Having a critical mind, asking better questions and approaching things with a growth mindset are increasingly important, according to EY Luxembourg partner Robert White.

White has lived in Luxembourg since 2004 and has witnessed plenty of changes over the years. “There’s been an absolute explosion in the availability of codified information… we don’t need people to recite fact after fact,” he explains.

The partner says the firm is increasingly looking for two key elements when recruiting. First, the ability to digitally utilise and harvest the wide body of codified information so that real trends and insights can be gleaned from it. Anyone these days has access to an overwhelming amount of data or can find texts about circulars or financial reporting standards--but it takes an analytic mind to be able to scrutinise that data and convert it into meaningful answers for an organisation. “We’re certainly looking in areas such as mathematics, engineering, everything on the digital spectrum,” he adds.

The second element is one which White finds more interesting: “We need people who are able to learn, are wildly inquisitive and brave enough to ask questions.”

And not just any questions. “We need people who are able to ask better questions… [those] who  are able to see through conventional wisdom,” the partner adds. 

While it might surprise some, such recruits could come from studies like humanities, literature--and “from education systems that no longer operate rote learning systems”.

As for White himself, his own professional background is in finance and accounting. However, he says he has constantly tried throughout his own career to broaden his horizons, read voraciously and generally “to train my mind”. 

The past years have brought about plenty of sea changes, with Brexit, covid-19, the conflict in Ukraine, he recalls: “You won’t find anything in any standard anywhere that anticipated those three seismic events.”