Member Article

Accountant sets sail to Australia

Jonny Harrison, an assurance manager from PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP in Newcastle, is taking on the challenge of a lifetime by sailing himself and his wife around the world in his own yacht. The couple’s life long ambition of sailing around the world is being assisted by the PWC career break scheme and secondment programme which will allow Jonny to work at the Sydney office of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP when they finally reach their ultimate destination, Australia.

Jonny plans to set sail in late July and will spend 16 months sailing from the UK to Australia. The trip has been in planning for a couple of years, necessitated by the significant time and logistical arrangements required for the adventure.

The timetable starts in North West England in July, where the yacht is currently being refitted, then onto Ireland and Northern Spain. After crossing the Atlantic the trip will turn to the entrance of the Panama Canal, followed by the Galapagos Islands and the French Polynesian Islands in the Pacific. The couple will reach Australia in October 2009.

Jonny said: “PricewaterhouseCoopers have been instrumental in making my dream become a reality. Firstly the opportunity to take 16 months unpaid leave while still retaining my position within the firm is something that has been highly supported and I hope the skills and experiences I bring back will be of benefit both to my career and to the team I work with.

“Secondly, the opportunity to experience living and working in a different culture is something that the firm has embraced and promoted. “This has provided me with the chance to work in Australia which underpins the whole trip. I look forward to bringing new skills back to the Newcastle team from my experiences, both on the high seas and from my time in Sydney.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .