'In India, where I come from, there's a very strict, hierarchic business culture that permeates everything,' says Parneet Sethi, who joined Deloitte Forensic as a consultant four years ago and has since moved into a managerial role. 'The kind of culture, in fact, that many people associate with the world of consultancy. And there's truth to that, I've witnessed it myself in my previous job, but not here.' Jean-Luc Kraaijenoord, Senior Consultant at Forensic, agrees. 'I wanted to be an attorney and worked for a law firm, but it wasn't what I expected. One of the things I had difficulty with was the very traditional form of hierarchy. I was flabbergasted one day when I had to attend a lengthy meeting and wasn't allowed to sit at the table because I was the youngest. I had to stand! Another problem was the hours. Going home at ten in the evening and working Sundays was the norm; I wanted my life back; a job that wouldn't consume time I should be spending with my girlfriend, friends and family. Because however much I love the work I do, I love them more than my career.'

Good deeds and bad guys Parneet is a woman with great sense of empathy for her fellow human beings. 'If I hear that a colleague has had a burnout, for instance, I'll seek them out and talk to them to try to help them. Simply lending an ear can mean the world to someone. My religion teaches that it is your purpose in life to grow closer to God by helping others and that's a mindset that I can bring to Deloitte. I try always to be true to myself and my assignments, offering advice to clients that is intrinsically good before all else. I want to do good deeds in life; if I can do those through my work, then that's the best thing possible.'

Ethics is important to Jean-Luc as well, though his is rooted in simple family values. 'I grew up in the Frisian countryside and studied Law in the 'big city' of Groningen. Honesty was always very important at home and it's important to me today. I don't want to feel regret because I've done something unethical. I feel lucky to be able to use my mind as a force for good. We're balancers, fraud investigators, we promote stability in society, working on projects to catch the bad guys and I like that. There's a widely held misconception that Deloitte is all about money, money, money, and helping big companies and the rich get richer by any means possible. The truth is, and I see it in other departments when I work together with them, people here are very conscientious, they are concerned about the environment, conscious of what they eat, share an aversion to unfairness and inequality, and they all bring their values and standards to Deloitte. There's pressure from employees company-wide to choose clients who contribute to society rather than parasite it. I'm very happy and proud to be working on government, tax related projects, making sure that people and companies pay their due. That's a positive I take home with me every day.'

Corporate social responsibility is top of mind in many ways at Deloitte. 'I'm working on an ongoing government assignment to solve a very pressing social problem. It's paid by the client,' explains Parneet. 'But I'm also involved in a project in close conjunction with the police to combat human trafficking. We're developing a crime script model to visualise the process of transporting the victims from one country to the next, which makes it easier to catch the culprits. That's paid for by the Deloitte Impact Foundation and there are many more projects like it, giving employees time to use their expertise to help solve societal issues that might otherwise not be seriously addressed at all.'

Bollywood dancing and other life lessons Deloitte is a company in which everybody can be themselves. 'You don't have to pretend,' says Parneet. 'Everyone accepts you for who you are. People encourage each other to develop and grow. We work very closely in cross-departmental teams and you learn a lot just from the variety of perspectives. We also all have a coach who is senior and who helps you with your personal challenges, how to find your way and achieve your goals, whatever they may be. And there's plenty of room for fun, too. When I told colleagues I have a passion for dancing, they asked me to organise a Bollywood dancing workshop here at work. So I did and it was smashing! I think that overall, the most important thing I've learned here is that anything is possible and that if you want something, you must ask for it. Deloitte has taught me how to be the leader of my career and that's a take-away for my life and future in general: I will keep doing it.' Jean-Luc values Deloitte for understanding personal situations and trying to fit the job to the individual rather than the individual to the job. 'I'm challenged and inspired here, and sometimes perhaps a little in awe of the wealth of knowledge and experience of partners, but they would never put you on the spot or ridicule you; they want you to learn. Everyone is really energetic and works with a smile on their face. That spirit is contagious and makes working here a pleasure. Life lessons? Keep calm. We work on some very high-profile investigations for very large organisations. The problems are often big and they want a solution today. But to do our job properly, we mustn't jump to attention when the client snaps his fingers; we take a step back, analyse carefully and prioritise. It prevents things becoming exaggerated that are actually not at all significant. That calm helps me in all kinds of ways, at work as well as in my private life.'