I started my Master’s in Commercial Sciences (Taxation) at the University of Ghent at the end of September 2021. During one of the first classes, a KPMG flyer was handed out to invite us for a distillery visit. That day, we didn’t just taste liqueurs and whiskies, we also got to know the KPMG Tax & Legal team and met employees from different service lines. During the visit, I met Sjoukje Custers, who told me about the People Services department. She explained that this department specializes in providing tax advice for non-residents and residents of Belgium who are employed here. The international scope of their activities really appealed to me. A week later, I applied for an internship at KPMG’s People Services department.
I’m very grateful to KPMG for giving me the opportunity to do an internship. I felt at home from the first day until the last one. My colleagues were always very pleasant to work with and always available to help. In addition, I really liked the work itself. I found it very interesting to provide tax advice to international employees who are employed in Belgium. I was pleased to notice that KPMG was also satisfied with my performance. My coach David Vandevoorde was always open for a chat and gave constructive feedback at the right moments. I am also very grateful to my internship supervisor Kristof Van Gucht for guiding me through my internship.
This extremely positive internship experience convinced me to sign a contract with People Services and start my career here. I am looking back, almost a year later, with great joy, and the positive feeling I had during my internship has never left me since.
Matthias Luypaert completed an UGhent internship at People Services
Hybrid working week
KPMG offers a lot of flexibility; you can work from home as well as from our different office locations. This makes it very pleasant to work and allows you to maintain a good work-life balance. Here’s a sneak peek of my hybrid working week at KPMG Tax & Legal:
Monday
On Mondays, I prefer to work from home. I like to look at my calendar for the week ahead and start planning what tasks I would like to get done at what time during the week. Working from home on Mondays doesn’t only help me to have an organized and productive week, but it also allows me to have more spare time in the evenings. After work, I like to go for a walk with my dog Tommy and completely relax for a while.
Tuesday
On Tuesdays, I go to the office in Zaventem. As this is the headquarters of our department, it is always nice to run into many colleagues here. Training sessions are often scheduled on Tuesdays, especially during the first weeks of your internship. They prepare you to apply your knowledge in practice. These sessions are always organized together with the first-year Advisers, making it easy to get to know each other better. The sessions are always very interactive so you can learn from everyone.
Wednesday
To 'break up' the week a bit, I like to work from the Ghent office on Wednesdays during my internship. This office is easily accessible for me since I live in Ghent, so it’s quite convenient for me to work from there once a week. The Ghent office is situated at the Blue Towers. It’s a very pleasant and cozy space to work from. Quite often, there’s a small group of People Services colleagues at the office, so you get to know each other very well. For me, it was a nice change of pace to alternate between the Zaventem and Ghent offices.
Thursday
On Thursdays, training sessions are often scheduled in Zaventem with the entire team. These are very hands-on 'experience sharing' sessions, in which each colleague gets the chance to share certain professional topics that are useful to the whole team. Social activities are also often organized on Thursdays as many colleagues are in the office that day. We often have drinks on the tenth floor to get to know colleagues in a more casual way.
Friday
Friday was my day off during my internship. I used this day to write my master's thesis. I recommend enquiring about interesting thesis topics that fit with our services if you are interested in doing an internship at People Services. Colleagues are in fact very often willing to help you whenever you have additional questions related to your master's thesis. Within our department, you can also find a lot of useful information to delve further into the topic. So I strongly recommend choosing a topic that suits your internship.
I hope this testimonial has convinced you to also do an internship at KPMG People Services. I would do it again in a heartbeat and have not regretted my choice for a second. You’ll join a very nice team and get the chance to put theory into practice. The most enjoyable aspect of my internship was the human contact, both with colleagues and clients. And as the name People Services suggests, that's what our department is ultimately all about.
