Where did you grow up?

I grew up in South Gippsland before moving to the city for University. During my degree, I took the opportunity to study abroad. I studied for six months in Paris with a focus on philosophy and six months in Florence with a focus on international law.

How did you get to your current job position?

Whilst I was working in a law firm, an opportunity came up to complete a three-month secondment in their eDiscovery team. I enjoyed my secondment and was there 18 months when I was approached for an exciting role at McGrathNicol. I completed an informative interview process before joining the Forensic Technology team at McGrathNicol in early 2019.

How did you choose your specialisation?  

Once I graduated, I started my career as a paralegal at a top-tier law firm with the view to becoming a lawyer. However, after I gained exposure to eDiscovery through my legal background I decided that was the career pathway I wanted to pursue.

What was your interview process like?

The recruitment process had three key stages. The first interview with a Technology Partner and Director, an online cognitive test and a final interview with two other senior members of staff.

I found the interview process to be semi-formal and informative. I was asked about my narrative: How did I end up here? What did I do previously? What technology was I familiar with? What I hoped to achieve in my career? It was really a conversation in which I felt the team genuinely wanted to get to know me and understand if we would work well together.

What does your employer do?

McGrathNicol is an Australian based leading Advisory and Restructuring firm. I work within the Technology team. We specialise in complex investigations, time-critical cybersecurity incident response activities and helping our clients to design strategies and implement frameworks to mitigate digital and information risk.

What are your areas of responsibility?

I specialise in eDiscovery services. I act as an interface between lawyers and technology. I use my technical expertise to identify, collect and transform data so that it is user-friendly for lawyers and investigators. Our team analyses terabytes of data to find out what's potentially relevant to assist lawyers and investigators in complex matters.

Can you describe a typical workday?

I like to begin my day by scanning the news and looking for any ‘juicy’ disputes, investigations or data breaches. It’s always handy to know the latest news for the discussions in the office kitchen. 

From there, every day is different! We work on matters that can potentially have significant consequences for our clients and as such, they are often time-critical. Just last week, we received a phone call from an investment bank. Within the week, we took a forensic copy of an employee’s laptop and prepared a report on their activity e.g. who the employee sent emails to/from, what files they were downloading, etc..

What are the career prospects with your job?

At McGrathNicol there is a strong focus on developing their people. They encourage us to take on responsibility, become mentors and to have open conversations about our career. In the Technology team, I’m surrounded by people with all sorts of backgrounds who I collaborate with and learn from every day. For example, technology consultants, data scientists, economists, private investigators and even an opera singer!

What would your career be if you weren’t doing what you’re doing now?

I enjoy cooking and was recently gifted a pasta maker. If I wasn’t a Senior Analyst, I think I would be making fresh pasta for local cafes and restaurants.

What do you love the most about your job?

I love the variety of work and the fact that I never know exactly what the day will bring! As technology is constantly evolving there is a continuous learning element which I enjoy. The team is always receiving training on new technology to learn how we can better serve our clients.

I enjoy consulting with our clients to understand their needs and using my technical skills to resolve their complex business challenges.

What’s the biggest limitation of your job?

In terms of work hours, we have a culture that values work-life balance and I find I leave work more often than not by 5.30 PM. In our line of work, there can be tight deadlines on projects so occasionally I will work out of hours to ensure I am meeting the needs of our clients. We make an effort to celebrate as a team at the end of challenging projects and enjoy the downtime during quieter periods.

A word to the wise...

The first thing that springs to mind is to pursue a career that aligns to your passions and makes you happy. 

My second piece of advice is to be yourself in the workplace, and don’t be afraid to express your ideas and opinions.

My last piece of advice is to always think of the bigger picture and be open to all opportunities that come your way, you never know where they will take you!