantitative market analyses.

What do you think is the best / most exciting thing about this job?

The combination of the tangible matter of property with the finance aspect mixed with the intensive exchange with our clients.

What is the biggest challenge in this job?

There are many different fields in which you can become active. The challenge lies in finding your place and being able to utilise your own strengths in a targeted manner.

What does it take to enter this profession or to be successful in it?

Enjoy property, have a high affinity for numbers and good people skills.

What promotion/further development opportunities are there?

Either a classic consulting career within KPMG up to partner or a move to the client side, e.g. in project development, portfolio and asset management or transaction management.

What would you have liked to have known about this profession as a graduate?

As a student, for example, I mainly worked in groups with people with very similar skills. In consulting, on the other hand, it's often about working with a wide variety of people with very different backgrounds - in our case, for example, architects, investors, business economists, lawyers and property managers. Defining and pursuing common goals in this environment makes the work very interesting, varied and sometimes unpredictable.

What advice do you have for students who are interested in this job?

Gaining a foothold in a consulting firm during your studies, either as an intern or as a working student. On the one hand, you learn very quickly what it actually means to work, and on the other hand, you have the opportunity to familiarise yourself with a new subject area. This also helps you decide whether you actually want to work as a consultant and is of course also helpful in terms of your chances of being hired.

In terms of your career, is there anything you would do differently looking back? Why?

Of course, there is always room for optimisation in hindsight. I could have studied faster and worked less during my studies, but in principle I wouldn't change anything because all the experiences I've had have helped me progress.

Is there anything else you would like to pass on to current students?

Choose a job that you enjoy. Of course, this doesn't mean that everything is always good, but if you really enjoy the subject matter and enjoy working in it, even the difficult and stressful phases will be much easier to cope with.

As of March 2023