- Responsibilities
- Salary
- Qualifications
- Skills
- Working Experience
- Career Prospects
- Related jobs and courses
Chartered accountants provide a range of financial advice and accountancy services, including auditing and financial analysis.
Advice, account audits, and reliable information on financial records are all part of the job description of a certified accountant. This could include corporate finance, forensic accounting, taxation, auditing, financial reporting, business recovery and insolvency, or accounting systems and procedures.
Chartered accountants are employed by a variety of companies, including public practice firms, business and industry, not-for-profit groups, and government agencies. Your goal as a strategic worker is to maximise profit for your business or client.
Responsibilities
To become a chartered accountant, you must:
1. Oversee budgets and financial systems
2. Conduct financial audits, which are impartial assessments of an organization’s financial standing.
3. Give financial guidance
4. Communicate with clients (individuals or companies) and offer guidance and financial data
examine the business’s systems and assess the risk
5. Run tests to verify systems and financial data.
6. Counsel clients on tax matters related to business acquisitions and mergers and tax planning (within the framework of current legislation to enable them to limit their tax liability).
7. keep track of accounting records and create management reports and accounts for small companies (accountancy). Counsel customers on commercial deals, including acquisitions and mergers (corporate finance)
8. Give them advice on how to strengthen their businesses or handle bankruptcy
9. Identify and stop fraud using forensic accounting oversee younger associates communicate with internal and external auditors as needed, and address any emerging financial anomalies 10. Create reports and suggestions in the wake of public sector or internal audits. 11. Create monthly and annual accounts and financial statements. 12. Compile reports on financial management, encompassing financial forecasting and planning. 13. Provide tax and treasury advice. 14. Discuss terms with suppliers.
Salary
Accountants’ starting pay varies based on location, industry, company size, and type. Salary expectations for graduates can reach up to £40,000.
The average earning potential while undergoing training can reach £65,000.
In the commercial world, a chartered accountant typically makes £134,000 per year in salary plus an average bonus of more than £17,000.
- Larger firms typically pay more than smaller ones, and careers in banking and capital markets tend to attract the greatest wages.
- Bonuses, profit-sharing plans, health insurance, pensions, and automobile allowances may be included in salary packages.
- The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) provides income data. Figures should only be used as a reference.
Working hours
Although they vary based on the position and the company, working hours are normally not 9 am to 5 pm. Meeting deadlines often requires working longer hours on the weekends and in the evenings, especially in larger businesses. You will typically receive time off as a trainee instead of any overtime that you put in.
After qualification, flexible working options are typically feasible. Another option for working alone would be to become a lone practitioner.
Related Case Studies
https://caaspirants.in/matthew-lambert/
What to expect
- Although jobs are available in various parts of the UK, they are more frequently found in larger towns and cities, where earnings are usually higher. Opportunities for post-qualification exist abroad. With ICAEW, there are additional options for training abroad.
- The dress code is typically formal due to the high-profile and high-responsibility nature of the employment.
- Women in Banking & Finance, an organisation dedicated to empowering women to realise their full potential, provides guidance and support for women considering careers in accounting. The gender pay gap still exists today.
- Since audit work is mostly done at customer locations, travel during the workday is common. Spending the night away from home and occasionally travelling abroad is possible.
- Working for smaller companies or in other fields, like taxation, tends to be more office-based with less travel.
Qualifications
Graduates from any discipline are welcome to apply since employers who provide training agreements value a diverse pool of graduates. Although it may be possible to enter the field without a degree or HND, graduates will undoubtedly have an advantage over other applicants. Larger firms tend to favour candidates with a degree over those with an HND.
A Certificate in Finance, Accounting, and Business (CFAB) is a helpful intermediate between a degree and a training contract. As an alternative, some firms instruct students in the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) accounting qualification, which can lead to training for chartered status even though it does not require a degree.
