Diana Sekuljica, Director, Head of Finance & Compliance Services with Cameron Gillett

Summer vacationer placements are a great way to get ahead. Not only do they provide hands on experience, they also provide an opportunity to consolidate learnings during the year, and put them into the context of a work environment.

One student who embraced this concept is Cameron Gillett, having recently completed a summer placement at global real estate services firm Jones Lang LaSalle, in their Sydney office.

“I was already planning to utilise the summer break to either study or do a placement, so when the opportunity to work at JLL over the break came up, I jumped at it,” says Cameron.

Cameron completed his Certificate IV in Accounting at TAFE in 2012, and has since commenced his Bachelor of Commerce in Professional Accounting at Macquarie University, which he is now one year in to.

He heard about the placement opportunity (a collaboration between JLL and Indigenous Accountants Australia) from the Indigenous Support Officer at Macquarie University, Wayne Charters, who had been contacted by IAA.

The placement is the first of its kind at JLL. Diana Sekuljica, Director, Head of Finance & Compliance Services, says that the placement was created with the objective to give a university student an opportunity to work in a global corporate over the summer break, ultimately leading to future permanent employment with JLL, following a couple of years on the vacationing program.

“The vacationing program is a stepping stone in providing a solid career start for Indigenous accountants; that’s enough of a prompt to do this,” she says.

“Cameron was our first vacationer, and therefore we will learn from Cameron’s feedback as to what worked and what we can improve to ensure our vacationing program is challenging and that vacationers are engaged during their employment with us. Further, we will be keen to learn what would bring him back.”

During his eight week placement, Cameron’s main areas of responsibility included mostly accounts receivable and accounts payable activities, as well as assisting with end of month reporting.

“This was perfect because it supports where my studies are at the moment,” he says.

“I had worked in a medium sized firm previously, so working in a large organisation has been great, to see how things work and to understand what is expected after graduation from uni.”

As far as future vacationer opportunities go at JLL, Diana expects the program will continue to grow, with opportunities increasing as the program matures over the years.

“Indigenous Accountants Australia have assisted in placing Cameron this summer, and I expect they will continue to partner with us to place vacationers in future.”

If you would like further information about vacationer placements or internships, contact us at info@indigenousaccountants.com.au.