I want to pose a question. Does where we start our career, have a significant impact on its trajectory?
In answering this, I will look at the various training options available to finance graduates.
Good grades at school -CHECK
Commerce Degree-CHECK
Honours in Finance-CHECK
Now what?
Decisions…
Decisions…
Your options include Training Inside Public Practice(TIPP) at the coveted Big 4 audit firm, the “medium” sized firm or the small family firm down the street.
How about jump-starting your climb up the corporate ladder with Training Outside Public Practice(TOPP).
You will be surprised to know that I am uniquely positioned to provide insight on this topic.
How so? You ask.
Well, I did my articles at both a small two partner firm and a Big 4 firm.
While completing my honours in finance, distance learning, I signed an article contract with a small firm which took a fresh approach to consulting. Two years in, I could not shake the DREAM of the Big 4. So I started my articles from scratch at Deloitte. Yes! You counted right; my clerkship sentence was 5 LONG years.
Further, I mentored graduates while in industry.
Here’s my run down.
The Big 4 firm
I cannot deny my pride at having completed my articles at Deloitte. For me, it was the epitome of professionalism. Business formal with dark blue suits and crisp white shirts. State of the art offices with access to the top listed companies in the country. A work hard, play hard approach. Exposure deluxe. Learning to the max.
I consider my time at Deloitte a career boot camp. The focus was on soft professional skills that are actually the hard skills. Report writing, communication, team management, leadership, project management, client engagement and winning business.
As a trainee, there were defined levels of ownership and responsibility over the 3 years.
The First year: The deer in headlights. “What the heck is going on? I thought I was going to be rich? My rent is due. My car broke down.”
The Second year: The workhorse. Does all the heavy lifting and hard stuff.
The Third year: Assistant In Charge (AIC). The Team lead. Meeting organiser. Team mom. Can smell the triple in salary waiting in 12 months.
A place for everyone, where everyone knew their place. A well-oiled machine.
The clerk salary and long hours were made manageable by the sizeable investment in a world-class program focused on continuous learning, personal development and mentorship.
The Just in Time (JIT) program was an enviable perk. An international assignment in very sought after locations like the United States, Bermuda and the United Kingdom.
It’s fiercely competitive. You are working with the best of the best. You have to earn your place on the “Crown Jewel” clients and fight tooth and nail to remain there.
A Big 4 firm is the best choice if you are uncertain where you want to go with your career. It will leave the doors open to advisory, audit partner, technical expert and executive at listed corporates. If you know these are not for you, then the Big 4 isn’t necessary.
The medium-sized firm
If you look at ads for finance professionals, you will often see the requirement for Big 4 or top ten training. The top ten firms are decided based on revenue.1
Firms ranked five to ten represent the “medium-sized” firms. These offer many of the perks of the Big 4 in terms of training, exposure to larger clients and teamwork. Similar to the Big 4, they carry significant weight on your CV and are internationally recognised.
A possible difference is the road to partner could be shorter, so if that appeals to you. Give it a go!
The small firm
It’s no myth that small firms are HARD WORK. It’s the deep end with no life jacket, in shark-infested waters, while holding a hand grenade with no pin. More often than not, I was flying solo at my clients. I recall nights sitting with my audit textbooks hoping, to make sense of the world.
That baptism by fire into the professional world taught me problem-solving, independence, adaptability, self-reliance and trust.
My experience ranged from end to end audits of owner-managed Close Corporations, Tax returns and secondments to corporates and larger audit firms. The industries varied.
I received a solid understanding and appreciation for accounting fundamentals, cash flow, company regulations and preparation of financial statements. It was a breath of experience in a short period. It is for this reason that a small firm is a good fit if you are looking to start your own practice or small business.
Training outside public practice
Corporate grad programs attract young professionals from various fields. These programs are well funded and well structured. Graduates enjoy many corporate perks like international breakaways and coaching programs.
It is exciting and richly diverse in terms of the peers you meet and exposure you receive. Graduates spend their time learning the ins and outs of every aspect of the business by rotating through the organisation thus enabling them to take up some pretty desirable roles after their training.
TOPP is best suited if you want to fast track your corporate career and avoid the deep technical stuff.
So that’s my run down.
Professional training is a rite of passage, regardless the route. Some things are universal. The comradery, lifelong friendships, being with a group of people who are hungry, driven and ambitious. The more work, time, energy and commitment you put in, the more skills, networks and opportunities you will get out.
This is what a talent professional at one of the Big 4 firms had to say about professional training. “The finance qualification is very versatile on the global market, It is for this reason that audit firms invest significantly in their training programs. There’s value going through articles, internships or professional training as you definitely come out with solid and robust professional and leadership skills. You also have a deep understanding of business and how it operates. It’s not just limited to financial statements and accounting. You understand processes, risks and risk mitigation.”
So to answer the question posed. Does where we start our career, have a significant impact on its trajectory?
I remember an induction speech by a partner at a Big 4 firm. He said, “You can escape the school you went too and the university you studied at but you can’t escape where you did your articles.” I thought that was arrogant and elitist at the time.
Reflecting on my career 10 years on, I can confidently say that the Big 4 has added incredible weight to my CV. It’s recognised across the globe and my network and alma mater includes industry leaders and subject matter experts.
That being said, nothing has more impact on your career trajectory than you. Don’t let your misconceptions of where you did or didn’t do your training hold you back. No matter where you started or where you are now…the world is your oyster. You just have too BACK YOURSELF!
Side notes
- This is the list of the top 10 largest accounting firms by revenue, in 2020, as per https://big4accountingfirms.com/top-10-accounting-firms/
- Deloitte – $46.2 billion
- PwC – $42.4 billion
- EY – $36.4 billion
- KPMG – $29.75 billion
- BDO – $9.6 billion
- Grant Thornton $ 5.45 billion
- RSM – $5.37 billion
- Crowe Horwath $ 4.3 billion
- Nexia International $4.3 billion
- Baker Tilly $3.4 billion
Where did you start your career? How has it set you up for where you are now?
What do you think of articles and other intern programs?
Let me know in the comments below!
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Thank you to Dhawal Parvatikar for his articles that provided solid insight for my research.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/big-4-industry-most-common-dilemma-ca-freshers-dhawal-parvatikar
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/big-4-industry-most-common-dilemma-ca-freshers-dhawal-parvatikar
Thank you to my “BRAINS TRUST” you know who you are and I appreciate your input.
Going Brogues 
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