Bianca McMahon

6.45 AM

My first alarm goes off. Snooze.

7.00 AM

I drag myself out of bed and grab a banana. I put my earphones in and play some music while I get ready.

7.20 AM

I head out the door. Depending on current lockdown restrictions I either head to the gym or the park for a run.

8.10 AM

Back home. I jump into the shower and then make myself a coffee and a snack. Once I'm at least halfway through my coffee I scroll through my emails and action as required.

9.30 AM

All emails have been responded to and I check in with my Engagement Manager. We have a client meeting later in the day and I begin preparing questions based on document reviews and prior walkthroughs.

10.30 AM

Coffee number two. One of my favourite lockdown impulse purchases is a mini barista coffee machine complete with a milk steaming wand and bean grinder. I am a coffee lover and I enjoy heading to a café with my friends and colleagues. This was the closest I could get to that during lockdown!

With a bit more caffeine in my system, I get back to work. Time to get started on a process map for an upcoming client deliverable. 

12.00 PM

 I have an internal call with some colleagues to go over any thoughts before our upcoming client meeting. It’s for an ASX Top 100 client in the financial services industry around their risks and controls. We bounce our ideas off each other and agree upon the direction of how we’re going to resolve the clients’ problems. We also use the call as a chance to check-in and catch up - it's important to stay connected when we're all working from home.

1.00 PM

I begin the long walk from my desk to the kitchen to have my lunch. I love cooking so I've already prepared my meals for the week. I'm also lucky enough to have a housemate who works from home. She takes out her lunch as well and we chat about our weekend plans.

We then make another coffee together and head back to our desks. I have a few emails waiting for me so I action those. 

2.45 PM

Our client meeting is finished, and my team and I jump on a call to discuss our observations. We then set out our next steps and plan of attack. 

I ask the team if they are attending the Social Club event later this week. Our Social Club has arranged a variety of online and in-person events (pending restrictions) and this week we're heading on a "Mystery Dinner", we won't find out who we are dining with until we arrive at the venue. We are all looking forward to catching up in person, so everyone confirms they'll be attending.

We end the call with a plan to check in the next day.

4.00 PM

By now I've gone through my meeting notes and documented any observations in our risk and control matrix. The client has sent through their key process documentation that I've started reading through, but it's now time to jump into a call with some colleagues in Sydney.

Protiviti has several Diversity and Inclusion networks including ProPride, iGROWW Women's Network, the Multicultural Network, and the Parents Network. I am currently assisting with the planning of ProPride's next event. We decide on an idea for next month and get to planning our execution strategy.

5.00 PM

I finish off the day by reading through more client documents and working to understand their key processes. I write down my questions and observations, ready to discuss them with my colleagues in the morning.

6.30 PM

I like to make sure I leave the house and do something interesting each night. Today I have a netball game. I enjoy the 20-minute walk to my netball centre and meet my team by the court. It's great to play a team sport after such a long lockdown. My team and I have a lot of fun!

8.00 PM

Home again. I pop the TV on and start cooking my dinner. My housemate arrives home a bit later and we chat about our weeknight activities.

10.00 PM

I jump into bed and watch Netflix for a while until I'm tired enough to sleep.

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