This weeks episode is my appearance on the University Challenged Podcast with Toni Kent. Here's what it this episode is about..

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Would you know what to say if you found yourself on a Zoom call with Her Majesty the Queen in your early 20s? David McIntosh did.

As Scotland's first ever Management Consulting apprentice at KPMG, and the Co-Chair of the firm's UK Social Mobility network, David's life story so far makes for powerful listening. So much so, he was chosen to speak with Her Majesty as part of the firm's 150th anniversary celebrations.

In our conversation, David explains how growing up in receipt of free school meals and with uniform and holidays provided by veteran's charities empowered him to 'flip his DNA' and embark on a quest to become an accountant.

He also shares how the work of the Social Mobility Foundation opened up access to opportunities that may otherwise not have been visible or available to him and the impact this had in setting his trajectory towards management consulting aligned with public service.

We talk poverty, using humour to deflect attention and how counting coppers as a child can be a clue to a future career. There's also lots to take away on the value of being unconventional and the power of having a North Star.

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Check out out the University, Challenged podcast here: https://open.spotify.com/show/2jF3Z2j5QcjWyArN0nU3cS?si=a9a3a1bb8c52432c