What jobs has your career with Henkel involved?
I completed a Henkel commercial traineeship, and then began as a commercial clerk in asset accounting.

What’s the nature of your work with Henkel?
Accounting work in the field of Asset Accounting involves acquiring and evaluating movable and fixed assets in line with commercial law, tax law and international accounting guidelines (IFRS). In my specialised field I manage investment projects and new additions for the Detergents division. Major projects may be involved, such as entire production lines, or just small new acquisitions.

Did you have your own responsibilities from the outset?
Yes, from the beginning I had my own specialist field, and was swiftly introduced into the daily business. During the first weeks in a new job you go through an enormous upheaval, but you receive great support from colleagues and superiors. Your specialised knowledge deepens, both in theory and practice. Soon after starting in asset accounting, for example, I went on an external seminar that gave me an excellent grounding in asset bookkeeping.

What pleases you about your job?
The combination of technical and commercial demands suits me and satisfies me. What we have to do is understand what economic goods are procured and how they are to be accounted for. We sort out outstanding questions in discussions with the technical project managers, or even by going on production factory tours. For the next step you need commercial know-how in order to decide how to handle the costs concerned. So we have many interfaces, both in the technical and commercial sectors and we continually seek dialogue with the related technical departments.