A new career

Internal Auditor, April, 2006 by Diane Lefebvre, Conrad Van Den Berg

Thank you for Susan Jacob's article, "A Second Career in Auditing" ("Back to Basics," December 2005). I am in a similar situation and felt comforted to know that I am not alone. Before reading Jacob's article, I kept thinking that I made a mistake when I moved to internal auditing, and that I needed to consider a job change. The lack of hustle and bustle and the feeling of isolation have particularly bothered me. After reading Jacob's article, I have decided to stick with internal auditing. Now that I understand that some of my frustrations are a standard part of the job, I can figure out how to address my need for interaction in areas outside of my work.

DIANE LEFEBVRE

Internal Auditor Telcordia Technologies Inc.

Piscataway, N.J.

dlefebvr@telcordia.com

Thanks to Susan Jacob for taking the time to write the article, "A Second Career in Auditing." I am a trained engineer who switched careers at 44 years of age. Now, I am an internal auditor in a manufacturing company.

Over the past two years, I have learned a lot, gained plenty of experience, and have been involved in some conflict situations. Although I have some contact with internal auditors from our parent company abroad--whose first language is not English--I am the only internal auditor in our company in South Africa. Sometimes the main challenge is to stay motivated--especially because I am my own boss, and because success is not determined on a day-to-day basis, but over months and years. Jacob's article has motivated me to continue learning and doing a good job.

CONRAD VAN DEN BERG

Internal Auditor

Columbus Stainless (Pty) Ltd.

Middleburg, South Africa

vandenberg.conrad@columbus.co.za

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