Cindy Lim

6.45 AM

A slightly odd time to wake up because it is not exactly 6:30 am but it is not 7:00 am either! I make some quick mental notes throughout the next hour to try and not fall back asleep.  I intersperse these thoughts with the perpetual “What do I wear today?” and when that has been decided, I continue with “How do I style my hair?”

7.30 AM

The Queensland weather is predictably sunny during most mornings when I’m on my commute to work. A 40-minute drive ahead but the bright sun surrounding the journey is definitely a breath of fresh air being a former Melburnian.

8.30 AM

I arrive at work and once the trusted work laptop has loaded up I open my inbox to my overnight emails that are awaiting a response from me.  My emails are of varying tasks, from verifying cost objects, to requests for the export of data from our SAP system and updates required on weekly reports. This is the first task I do once I arrive in the office as it helps me get a handle on a plan for the day ahead.  Next, my colleagues and I have a quick coffee as we prepare for the daily hustle.

9.30 AM

The first meeting of the day is the daily catch up with the team. Besides a bit of quick ‘out-of-work’ talk, we go through a breakdown discussion on what we will all be doing for the day. 

10.00 AM

Usually one of the busier times of the day for me where you would find me buried in ad-hoc tasks related to project controlling and various management accounting reports. Alongside doing the reports, there will be numerous logins into SAP to download data to generate project/business unit reports that break down the operational efficiency across multiple business units. An essential resource in getting managers the useful information they need to help them to monitor and understand the costs related to their team.

12.00 PM

Lunchtime! If still preoccupied by the aforementioned tasks, you would find me sitting at the desk cozily scoffing down my lunch.  Otherwise, a trip to the canteen with my colleagues is warranted, and the break, enjoyed!

12.30 PM

Post-lunch is when I’m in a call with a Senior Business Analyst from my department. As she prepares for maternity leave, I’ve been getting acquainted with her tasks on the (almost) daily. It is an appreciated mentoring process too, as I plan to undertake studies for my CA in the future.  As part of this catch up, I get the practical one-on-one time with her to discuss various items as part of my learning.  I learn about our financial processes specific to the project including; reconciliations, invoicing, estimate at completion (EAC) reporting and forecasting. 

1.30 PM

Professional communication takes the theme for this time of the day, when I meet with senior managers across the organisation. Discussions about the reports I generated earlier, as well as other processes, are conversed during this time.  These conversations definitely give me a better understanding of the way Rheinmetall operates, and the industry insights I pick up, support my overall learning.  After these meetings, I have a follow-up discussion with my direct manager to debrief and set any new action items.

4.00 PM

I finish off any pending reports and send them off to the relevant stakeholders.  This is also when I like to complete any other remaining tasks before the end of the day.

5.00 PM

I usually leave the office at this time, although the timing might slightly vary from day to day, it is fair to say that my hours are usually predictable. This is also an exciting hour to spice things up by experiencing my commute home in the car. 

At Rheinmetall to embrace a work-life balance culture, we are encouraged to have fun with team bonding activities outside of the office. We get moments of living up new experiences, such as golfing. I was especially grateful for this day, being new to Brisbane and getting to spend time outside of normal working hours with my new teammates. It was priceless, plus I got to drive around in a golf buggy!

7.30 PM

Dinnertime is when I unwind. Once again, you can usually find me scoffing down some food as I reflect on the events of the day.

8.30 PM

I spend this time catching up with family and friends back home in Melbourne as I reallocated to Brisbane when I got this job with Rheinmetall in June 2021. I am happy to get updates from them, see how they are doing and listen to their stories!

10.00 PM

Sleep. I get ready for bed and hope to fall asleep as I lay there thinking about all the things that await me tomorrow. A full day of interesting tasks, friendly co-workers and exciting new possibilities!