Young Difference Makers S03 Ep02 Evan O'Donnell: From Math Enthusiast to Advocate for Accounting and Sustainability

Evan O'Donnell's journey from a math enthusiast to a passionate advocate for accounting and sustainability is nothing short of inspiring. Embark on this episode as we unravel Evan's path to becoming a chartered accountant, a voyage ignited by an enlightening experience with an accounting teacher in secondary school and nurtured through his education at University College Cork. Evan's professional growth took root at PwC Ireland, where beyond honing his accounting skills, he became a mentor for aspiring accountants and a pioneering force in sustainability initiatives. His commitment to using his voice for positive change shines through his active involvement in waste reduction efforts and his mentorship role with the Irish Consulting Student Group.

Evan's experiences at the One Young World Summit are a testament to his dedication to effecting change. Representing Ireland as the flag bearer, he connected with global delegates, drawing inspiration from diverse voices like that of Jamad Fiin, a trailblazer for young women in sports. As Evan reflects on his journey, he shares his aspirations of climbing the corporate ladder to make a substantial impact on business and society, fostering a culture of mentorship for young accountants. With insights from role models such as Caroline McGroary and the wisdom of Margaret Atwood, Evan's story is a compelling reminder of the power of courage, networking, and perseverance in reshaping industries and communities.

Chapters

• 0:00 Empowering Voices in Accounting and Sustainability
• 3:48 Youthful Inspiration and Future Aspirations
• 8:36 Navigating the Path to Chartered Accountancy

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

at the Moink Young World Summit we were given so much advice. One of the themes I was showing was that your voice matters. If it's maybe something in your company that you don't agree with or maybe a charity that you're very passionate about that you'd like to support, use your voice, build up the courage within and, yeah, don't be afraid to take action. Hello everyone, my name is Evan O'Donnell. I work as a financial accountant and financial controller at Avery Denison in County Cork in the south of Ireland. So I suppose my journey to become a chartered accountant all started off at a young age. To become a chartered accountant all started off at a young age. In national school there was always three exams every Friday We'd have the maths exam, an English exam and an Irish exam, and no matter what I get in English or Irish, I suppose maths would always generally be 100%. I had a great love for maths. I really enjoyed, I suppose, the logistical thinking of it and anytime there was money at home I'd love to be counting it. So I suppose the idea of balancing and counting always really appealed to me. I actually started off my secondary school experience or for the Leaving Cert cycle with five sciences, so I had biology, chemistry, physics, agricultural science and nutritional science. But it did a bit of a switch when I went into accounting because I got a great sense of passion and love of accounting from my accounting teacher in secondary school. And then I did accounting and business for the Leaving Cert. I really enjoyed, I suppose, the concept of business kind of in a working environment the concept of business kind of in a working environment. I chose accounting for university as well, initially because I wanted to be like my accounting teacher and teach accounting and business to secondary school children. However, when I was in the accounting program in University College Cork, it was a fantastic program. We learned about a variety of different subjects. So we learned areas such as statistics, economics, both macro and micro. We learned about company law. We learned about different information systems and finance, of course, we learned about accounting. So that really kind of, I suppose, spurred me on to choose to be a chartered accountant and I'm delighted that I've just become a Chartered Accountant as of this June. So I've completed my three and a half years experience with Chartered Accountants Ireland, where I've graduated with PwC Ireland. So I'm delighted. I'd love to say that I'm making a difference as part of my volunteer work. I'm a member of the Irish Consulting Student Group so as part of this, I mentor college students so kind of first and second year students who are looking to place themselves into summer internships. I was delighted. I had a really enthusiastic student this year. He was in first year of finance in UCC and he secured himself an interview and got the summer intern on his own bat. But it was great to be able to be in a position where you're able to give back and I was able to mentor the next generation as well. Also, as part of my time at PwC, I was in charge of the food pillar of the PwC Ireland Sustainability Council, so we are working on reducing waste throughout the seven different offices in PwC Ireland. So I think there's definitely a place that we can all play in terms of sustainability and making the world a more environment All right, this is One Young World Wake up, let's go. And more environment All right, this is One Young World Wake up, let's go.

