Accounting Career Opportunities - Assignment Example

? Accounting in a Career Context This paper is going to reflect on my portfolio involving career planning, jobaspirations searching for the right job, the current job market scenario specifying the job market scenario. The paper mainly focuses on my accounting career opportunities, assess and evaluate my skills, strengths and weaknesses. Contents Introduction The job market has become extremely competitive and personal goals and aspirations needs to be showcased in a manner which reflects on my professional development plan. The decisions involving career planning needs to be done meticulously with emphasis given on individual strengths, weaknesses, skills, interest areas, motivational aspects and psychological assessment of the required job. The portfolio will deal with all the individual aspects and evaluation plans which can justify my key strengths and capabilities in finding the right job as per my professional capabilities. CV The making of Curriculum Vitae is the first step of the Personal Development Plan which highlights the key areas of interest, skills and expertise of a person. The best way of constructing a CV is to make it short, precise and emphasize on the points which matters the most to the companies like key areas of expertise, work experience in dealing with specified domains. CURRICULUM VITAE Steven Paul Birmingham, UK Cell phone: (+44) 7831310254 E-mail: spaul@yahoo.com OBJECTIVE Knowledge Acquisition and a learning drive are the motivating factors of my professional life which has helped me develop my professional goals and ambition. I am looking forward to a full time opportunity to work in a dynamic business environment. PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES Excellent interpersonal and communication skills Ardent believer in team work. Strong Management capabilities and experience to lead big teams. Project initiation and development. Self-motivated, hardworking and reliable Hunger to learn and acquire new skills, methods and procedures Computer skills: MS Office, MS Projects, Tally WORK EXPERIENCE 2007 till Date KPMG Project Leader Led a team of 10 people doing audit for client Held regular meetings with team for work assessment Gave Power Point presentations to the management for projects being carried out on a regular basis. ACHIEVMENTS/CERTIFICATES 2010 Diploma certification in Hedge Funds 2006 Certification in Science from Heritage Institute of Technology 2005 School Topper EDUCATION 2008-2010 Masters of Business and Administration from Durham University with specialization in Finance. 2005-2008 Bachelors in Science from University of Wales LANGUAGES Able to speak fluent English and French HOBBIES Reading; Playing sports REFERENCES: Available upon request Covering Letter To, The Human Resource Head Home Retail Group London, United Kingdom Sub: Application for the position of Financial Analyst Sir, This is to inform you that I wish to offer my candidature for the post of financial analyst. I am an MBA from Durham University with major in Finance. My key area of specialization is that of a management consultant. I have good domain knowledge of operations and logistics which I combine with my financial expertise to tell the management what would be the correct step forward. I have done years of research in Durham University which has helped my cause with enough industry experience. I would like to be given an opportunity to give a presentation to you where I can show my strengths and answer business related queries of yours. Thanking You, Yours truly, Steven Paul Job Market The world market was under recession in 2008 when the economy was in shatters with the top banking firms collapsing due to financial crisis which was more of a policy failure with huge financial credits given being unrecoverable. This had put the economy under severe recession and my firm was also retrenching candidates. From that stage the economy has recovered and so has the job market. The current job market in the accounting sector in 2012 has again seen a boost compared to the dip occurring in 2011 due to the euro zone crisis. As per the Daily News (2011), 58% of 156 firms surveyed were planning to hire full time accountants in 2012 out of which 47% of the firms planned to increase recruitment by 10%, 6% of the firms planned to increase by 10% to 15% and 5% of the firms were planning to go beyond 15%. The world market had seen its time of financial crisis in 2008 when the recruitment was on a low scale but the current scenario is a lot better with growing economies like India, China and Russia reporting a considerable increase in recruitment. Carla A. Harris, Managing Director at Morgan Stanley asserts that financial services are still at the top of the list of jobs being generated with opportunities galore (Ebony, 2004). In the accounting sector, there is always a basic demand for accountants and tax professionals doing audit and taxation but the trend has emerged where companies want accounting consultants and advisors who can be termed as management consultants. This is where my portfolio comes into the picture with my skill sets strongly based on management consultancy. I am focused on financial management advising the firms how to cut costs, boost profits and manage their financial portfolio. These areas are regarded as skilled areas with an icing on the cake. The firms no longer expect an accountant to do only the accounting and their job ends but more of managing the financial sector. I have mastered financial management to boost my skills and be an asset to the company I would join. With the change in the business scenario across the globe with globalization of trade and commerce playing an active role, there is an increase in the demand of financial management professionals who understand the global market and the finances associated with it. This globalization of trade and commerce has inducted companies to opt for financial measures like hedge fund which becomes a specialized skill set. My diploma certification in Hedge Funds has certainly helped my cause in this specialized field helping me to explore this avenue as a potential job