Calculated move
Usha Albuquerque
Accountancy
is one career where you can never be in need of a job. Every
organisation, large or small, whatever the business, good or bad,
requires accountants. All transactions need to be reported, budgets
made and analysed and financial reports generated. As the demand for
financial information increases with the emergence of a global economy,
the field grows larger.
While
chartered accountants are mainly required for auditing, tax planning
and management, there is also a need for general accountants, who
handle the day-to-day financial working of an organisation. Maintaining
financial records of an organisation is of utmost importance.
Accountants plan, budget, analyse, verify and interpret financial
transactions. They operate accounts, supervise and control income and
expenditure, deal with wages and salaries, send out invoices, and also
ensure that the records of these transactions are kept so that the
information can at any time be extracted from them.
Accountants
can also specialise in cost accountancy, evaluating operational
efficiency and guiding managerial decisions. Cost accountants render
valuable assistance to the management by collecting, collating,
interpreting and condensing data relating to the business activities
and converting them into money terms to enable non-financial executives
to arrive at the right decisions or to select the right course of
action at the right time.
Choice to count on
Cost
and management accounting helps in planning, monitoring and controlling
the cost and price of a product or a service. The process involves
critical monitoring of relevant costs and overheads like material,
labour, capital costs etc., involved in making a product or providing a
service. Such accountants analyse the sales trend to strike a balance
between the demand and supply, to prevent overproduction. They also
monitor the performance, to spot and report on problems and prevent
them from occurring in future. The job involves advice on product
pricing, production planning and inventory control, product wise return
on capital employed, investment proposals, preparing profit and loss
reports etc. The cost accountant, therefore, monitors the company’s
performance and efficiency, and guides managerial decisions by making
financial forecasts. With the growing competition in the corporate
sector, the role and importance of cost accountants has increased
greatly, as they closely analyse costs and devise ways to reduce it as
far as possible.
Cost
accountants can be involved in internal audits of a company which can
involve travelling if it is a large nationalised industry and business
organisation. The work may also involve going onto the shop floor for
information on costs and processes. Other than this, most of an
accountant’s time is spent at the desk, preparing accounts, planning
budgets etc.
Eligibility
You
can become an accountant with a degree or diploma in accountancy or
commerce after plus two. Several universities, including the University
of Mumbai, University of Rajasthan, Madurai Kamaraj University,
University of Agra, offer diploma and degree courses in accountancy and
finance. The Institute of Cost And Works Accountants of India (ICWAI),
with its headquarters at Kolkata and four regional councils at Kolkata,
Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai offers a cost and management accountants
course. The course comprises of three stages: Foundation, Intermediate
and Final. Candidates with plus two qualification can join the
institute's intermediate course after qualifying for the foundation
course examination of the institute. However, direct registration
without appearing for the foundation course is open to graduates of any
discipline.
There
are also a number of courses at the master’s level in finance and
accounting fields for those who wish to upgrade their skills and move
into higher management roles. You can consider courses such as Master’s
in Finance, the
programme of Certified Public Accountants, financial analysis, and so
on. There is also an MS (Accounting) programme offered by the ICFAI for
accounting professionals which combines areas like management,
information technology and E-Business US GAAP, code of ethics, and soft
skills, along with the core areas like accounting, auditing, taxation
and business law.
Job prospects
There
is a sustained demand for qualified, trained and experienced
accountants. After training, accountants have several career options:
they can apply for jobs in the field of accounts, finance, taxation,
audit and costing. There is a growing awareness amongst business
entrepreneurs for the need of the services of cost accountants. This
has further increased the demand for cost and management accounting
services in all sectors of the economy. In government, they are treated
on a par with other Class I services. In organisations like the
Railways, Indian Army, nationalised banks, the services of cost
accountants are often required for costing, budgeting, auditing
purposes.
Apart
from the opportunities available in the government sector, cost and
management accountants can also look forward to the corporate world.
They can work as executers, administrators, appraisers, valuers,
secretarial and tax consultants, advisors etc. With advancement in
career and experience, they can even rise to top positions like
financial auditor, financial advisor, finance director etc. They can
also pursue teaching in various universities as professors, readers,
lecturers.
Diversified profiles
The
present day complex tax systems, improved methods of computing costs
and controlling budgets, the new fields of management accounting and
the innovations in accounting methodology have increased the importance
of the accountancy profession. By combining a knowledge of taxation and
accountancy with management and quantitative techniques, cost
accountants can bridge the responsibilities of a CA or MBA. It is for
this reason that the government, industry and business are increasingly
drawing upon these professionals for planning and executing their
financial programmes.
Moreover,
as a cost accountant you can also build up your own practice by
obtaining a licence from the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants
(ICWA), either individually or with one or more members of the
institute in practice. The field of practice ranges from management
consultants, tax consultants to trustee executor, appraiser, cost
auditor etc.
The
qualification of a cost accountant along with additional qualifications
such as a CA or MBA will greatly increase career options and improve
career prospects.
Analytical
and reasoning skills are the most important qualities that can help you
in this career. Accountants should have academic and numerical ability,
good judgement, tact in dealing with clients and employers, the ability
to write and speak concisely, resourcefulness and a confident manner.
As the work often deals with making future projections and forecasts
regarding the transactions, costs, pricing etc, cost and management
accountants must have a broad knowledge of the commercial world and
conditions in the global environment. An objective outlook in assessing
different business situations, ability to negotiate with people at all
levels within an organisation, and good communication skills in order
to present complex financial information simply and clearly to
non-specialists can go a long way in creating a successful career.
Thus,
if you have a nose for accounting and numbers, and in addition,
determination, and staying power, then a career as an accountant may
have you writing your own salary cheque.
The writer is a noted
career expert
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