July 22, 2019   //   International   //   By Nina Moeller

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Guten Tag!

For those of you who actively follow Mueller’s Secondment blogs, willkommen to the newest installment.

Mueller is rapidly expanding its international presence, and it is an honor to be a part of this movement. Over the past few years, Mueller has sent employees on Secondment to Munich, Hamburg, England and the Netherlands. This summer, Mueller is sending employees to Cologne and Australia. For the next three months, I will be working at the firm PKF Fasselt Schlage. PKF Fasselt Schlage is one of the leading medium sized audit and consulting firms in Germany, with 14 offices located throughout the country. I am starting my Secondment in their Cologne office and towards the end of my Secondment, I will be working out of their Duisburg office. This week began my first of three weeks assisting on a component audit of a vinyl flooring company. In many ways, the audit procedures are similar to what I am accustomed to, which has made the transition a little smoother than expected.

While I am over here, I am staying in a studio flat in Friesenplatz, which is less than 2 kilometers outside of the city center and is approximately a 10-minute walk from the office. More importantly, my flat is directly across the street from a Starbucks…it is as if I never left home. All jokes aside, I could not be in a more perfect location. Surrounding my flat is a wide variety of shops, restaurants and local attractions, which makes every evening an adventure.

Before leaving for Cologne, my Secondment predecessors gave me some advice. Overall, their advice was essentially the same – enjoy every minute and make the most of the experience because it will fly by. As I approach the end of week one, I can honestly say they could not have been more right. Like previous Secondees, I have committed myself to adopting the mindset of saying yes so that I can make the most of this once in a lifetime opportunity. Already colleagues have invited me out for dinners, drinks, parties, etc. and I have enjoyed every minute thus far. I am truly grateful for this opportunity and that the people of PKF Fasselt Schlage have welcomed me into their firm with open arms.

Tschüss!