How to get there
You’ve established the environment and role you are ultimately looking for. Next you need to appreciate
the gap between where you are and where you want to be, and grasp what it might take to put yourself in that position.
Think about:
- The skills and competencies required
- The additional qualifications that might be demanded
- The experience you need to build
- The personal attributes to demonstrate
Do this as soon as possible because attaining skills and qualifications can take time. A healthy dose of self-awareness at the start of your journey will also help you head-off in the right direction, and save time later on.
Shaping yourself for success is a long-term game and one with no short cuts – it demands commitment. It is important to physically draft a plan of action and to stick to it. Why not write the CV of the person you want to be in five or ten years, and tick off the attributes as you develop them? Tiger Woods does a similar thing, covering his office wall with all of Jack Nicklaus’ achievements – every major, every tournament win. He then crosses them off one by one as he matches him, title for title. This may seem dramatic but it is the kind of focus that is required in an increasingly competitive business environment.
When asking our senior candidates how they have achieved what they have, the strongest theme is how proactive they were in engineering exposure across the formative years of their career. In this way they put themselves in the frame for roles further down the line. A Financial Director of a leading European investment bank explained how he ensured he had both product control and financial control experience to draw on in his twenties, so that when an opportunity came in his thirties he had the requisite experience. Another FD of a Fortune 1000 firm confirms: “There is no substitute for experience; FDs now need to look at getting as much experience under their belt by the age of 35 as they can if they are serious about developing their careers.”
There is no blueprint for the perfect career. The qualities required for career progression are numerous and varied. There are some common themes however in the CVs of the most successful finance and
accounting professionals. The main competencies to develop for a successful career include:
Excellent communication skills
The internal structures of today’s corporations are increasingly complex. Finance and accounting staff must now demonstrate a greater political awareness of their environments than was the case ten or twenty years ago. The ability to influence people internally is especially critical when dealing with non-finance professionals.
Of course great communication skills are not just put to the test internally. FDs in particular have increasingly public facing roles and need to communicate to external stakeholders in a more sophisticated way than ever before. Stakeholder management is a discipline in its own right: investors and banks have never been so demanding and neither have auditors.
Teamwork
Closely connected to communication skills is the ability to work effectively as part of a team. Our clients look for individuals who are technically competent, but they also appreciate that becoming this requires individual rather than team-based effort. The professionals most in demand are the ones with a demonstrable track record of success in a team environment. Be sure to have a tale or two where you have contributed to a team situation, whether from work experience, study, sports or socially.
Commercial awareness
Having a commercial understanding of business has become more influential in recent years; this is reflected in the changing nature of qualifications themselves. The strongest candidates ensure they have had exposure to the business end of their preferred industry sector, and appreciate the impact of economic issues on it. To understand the business environment you wish to work in and the factors
influencing it, engage in a deep analysis of the sector you aim to specialise in.
The demand for commercial acumen has seen a rise in the number of posts requiring MBAs, i.e. demonstrating a wider understanding of business than the normal chartered accountants’ exams do. Generally an MBA is not an imperative in this marketplace, although it is regarded as a very nice thing to have.
Leadership
Leadership is a social process – it happens between people and develops over time – which is why it is an aspirational quality and a development area for most newly qualified accountants. Leadership is about delivering through others, by leading people not machines. Finance professionals have a tendency to be task-oriented, which makes them great technicians but not necessarily great leaders.
Understanding control environments, accounting issues, technology and the legal setting in which you work are indispensable qualities, but are a given for roles within the best organisations. Possessing the potential to motivate colleagues, truly connect with people and demonstrate entrepreneurial vision are less tangible assets in your personal balance sheet. If you have any ambition towards reaching the top of the pecking order, the single factor that will set you apart from the rest will be your ability to lead. Get yourself a role model and learn from the best.
Your preferred sector
Cultures vary widely depending on the organisation, and even within companies working environments can change significantly between departments. In our guide to working cultures and environments, we have summarised some of the key factors and themes to consider across the four main sectors for which we recruit finance professionals: public practice, financial services, commerce and the public sector.