Voice of Experience: Agnès Hussherr, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers

By Elizabeth Harrin (London)

For the last five years, Agnès Hussherr, Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, has led the Women in PwC project in France. It’s part of a challenging and interesting role that has kept her at the company for over twenty years.

“I joined PwC twenty years ago just after graduation, aged 22, as an auditor, and was appointed partner at 33,” she says. “In the early days of my career, I worked on a variety of projects including non-audit work. Also, I had the opportunity to be on one job which widened my knowledge of the banking sector. This meant I didn’t become too specialised which might have limited my opportunities to become a partner.”

As a young partner, for six years Hussherr split her work 50/50 as a client partner and as a technical partner specialised in IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards), which gave her a strong technical background and the opportunity to work within a worldwide global and virtual team. However, while the technical background has given her a good grounding, it is not the most critical part of her road to success. “Working long hours and being a technical expert are not the most important things,” she says. “The most important are relationships, both with clients and internally.”

Her career has had many highlights since becoming a partner in 2001, but she points to one particular incident as an example of her professional achievements. “Two years ago we were appointed auditor of a large French bank in a context where our chances were close to zero, due to several historical reasons,” she explains. “I was in charge of the tender and very proud to win it!”

Expertise in Many Areas

Currently Hussherr works in the banking and capital markets industry and looks after three large French accounts. This area has given her international exposure and the opportunity to build up her expertise in a complex area.

As well as her role in the women’s programme in France, she is also the network leader for Women in PwC project for the zone the company calls the Central Cluster, which is made up of 80 countries. “I represent the Central Cluster and France in our global Gender Advisory Council,” she says. “I bring my knowledge of the network and of the topic. I am also the contact for our global partnership with the Women’s Forum for the Economy and Society that is held every year in France.”

On top of all that, Hussherr has been part of the French firm’s Assurance Executive Committee since 2009. “I have two roles on the committee,” she explains. “HR partner for Assurance and co-ordination of our Financial Services sector for Assurance.”

All of these commitments have given her a breadth of experience, challenges and opportunities that she sees are reasons why she has chosen to make a career at PwC. “I have been given opportunities constantly over the years,” she says. “I have always had – and still have – the feeling of continuing to learn and develop myself, in different areas.” Hussherr also says that she was fortunate to have worked with partners who showed her the way, and benefited from a great deal of variety in her job. “As an audit partner with PwC I deal with clients in a relationship role, teams – a coaching and development role – technical issues, and I have internal responsibilities in a leadership and management role,” she explains.

Women and Work/Life Balance at PwC

Finally, she believes PwC has given her the ability to maintain a good work-life balance. “I am very lucky to have a husband that understands my job and its constraints,” she says. Hussherr met her husband, a former auditor, at PwC, and tries to spend quality time with her children, aged 16, 14 and 11. “For example, if there is a specific issue at school I organise myself to help with schoolwork during a specific period,” she explains.

Despite the demands of a family and a busy job, she has found a personal balance. “Strangely, I feel currently more balanced than some years ago,” she says. “I have more work, more responsibilities, but am better organised and learned to work more efficiently. I also learnt that taking breaks is important to be 100% efficient during the working hours: my oxygen is the weekends we spend in our house on the seaside in Normandy, with plenty of sunlight and fresh air.” Hussherr also makes time for herself: six months ago the time she invested in herself paid off: “I got my private pilot’s licence which enables me now to fly small planes,” she says.

Work-life balance and women’s initiatives have been a key part of PwC’s diversity strategy for many years. Hussherr strongly feels that these efforts are still required. “Even though we have increased the level of understanding and the level of commitment of our management and our figures are acceptable – 20% of our partners are female in France and our top management now comprises 25% women since last year – we need to continue our efforts to retain our female talent,” she says. “It is still an issue, even in France. Things do not change quickly. I would like to see more women at country leadership and global board level. We need specific training for women to assist them with learning to be leaders.”

So what advice would she give to women who want to follow a similar career path and become part of that group of female partners? “Grab challenges, find role models and a mentor, build specificities (industry/technical skills) and never forget your personal life and balance.”