My time abroad in Australia and New Zealand deeply broadened my perspectives and enhanced my knowledge of culture, business, and the people in both countries. Through interactions with locals, visits to companies, and engaging meaningfully with ethnic culture, I was able to learn so much during just my two week visit to these countries. From healthcare, history, and the economy, a multitude of topics and perspectives were made available to me that I took full advantage of.
Firstly, by interacting with companies abroad I was able to leverage connections through the company to learn more about the accounting, tax, and reporting standards that are required abroad. We learned about the IFRS differences in accounting at both PWC and MetLife Care Village, where the requirements differed in how expenses were recorded, and revenues were collected or delayed over time depending on the business model that the companies were following. The way that work cultures differed between Australia and the United States was interesting to me as well, with employees enjoying a lot more time off than their US counterparts and having many more holidays that were mandated by the company. It felt less like employees were expected to show up and show commitment by spending grueling hours but were instead encouraged to take the time they needed to get acclimated and learn the business. They also worked much more directly with their clients at PWC, actually going in house and working directly face to face with the companies they were auditing or consulting with a big difference than what we might see in the major branches here in the United States.
In New Zealand and Australia there was also a large focus on the recognition of indigenous culture and respecting the original owners of the land. Before any presentation at any location, company, or tour, we were given a brief greeting and history of the natives that originally occupied and lived on that land. This showed me that the native culture is much more ingrained in the culture there than it is here in the United States, something that I was not expecting when I first decided to take this study abroad.
We also learned that the governmental processes in Australia are also longwinded and complicated to navigate. The process of building the Opera House in Sydney was originally meant to take three years, with a relatively small budget of $7 Million dollars. With conflicts arising between the architects, workers, and government however, this timeline got shifted to 13 years, and over $100 million dollars spend on the project by its end. This displayed to me that no matter where we are in the world, there will always be problems between the public, governmental visions in place, and the abstract, boots-on-the-groundwork that is being done, resulting in some sorts of delays.
Overall, my time in New Zealand and Australia showed me that our countries are similar, yet charmingly different in how we approach, life, work and culture, and there were things that I would take away about appreciation of culture, work life balance, and general life advice and integrate into my own life.
