Hired by a Big-Four World-Class Company and Travelling Around the Globe

As an alumnus of Harapan Bangsa Institute of Technology, Vitalis Paskalis Pyoh is a living proof that anyone studying at the Harapan Bangsa Campus is entitled to dreaming high, even if one’s dream is to be hired by one of the Big Four companies in the world and build a global professional career in UK.

Vitalis’ decision to choose ITHB was not uninformed. He knew that ITHB had an internationally standardized study program that was suitable for his future dream. After graduating from the Industrial Engineering study program in 2008, Vitalis continued his study at the University of Worchester, UK. “I had a hard time there. My financial resources were limited and the only thing I had was my persistence. I could not afford to fail. ”

Immediately after receiving a Master of Science degree in September 2010, the young man from Palu was recruited by Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG) London, a Holland-based accounting firm now one of the world’s Big Four. Vitalis started his career as a KPMG Associate for a year in Birmingham. He was then promoted as KPMG Group London Strategy Advisor in March 2011.

In London Vitalis was in charge of evaluation and control, assessing the firm’s performance, performing financial and production analysis, and investigating human resources. His important position took him to many places around the globe. He visited almost 70% of European countries (including France, Italy, Ireland, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Bulgaria, Russia, Serbia, and Croatia) and a number of Asian countries (including India, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Taiwan).

As an international consultant, the thirty-one-year-old young is always demanded to do a multitasking job and be a team player wherever he is assigned. “I enjoy my busy work and meeting a lot of people. There are times when I prefer visiting an airport to a supermarket or a mall. Once I had to attend three meetings in a day in three different countries and was to return to London in the evening. Everything is so challenging and exciting.”

Vitalis still remembers what his lecturers at ITHB said about mere academic feats being hardly enough and the importance of additional organizational and professional experiences. It was for this reason that Vitalis joined as a UNICEF Indonesia volunteer while still studying at ITHB. “We didn’t get a regular income, but we had fun. I learned lots of stuffs, like interacting with people of different backgrounds, planning activities and executing them until the final stage.”

Thinking that he had learned a lot from his experience in London, Vitalis requested a transfer to an office near home. He then became part of KPMG Singapore Global Sales and Markets, and as KPMG Group Indonesia Strategy Group Advisor. In Vitalis’ view, Indonesia has a simpler and less demanding work culture. “While stationed in Europe, I had to get used to high discipline and being open, and frank to both my juniors and seniors. There was hardly any gap between among interns, higher-level managers, and executives. We all had equal opportunities to learn and exchange knowledge. And wherever I go, I will always remember it and share my experience of working in Europe to my clients and colleagues in Asia.

Vitalis Paskalis Pyoh
Advisor Strategy Group KMPG UK (2010-2014)
Global Sales and Markets KPMG Singapore, Advisor Strategy Group KPMG Indonesia (2014-present)
Industrial Engineering graduate 2008