Speaker 1: 3:48

I think the One Young World was a fantastic experience. Looking back on it now, I suppose there's loads of different memories and highlights. I suppose two particular ones that come to mind would be the opening ceremony. So I was so fortunate to be the Irish flag bearer. So this was the first day of the summit where myself and 197 other delegates were brought together for the day. We got to meet and greet each other and, I suppose, talk about our different traditions and our cultures. I suppose it was kind of forcing you to talk to people who you might meet every day. We really broadened our horizon, I suppose, learned about our commonality and also kind of where we differ as well. So it's fantastic. I was able to walk with the Irish flag and wave it on the international stage, which was fantastic. The second standout moment was I was very fortunate to be selected to be one of the 20 delegates that attended the basketball camp run by Jamil Finn. Jamil Finn is one of the first female Muslim professional basketball players. I think her ethos is so important. You know, her mission is to encourage the next generation, especially young females, to participate in sport, stay active and ensure that they have their love of basketball, and so she runs basketball camps around the globe and it was fantastic as well to even see her and just encouraging others who hadn't tried basketball before, and just her love for the game and her skill level was fantastic, but I suppose if I was to sum up my One Young World experience, one sentence was just a friendship I got. I've made so many different friends and I'm really looking forward to keeping and maintaining these lasting relationships.

Speaker 1: 5:43

I suppose at the Moint Young World Summit we were given so much advice and there were so many different workshops and presentations given and I suppose one of the themes I was shown was that your voice matters and you might be disencouraged by saying it's only one person speaking, but if it's one person being seen and showing visibility of making a change and standing up for what they believe is right, this will have a rippling effect on to others and they'll also be inspired. So I suppose, kind of having that courage within and being able to stand up, and if it's maybe something in your company that you don't agree with or maybe a charity that you're very passionate about, that you'd like to support, I suppose there's never no harm in asking and if you don't ask, you don't get. So I think it's very important. I suppose use your voice and to build up the courage within and, yeah, don't be afraid to take action. In 10 years time I'll be 35 years of age, which is a very scary thought. Hopefully I'll have a couple of young ones around the place and settle down, hopefully have my own house, I suppose I love kind of working in the corporate world and I'd like to climb that corporate ladder. So I'd love to be in a position where I'm in senior management, where I'm making business decisions, probably from like a top level point of view.

Speaker 1: 7:12

I think we're given voices for a reason Voices are so important and I think mine, like many others, are very important to contribute to, I suppose to business firstly and then to society. I'd love to use my, I suppose, position, title, status kind of, I suppose, in a positive way, and I've seen so many other past Charter Stars use their voice tremendously, and I suppose Caroline McGregory, for example, she's done fantastic work since she's become a Charter Sir and I'd love to, I suppose, mirror probably my past Charter Sirs who've been so successful in their jobs and, I suppose, using their voices as well, and so I'd love to, I suppose, use my voice kind of in a positive manner and in 10 years time, yeah, hopefully I'll be able to give back to society as well. I've been very fortunate, I've been given great support. I'd love to kind of, I suppose, create more of a mentoring society for younger chartered accountants. So I'm going to mirror the quotes that Margaret Atwood gave us. So she told us to go for it, and I'd love to give that to the younger generation as well.

Speaker 1: 8:36

I suppose, if it's for making positive change, if there's something you're passionate about and if it's something that you want to do, I think absolutely throw yourself fully at it. And if it's becoming a chartered accountant, it's definitely, I suppose, maybe a long journey, but the skills you learn as a chartered accountant you can't buy them. It's just fantastic. It's life skills you're building. You're building great organizational skills as well. I think there's a stat, something like 90% of CEOs are chartered accountants. So it's definitely a fantastic profession to have are chartered accountants, and so it's definitely a fantastic profession to have, and I don't think you'll be um waiting for any job once you're a chartered accountant. You're kind of slapped up like that and so I suppose, keep going.

Speaker 1: 9:19

The exams are a bit tough and grueling at times and it's definitely challenging with work as well, having different deadlines, but I suppose if you can keep your head and reach out to people and ask as many questions as you can, we all come into this space not knowing anything, and we're not nobody's an expert. So I suppose, make sure you ask questions and that's probably one advice that I wish I had known sooner as well and even training in a big four company. You might perceive yourself as being a bit silly or stupid asking a question, but if you don't ask questions at the start, it's asking a question, but if you don't ask questions at the start, it's going to be harder if you don't ask. And, yeah, relying on your colleagues as well, I think it's important to have a strong network, and I think in the space as well, networking is so important. So definitely use your circle as well, like we have colleagues here for a reason too, and so build yourself nice friendships and study hard, and it'll all be worth it. Thank you.