Life outside the ledger
The pursuits shaping our Audit & Assurance colleagues
Four audit professionals. Four very different worlds outside of work.
Kelly Clark, Kerry Smith, Zain Ahmed and Rob Hughes have all chosen to carve out careers in Audit & Assurance at Deloitte. But behind the numbers, there’s something else that connects them – a love of adrenaline and artistry.
Whether it’s on a football pitch, by the pool, in a cockpit or with a violin in hand, all four are following passions that allow them to see things from a different perspective, and it’s helping them to bring the best of themselves to their day jobs.
Together, they show that their passions outside of work – whether in sport, music, aviation or mentoring – shape who they are and how they work, bringing energy, creativity and perspective to Audit & Assurance at Deloitte.
Balancing ambition: from pitch to pool
For Kelly Clark, a senior manager based in our Glasgow office, life is a balance between crunching numbers and commanding the football pitch. As a professional football player for Celtic Football Club, Kelly embodies the drive and discipline that define both her careers.
Her journey with the beautiful game began at age seven, and she quickly progressed through the ranks to represent Scotland. While her passion for football was undeniable, the landscape of women’s football meant that a professional career wasn’t a viable option at the time.
Inspired by her love of maths, Kelly chose the accountancy profession, embarking on a path that would lead her to Deloitte. Now, she juggles her fulltime role as an auditor with the demands of professional football.
Training throughout the week requires flexibility – a balance that she notes her colleagues at Deloitte have been incredibly supportive of. In September 2025, when Celtic qualified for the Champions League, Kelly began managing international weekend games alongside her audit responsibilities.
“Both sides of my life are incredibly understanding,” Kelly shares. “It’s never held me back, professionally or personally.”
Meanwhile, Kerry Smith’s journey from international artistic swimmer to a top-tier judge has been inspired by the words of her mum: “Whatever you take out, you must give back.”
From South Africa, she first made the national team in her teens and competed in her last World Championships in 2015, when she stopped swimming competitively and switched to judging the following year to give back.
Kerry, who made partner at Deloitte in 2025, is now a World Aquatics Gold judge. It means she can judge any competition up to and including the Olympics. And having already judged three World Championships, her sights are firmly set on the Games one day.
She’s also a committed coach and mentor and brings qualities learned in the pool and on the panel to her role as an auditor.
A finely tuned balance
In his spare time, partner Rob Hughes is more likely to be counting beats and bars.
He found his rhythm aged three after picking up his mum’s violin. A teacher herself, she coached him every morning before school until he was 15.
That routine grew into a lifelong love of chamber music. He formed his own string quartet at university, where he also had the honour of leading the orchestra.
“I remember one moment, during a performance of Sibelius’ Fifth Symphony, there was a huge thunderstorm as we came down on the final crashing chords. It was amazing,” he says.
Rob’s interest in music reflects the precision and attention to detail that drew him to a career in audit. Now, 27 years later, he leads the A&A US Capital Markets team.
“Our job can be tough, and my interests have always been the best way for me to decompress,” he continues. “It’s important to be passionate about anything you do, and to have things you enjoy outside of your day job. It gives you balance, perspective and life experience.”
Proving the sky’s the limit
BrightStart apprentice Zain Ahmed could fly a plane before he could drive.
As a young boy in Pakistan, living near an airfield sparked his love of aviation. He moved to the UK aged six and had his first flying lesson at 15.
“We were speeding down the runway, and I remember thinking this was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” says Zain.
After leaving school at 18, Zain joined Deloitte’s school leavers apprenticeship BrightStart scheme in 2023. The opportunity to earn and learn – studying for an ACA qualification – was a huge draw. It’s helped him fund his flying hours as he works towards his pilot’s licence.
He’s also using skills cultivated in the cockpit in the workplace. “Flying has taught me to handle pressure,” he explains. “Communication is critical – when you’re talking to air traffic control, you have to be precise. You also have to listen and take instructions.”
