My name’s Matthew Kay, I’ve been with the NAO fifteen months and I’m an assistant auditor working mainly on the Ministry of Justice clients.
What attracted me to the NAO?
Having initially worked for an MP as a research intern, I was attracted to the NAO because of the opportunity to work on matters of real public interest. And also by the fact that I’d have exposure to multiple areas of government rather than just working in a single department. The fact that I’d be offered professional training was a real bonus.
How has the NAO met my expectations career wise?
The training at the NAO is excellent and the value for money work is extremely interesting. But the financial audit work and the more technical aspects of the job, neither of which I had any real knowledge about when I joined, have also proved really enjoyable.
What do I enjoy most about my role?
The best thing about working for the NAO is that I feel I’m making a real contribution to an office whose role of challenging, scrutinizing and ensuring the transparency of government spending is so self evidently worthwhile. My biggest challenge so far has been stepping up to lead my first financial audit. The challenge of liaising with my manager, with the parent department and with the client and keeping them all happy was huge but it was incredibly satisfying to overcome that.
