What inspired your career path?
I’ve always liked problem solving and using excel – my degree is in maths – and in accountancy those are two things that are important. I like that in my role there is a real sense of progression and I’m learning something new every day.
After I finished University, my first ever job was packing sausages! After that I went into a pricing analyst role which was very data focused but I always knew that I wanted to work in accountancy so decided to have a career change.
I’m currently studying for my Level 7 and am enjoying my exams so far. I’ve always enjoyed exams and having something to work towards.
What’s involved in your day-to-day role?
As an audit junior, most of what I do will be transaction testing – looking at what a client has said has happened in their accounts. A lot of the time I’ll be working directly with the clients to understand their process and where the risks in the audit are. I’ll also do a lot of analysis on excel recalculating what the client has done.
What do you enjoy most about your role?
I like the technical aspects of learning new things and coming across something complex that you haven’t seen before. To me that’s engaging and I like challenging myself to do something new. Working in the audit team, I feel like I’m part of something bigger. I like that it’s collaborative and you can bounce ideas off each other.
Where would you like to see your career developing?
My main goal at the minute is to get Chartered and it would be good to take responsibility for all the different sections on an audit file as there’s still some parts I’ve not worked on yet. I’d also like to take more responsibility for developing the next cohort of juniors.
What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learnt so far?
Ask questions – frequently and early! I know it’s a cliché, but it is for a reason. I think perseverance helps to some extent but don’t sit struggling with the same piece of work, ask questions. People like helping people.
If your role had a theme song, what would it be?
It may be a little on the nose but Money, Money, Money by ABBA.
If you could master a new skill instantly, what would you choose?
My girlfriend and I bought our first home last year and it needs some work, so I would say DIY. I thought I would be a natural talent at it…but it turns out I’m not!
What are you proud of in your career so far?
So far, I’ve done 10 of my ACA exams and they’ve all been first time passes which I’m really pleased about. Outside of my studies, I’m settling into my role in the audit team pretty well.
Finally, what motivates you in your career?
Progression and becoming Chartered is what motivates me. One of the things I like about a career in accountancy is that there are set milestones for progression and a lot of ways you can measure it.
