We spoke to Sheilagh Suthanthiran about her experience of working in an operational role at Mercer & Hole…
I joined Mercer & Hole almost exactly three years ago, in 2018, and immediately loved working here. I even called my husband as soon as I came out of the interview, to tell him how much I wanted to work here.
Mercer & Hole is professional without being stuffy; it’s inclusive and unpretentious. There’s something special about Mercer & Hole – it definitely doesn’t feel like a typical accountancy practice.
Our Milton Keynes office is a great place to work; it’s a really nice, open plan office, with a great amount of space. The team is really friendly, everyone is always willing to talk to everyone else. Everyone gets on with their work but is still able to have a laugh and a joke.
I originally joined the firm as a secretary to two partners and now look after three, although I have done work for many of the partners at various times, as the admin team all pitch in and help where it’s needed. We used to spend a lot of time planning and holding team on team updates and lunches with contacts, building relationships with banks and solicitors through in-person events. Obviously, this has changed quite a bit in the last year and a half, and now I’m more involved in the health and safety side for the Milton Keynes office, ensuring that seating planning adheres to social distancing and so on.
By nature, I’m a very organised person (love a ‘to do’ list) and I really enjoy planning and arranging. By far the most satisfying part of my work is feeling that I’ve made the partners’ lives easier.
No two days are the same, so the joys and challenges of work vary on a daily basis, but to me this keeps it interesting. One of my favourite things about Mercer & Hole is how seriously it takes the team’s work-life balance. A lot of firms talk about the importance of having a good balance between work life and home life, but often it doesn’t translate into reality.
I had never worked in an office before where if I’m still there after my usual finishing time, people will say ‘what are you still doing here?’ – that kind of caring attitude really feeds down from the top. I also appreciate that Mercer & Hole is good size – it’s big enough to have the reputation it’s got, but you never feel invisible working there – it’s stayed a really friendly place.
St Albans