Not getting enough experience as a Finance Assistant

Vikas wrote:

I have recently qualified as an ACCA. I have done a Masters in Accounting and I am a graduate in commerce as well. For the last 6 months I have worked as a Finance Asisstant but I am not getting the kind of experience and salary which I am expecting. What are the options open to me? Shall I move to practice or stay in the same banking industry in which I am at the moment and also guide me what salary I should expect which will reflect mine qualification and experience.

Thanks

Vikas


A senior consultant in WH Marks Sattin's qualified division replied:

Dear Vikas

That’s a good question, it sounds like you are well qualified to be able to command a decent salary but that you lack the practical experience to match your theoretical prowess. This is illustrated by the fact that you don’t feel challenged after only six months in your current role. The fact that you are thinking of an external move to gain more experience implies that progression in your current position might be difficult and so a move into practice maybe very useful. Small practice firms can give you a wide range of experiences including management and statutory accounts preparation and audit. You can expect a salary in the mid to late twenty thousands for a starting position but I would imagine that this will increase faster as you will be adding extensively to your skill set. I would advise you to send your CV to our practice team. As I always stress to candidates, make sure that your CV is of the highest quality with absolutely no spelling or grammar errors, as this can limit your chances of getting to interview stage.

All the best

WH Marks Sattin


Click for the latest public practice accountancy jobs

PhD to management consultancy?

Anonymous wrote:

Hi

I graduated with a PhD (in history) in 2005 and then took the last three years off to have two babies. I have worked throughout my degrees and have managed large budgets devoted to implementing I.T. training. I would like to work outside of academia and have been told that some firms accept PhDs as management consultancy trainees. Do you think there's any chance of that with my background in the Humanities?

Thanks


A manager in WH Marks Sattin's Management Consultancy Division replied:

Dear Anonymous,

Many thanks for your question. It is true that Management Consultancies take on Phd graduates, however this is traditionally at the lower end of the corporate ladder. Many firms such as McKinsey, BCG, Bain etc. can be found at the “Milk Rounds” of top Universities as they invest huge amounts of time and money into campus recruiting. Traditionally they look for numerate, engineering or science disciplines of study, however due to the variety of firms within Management Consultancy there is always going to be demand for excellent academic performers irrespective of their chosen field of study.

I hope this is of some help. Best of luck in your search.

Regards

WH Marks Sattin


Click for our latest management consultancy jobs

Difficulty finding a good role despite recent MBA

JMG wrote

Hi,

I'm a recently completed my MBA at a top ranked European programme. Prior to the MBA I worked primarily in real estate corporate finance, dealing daily with DCF's NPV, financial modelling, debt restructures, SME equity analysis all what assume to be a core part of project finance.

Now, upon graduation, I had a position with a top 4 in the CEE region, however my contract was rescinded due to the current crisis and now I'm 5 months out of school, sending out at least 10 apps a day, and I hear absolutely nothing back.

The thing is, I have friends from the MBA with no prior financial experience who have managed to secure position at lucrative institutions.

Simply put I don't know what I'm doing wrong? People have said that my CV is strong, yet I hear nothing. Please advise.

A senior consultant at WH Marks Sattin replied

Dear JMG,

I completely understand your frustration with the present job market – it’s not easy out there for job hunters currently.

Looking at the brief rundown of your background above, it sounds like you have something to offer corporate finance clients but you may have been finding that, due to the number of redundancies from the larger banks, those firms that are looking to hire are able to pick candidates that have recent experience of the role, rather than MBA graduates that may still need training.

My advice would be to utilise your MBA alumni network to target company’s that have specific MBA recruitment drives for 2008 as well as doing your homework on which firms are actually looking to hire. This is where a recruitment consult can add a lot of value as they are able to use their market knowledge to get your CV to firms that definitely are hiring and would be interested in your background, as well as being able to speak to the decision maker to highlight your suitability for their firm.

If you would like more advice feel free to give us a call and one of our consultants would be pleased to talk to you.

Best of luck

WH Marks Sattin


Click for the latest corporate finance jobs

A career in taxation

Carmen wrote:

Hi,

I have a degree in accounting and graduated in 2006 and have completed part 1 and 2 of the ACCA and I went in to a job in sales ledger.

I have now realised that I want a career in taxation but obviously lack accounting experience in other than that gathered from sales ledger.

When I apply for jobs as a trainee accountant or accounts assistant they ask for 1-2 years on experience in a similar role. Even when I apply for temporary jobs they tend to assign me to sales ledger role which I aready have experience in and want to move away from.

I feel stuck as I feel I apply to these positions in vein.

Can you advise me on how to kick start my career.

Thanks


A consultant in the taxation team replied:

Dear Carmen

You mention you have an accounting qualifictaion and as such would have gained exemptions from the ACCA qualification. It makes sense to take advantage of such exemptions and complete the ACCA qualification. This will provide a broad base of both accounting and elements of taxation and can be studied either in-house or in practice. We recommend that you do this with a practice firm as you will benefit from a peer group, and a corporate culture of taking professional exams. It is also important that your work experience reflects your studies.

You effectively need to apply directly (rather than apply through an agency) to practice firms .If you are determined on a career in taxation, you can elect to take the ATT / CTA route without taking an accounting qualification. Please contact the Chartered Institue of Taxation for further information.

All the best

WH Marks Sattin


Click here for the latest taxation jobs

A career change to Banking

Move2008 wrote:

Hello

I am currently working at an advertising agency and have spent the last 11 years working in sales and negotiation roles for various media owners in the advertising industry. What are the chances of me being able to get back into banking (e.g. a back office role in an investment bank)? I'm 34 and I used to work for Bank of America many moons ago (1992/1993) but realise this experience is slightly out of date to say the least. Any help of general advice would be greatly appreciated.


A member of the WH Marks Sattin banking team replied:

Unfortunately with the current state of the financial markets, still reeling from the effects of the credit crunch and processing considerably lower volumes of trades than in the proceeding Bull markets of the last few years, I think you will find it difficult to move back into what has recently become a very competitive job market in back office investment banking – particularly given the 11 year gap in your experience relevant to the banking world.

There are lots of candidates currently looking for back office work with very current experience – our best advice would be to stick with the advertising for a year or so and reappraise the banking situation then. In the meantime, if Banking is something you would still like to pursue, then we would suggest refreshing your skills with a suitable training course.

All the best

WH Marks Sattin


Current WH Marks Sattin banking jobs