As well as several other bodies awarding other accountancy qualifications, there are three separate professional institutes of chartered accountants in the UK:
- Chartered Accountant Ireland (oversees both Ireland and Northern Ireland)
- ICAEW
- ICAS
The title “chartered accountant” is conferred upon holders of all chartered accountancy qualifications, and they are all equally recognised and of equal standing. The designation CA (chartered accountant) is awarded to candidates who meet the requirements of ICAS or Chartered Accountants Ireland, whereas the designation ACA (associate of the ICAEW) is given to candidates who meet the requirements of ICAEW.
The hardest aspect of becoming a chartered accountant is finding an employer who would take you through a training program that has been approved by one of the institutes. Because part of the selection process will involve testing your numeracy skills, you will need to have strong mathematical knowledge and abilities.
Since the training contract has a three- to five-year expiration date, it’s critical to weigh the benefits, leave policies, and compensation packages provided by your employers before committing. Managing professional education while working might become challenging.
For recent graduates and dropouts, the National Audit Office (NAO), an impartial auditor of government spending, offers a Chartered Accountancy Training Scheme. Before you begin, in the autumn of the year, applications are accepted. Chartership and membership in the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales are awarded upon successful completion of the program.
The selection procedure is rigorous and the competition is fierce. In order to guarantee oneself access to the widest choice of options, it is preferable to begin applying in the autumn term of your final year of college. Keep an eye out for the major companies that present during recruitment fairs on campus.
Skills
You’ll need to have:
- general business interest and awareness
- self-motivation and commitment, to successfully combine work and study
- communication and interpersonal skills
- organisational and time management skills
- a methodical approach
- IT proficiency
- strong analytical and problem-solving skills
- numeracy
- leadership qualities and effective teamwork skills
- motivation and initiative
- integrity and trustworthiness.
Work experience
Contact accountancy firms to ask about opportunities to gain relevant pre-entry work experience, such as vacation work, work placements or shadowing.
Employers
Although there are options for training in public practice for chartered accountants, you can work in any industry and size of company. Verify that a company has been approved by one of the pertinent organisations before applying.
With so many employers to select from, you can choose the type of workplace that best suits your needs. Smaller businesses may be focused in a specific area or specialise in a particular kind of clientele, while larger organisations, where the openings are concentrated, have offices in major cities and towns across the nation and abroad.
Employers include:
The public sector includes the local and federal government, educational institutions, charities, and not-for-profit organisations. Industry and commerce include major commercial companies like those in the manufacturing, retail, and telecom industries.
Public practice includes international accounting organisations or smaller accountancy firms, known as small and medium practices (SMPs), all of which provide a variety of accounting and business services to clients. Chartered accountants have not historically found many possibilities in the public sector, although this has changed in recent years.
Professional development
In this line of work, continued professional development (CPD) is highly valued. Following your certification as a chartered accountant, you’ll need to stay current on commercial and technical matters. This will be made easier by your membership in a professional organisation.
To help you succeed in your profession, your employer will also give you with internal training on technical and general skills. Additionally, there might be possibilities for you to specialise in areas unique to the company you work for.
To expand your skill set, Kaplan advises taking up a language course (since language-fluent accountants are in high demand) or volunteering for a nonprofit organisation.
Career prospects
The first three years of a chartered accountant’s training are usually spent earning the CA or ACA qualification in public practice. You will gain experience and assume greater responsibility during this time, such as managing junior employees and interacting with clients more directly.
It might be feasible to finish a secondment, which would allow you to get experience in a different area of the practice, or even work abroad for a while. Normally, you would finish the training contract with the same employer.
Opportunities for growth and advancement are many, and progress is frequently regulated. After receiving your qualification, you could advance to manager two years later and senior management three years later. Although it is competitive, the partnership can be attained eight to fifteen years following qualifying. In smaller businesses, advancement might happen faster. After ten to fifteen years of qualification, one can become the financial director of a large corporation.
Following their training, almost half of all trained chartered accountants find employment outside of public practice, in the public and not-for-profit sectors, banks, industry and commerce. At the freshly qualified level, positions such as financial accountant, business analyst, and internal auditor are typical.