Meet Senior Accountant, plant mother and yoga fanatic – Olina Xu.
Olina (who also is known as Ollie in the office) is simply lovely. She is always going above and beyond to solve our client’s problems and absolutely loves to explain new concepts and ideas.
From first impressions to the most fulfilling aspect of Ollie’s role, get to know the wonderful Ollie.
How did your journey at Orbit begin?
My journey at Orbit began in July 2017 after I applied for the new senior accountant role and came to the office for my interview. Kate was very lovely and happy, and Greg was also very nice but can look very serious when talking about professional stuff. My first impression was that I love the people and the workplace. The office is beautiful and has no paper files (love it!), and I also got to meet Jessie, our cat colleague, who was trying to fit herself into my bag.
What does a typical day at Orbit look like for you?
My days typically begin by reviewing all my tasks for the day, then replying to client emails with ad-hoc work requests before I get started on all the tasks I have booked on my calendar. My main tasks are tax returns, financial report preparations, BAS preparations, bookkeeping, and my favourite – budgeting and tax planning. Plus, our clients usually send emails during the day, so I have a few ad-hoc work requests too.
Since Feb 2020, the Orbit team began working from home. This means more homemade food for me and more balcony playing time for my cat, Sofie. We have plenty of phone and team chats as well as online parties with the whole team, which has been fun. I do miss seeing the team face to face, but we will soon start having face to face catch up again soon!
What is the most rewarding aspect of your work?
I enjoy helping clients understand their business performance and position, keeping them up to date with tax compliance, and planning out the future. Clients always come to us with various questions (e.g. possible grants that could help their business with cash flow, whether or not it is a good idea to make some personal superannuation contributions, whether they should pay more PAYG income tax instalments to have less tax payable by the end of the year etc.), and it always feels good to help them solve their problems and enjoy their days.
What do you love most about being part of the Orbit family?
Orbit is a very flexible workplace – Greg and Kate trust us a lot in managing our own tasks and schedules. We have a lot of fun team activities such as Christmas parties, EOFY parties, Christmas in July, and Friday drinks (which usually last till midnight). My first time playing cricket was also with the team!
How does being part of Orbit make more possible for you?
I do yoga regularly and started indoor rock climbing as a hobby before COVID-19 began. Before COVID-19, I liked visiting new cafes and going on camping trips. I’m also a cat mother with many indoor plants at home (working from home helps me save my plants from my cat many times lol). So you will often find me in yoga studios, plant markets, cafes at brunch time, and we might cross paths in a campsite.
At Orbit, our work time is quite flexible, so whenever I need to take some time off for personal issues – it’s always easy to arrange.
Fun Fact: One day, when Greg and Kate visited the vet to pick up some cat food, they stumbled across a cute kitten in the window. They sent me the video and I instantly fell in love and named her Sofie.
To discover how Olina and the rest of our Orbit family can empower your Sydney small business with good numbers and specific advice – book a chat or get in touch today.
