Graduate Experience:
John Lee

What led you to Aurora, and what did you do before?

I graduated from The University of Melbourne with a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce, majoring in Finance and Economics. Through experiences in consulting clubs, case competitions, and consulting internships, I realised there was a gap in the market for renewable energy expertise. This sparked my interest in consulting, specifically within the renewable energy transition.

Can you describe a typical day in your role?

Each morning starts off with a catch-up with the rest of the advisory team, giving us a space to discuss our priorities for the day. Afterwards, I jump into advisory work, which ranges from running market models and analysing results to populating deliverables to be sent to clients. Throughout the day, there might be trainings, coffee catchups, or one-on-one meetings with team members, which helps me feel a sense of community within Aurora.

If you were to pitch your job to someone, what would you say you enjoyed the most?

The amount of deep learning about the power market industry from working on projects and chatting with colleagues. The most enjoyable parts are engaging with subject matter experts in the office and understanding how Aurora’s models or a particular market works.

How would you describe the culture at Aurora?

Work hard, play harder. The people at Aurora are sharp and switched on with a lot of emphasis on teamwork and collaboration in projects. At the same time, on top of flexibility and the option to work from home, there’s plenty of opportunity for fun. We have regular social events with activities like pasta making classes, trivia nights, and “champainting” for the grad cohort!

Can you share a moment when you felt particularly empowered at Aurora?

I have felt the most empowered when working through difficult projects. On one project, I had a client who had requested for many deliverables in a very short timeframe. A senior associate in the team guided me through the thought process and workflow of how to deliver what the clients had asked for. This created a sense of camaraderie and built up my self-confidence in delivering complex project deliverables and managing my priorities.

In what ways does Aurora support your sense of purpose in your career?

I’m personally very interested to see how the global energy transition will pan out. As Aurora is rapidly expanding into new markets, I’m keen to grow alongside the company as we produce deep market insights to aid in the global transition to a cleaner, greener future.

What have you gained from your time at Aurora, and what do you hope to achieve next?

Aurora has given me a level of competency in analysing market models and an understanding of what and how the key drivers affect the Australian energy transition. At the same time, I’ve gained interpersonal, communication, and data presentation skills through client meetings and internal presentations. As I progress with Aurora, I hope to develop deep and specialised knowledge on markets in Australia, across APAC, and globally.

Reflecting on your start at Aurora, what’s one thing you wish you would have known, and what advice would you give a new starter?

Don’t take it upon yourself to understand everything on day one. After progressing through 6 months in the graduate programme, I’m still constantly learning new things about the market and our internal model configurations every day. Pro tip: During trainings and meetings, jotting down notes and reviewing them periodically really helped consolidate my thoughts and fill in any knowledge gaps.