profile. Sources for Job Market Research I have done my research through extensive research in websites which gave me an idea about the job market. I have studied their quarterly reports extensively which gave me an idea about the company’s performance. Being a financial analyst was a big help in understanding the position of the company. I have also gone through employment agencies like Reed, Blue Arrow, Hays, and Michael Page where I could get a grasp of the current job market scenario. Similarly newspapers have been a constant source of providing information on the UK and global job market and the factors associated with the global market. Evaluation of Skills “Given the large numbers of people searching for work each year, as well as the frequency with which most people today will have to look for work, research on the job search process has real practical value” (Brown & Lent, 2004). Research has shown that the evaluation of skills have become a practical approach in applying for a job. The evaluation of skills is one of the most important aspects of job search as the candidates need to know their unique selling point. There are thousands of candidates who are applying for a particular position in a company. The self evaluation of skills can be best assessed by considering various factors like identifying specialized skill set, communication skills, adaptability to demanding work, ability to relocate at the slightest of notice, personalized skills like having a good personality with knowledge of substance. All these factors need to be considered where I can capitalize on my experience in creating value for the organization. Brown and Lent, 2004 has also pointed out the fact that since workers today are having more than dozen job transitions, there is a need for adequate job search skills for maintaining a continued employment and psychological well being. SWOT Analysis is an important aspect in analyzing and evaluating my areas of strengths and weakness and how I can utilize the opportunities and identify the threats. Strengths: 1. Good Communicator 2. Strong interpersonal skill sets 3. Ability to manage teams and work as a team manager 4. Provide a global perspective in my approach to financial management 5. Strong in hedge funds and financial techniques to foresee forthcoming problems. 6. Good IT skills with mastery in MS office, MS projects and financial management software have given me a boost in understanding the market and how it functions. Weakness 1. I am a teetotaller which lends my image as a non participating person in drinks even though I am a good social person. Opportunities 1. I want to take the first opportunity I get in a balanced way by weighing all the options. My vision is clear and when the opportunity I get matches my vision then I take the right step forward. 2. I feel that the global expansion of business and the logistics involved in the planning stage has a lot to do with success which can be done at the highest level with appropriate consultancy from persons of my calibre. Threats 1. The global job market is extremely competitive and there are thousands of similar profile people which are a threat. In an accounting career it is important for me to stress on the areas of expertise which will lend credibility to my application for the job. There are numerous areas of finance and accounting which are required by companies and it is best to have mastery on any field wherein I can add value to the company. I need to assess myself that my experience and skill set belongs to which category and what would be the focus area of my job. However I need to have the flexibility to give consultation to matters related to other financial subjects as well to become a comprehensive consultant. I need to cover most of the areas of finance which would have direct implication on investment, portfolio management, diversification, profit controls, cost controls, direct and indirect taxation of the company. To put icing on the cake, I understand the IT part so well due to my exposure to major financial software packages which lends credibility to logistics and operations. Personal Development Plan It is extremely important for me to have a proper personal development plan in place to meet the constant changes in the job market. The global job market has become a huge sector where there are changes happening in a constant fashion. I need to analyze my employment aspirations, align it with the current employment opportunities and then evaluate the best manner in which I deem fit for the aspired job. I need to reflect on my individual strength and weakness which will portray my skill sets to the jobs I am applying for. In the current context Home Retail Group is a company focusing on growth in the retail sector for home merchandising. Preparing a personal development plan takes into account a host of factors which not only focuses on my specialized skill area alone. These areas of core self evaluation are self esteem, locus of control, generalized self efficacy and neuroticism (Crawford, 2008). Many authors have defined Self esteem to individual interest, acceptance, likes and dislikes, organizational motivation levels which defines individual traits of an individual. My self esteem is high where I look forward to develop my interest areas, motivate people in my group where team work is a high priority. Locus of control is the ability of individuals to control the immediate situation. This lends credibility to individuals who focus on the management skills and the ability to act under pressure which is an important parameter in the global job scenario. I find myself suitable to such a situation where I need to manage the team and perform under pressure. Generalized self efficacy is the ability to perform a specified task, use motivational skills to demonstrate leadership skills which suit my style of work. Neuroticism is the emotional stability in an individual and the higher it is an individual, the negativity is more. My neuroticism is low as I hardly buckle under pressure thus overcoming any problems. These psychological dimensions are important for a personal development plan as companies’ need to be sure of the mental setup and attitude of the candidate. As a finance executive I also want to look for opportunities in the hedge fund areas where the global companies need to have control on the future market and protect themselves against the uncertainties of the market. I already have domain expertise in this area where I can utilize my experience with overseas expansion. I have the analytical ability to understand the market risks and have a practical insight into currency exchanges being a cause of reduced profits and increased risks, which needs to be aligned with my employment aspirations in this sector. In the personal development plan I want to emphasize on my learning skills and how I can practically implement it in the real business situation. In the personal development plan I want to emphasize on my experience in similar jobs and demonstrate my learning skills. I want to be given an opportunity to give a presentation as a case study where I can create a real time environment and give solutions to practical problems faced in the industry. This kind of bold demonstration of my learning skills and ability will further enhance my personal development plan where the recruiters will be inclined to ask questions based on the case study given and question the validity of my judgement. Interview and Presentation Techniques The job market has become more competitive now where companies have a lot of good options to choose from. It is imperative for candidates like me who are looking for a job to master the skill of presentation where I can demonstrate to the company managers that why I am suitable for the job. I am presenting my skill sets, teamwork values and self motivational levels to make the interview board realize that what I expect from the job and how the company can add value by selecting me for the job. I need to self evaluate my skills, put it in a personal development plan and incorporate it in my CV highlighting my skills, values and virtues in life to give a comprehensive view of myself. The Presentation techniques in an interview process has a lot more clarity where I can demonstrate my skills, learning ability and moreover give an insight into my personal aspect and how I would be best suited for the organization and vice versa. Corfield (2010) stressed on the fact that only interviews were not enough as the candidates deal in abstract of how they would do the job. Therefore the recruiters go for a rigorous testing method to check which candidates will perform better in real time situations for which they ask the candidates to make a presentation. My techniques for interview and presentation techniques are listed under: 1. Excellent Communication Skills for a Global environment. 2. Key financial domain expertise where I can present my knowledge base with case studies and reference to current global financial market. 3. Self Virtues and goals in life. 4. Self motivation levels will be pointed out which can drive me into giving a high quality of output. 5. Pointing out my strengths and weakness by giving examples. 6. Being very specific about what I expect from the company for having job satisfaction. 7. Social virtues and experiences in this regard. 8. Psychological status and views which are important to present to the interview board. 9. Core Self Evaluation presentation through the personal development plan where I need to be specific regarding self esteem, locus of control, general efficacy and neuroticism. The recruiters have a better assessment of candidates through this approach and experienced job seekers like myself should welcome this opportunity as it puts us in a forum where we can showcase our skills, display our aspirations regarding employment to the prospective employers. This gives me the opportunity to answer questions relating to my skill sets and expertise so that I can demonstrate my abilities to the recruiters. Corfield (2010) illustrated a strong observation by one of the employers that it was amazing how the job seekers revealed their knowledge base in presentation which makes it clear to the recruiters that their views matches with the company’s views or not or even better it. This gives them a clear indication of whom to select and whom not to. Conclusion The portfolio created by myself highlights my key skill sets, job aspirations, area of expertise, SWOT analysis. The portfolio does not only carry my curriculum vitae but speaks about a lot of factors related to a successful job profile from both my end and the company end. Emphasis is given on research and the interview and presentation skills. Presentation is extremely important for the company to have an understanding of my in depth industry knowledge and for me to understand the company better. The preparation of the personal development plan was a key to present my candidature to the company where it highlighted my detailed profile and my professional ability to be the best among all the other candidates. I would like the company to consider my candidature for which I am submitting my portfolio to be considered for the job. References 1. Brown, S.D., Lent, R.W. 2005, Career Development and Counselling, Putting Theory and Research to Work, John Wiley & Sons Inc. 2. Ebony 2004, Best Career Choices and Moves in a Tight Economy, Johnson Publications Company. 3. Wall Street Journal 2012, UK Jobseekers Grow in Number, [Online] Available from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304911104576443311662335574.html [accessed November 2nd 2012] 4. Daily News 2011, World – Job Market for Accountants forecast to be buoyant in 2012, [Online], Available from http://www.staffingindustry.com/eng/Research-Publications/Daily-News/World-Job-market-for-accountants-forecast-to-be-buoyant-in-2012 [accessed November 2nd 2012] 5. Crawford,A.M. 2008, Empowerment and Organizational Climate: An investigation of mediating effects on the core-self evaluation, job satisfaction and organizational commitment relationship, UMI 6. Corfield,R. 2010, Knockout Job Interview Presentations, How to present with confidence, beat the competition and impress your way into a top job, British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data. Read More