I have lost my job 3 months ago and i need some advise where to go next in accountancy. I was working in a small office for a distribution company delivering food and drinks to catering industry and also i was dealing with key accounts such as Tesco, Makro, Sainsbury etc. I have 4 years of experience of using sage line 50 financial controllers but I have no such accountancy qualification such as CIMA, ACCA, AAT. I was dealing with customers, administration task, banking, cash handling and office management before this job I was working as a catering manager. What kind of job I should be looking for I would be very happy if you could advise me please.
Answer 1
It is difficult to give a comprehensive answer without seeing your details in full and as an expert in the field of accountancy I can only advise you on careers within the finance field. It sounds to me that you have some good basic bookkeeping skills and experience with a Sage package, which is one of the most commonly used accountancy packages in small/medium sized businesses. Therefore I would suggest that bookkeeping, assistant accountant type roles would not be beyond you and in fact if you targeted a more retail connected business then you would have some valuable experience to offer them.
On the point of accountancy qualification, then clearly it is better to have them than not, but remember it does not necessarily ensure employment.
I hope this provides some guidance for you - good luck with your job search.
One last tip would be to contact some recruitment companies who like to meet with their candidates - that way you will hopefully forge a relationship with a consultant ... one example of such a company is Holden Jones, but they may be out of your geographical region.
Question 2
Hi,
My question is that, I am working as a trainee accountant since August 07 and was offered study support by the employer. I enrolled for first set of tuition in September 07 and my employer paid for it. But second time I enrolled for tuition in March and employer has not paid for it as July 08. I might be leaving this job therefore need to find out will I have to pay for the outstanding tuition fee or the employer? (Employment contract does not have any terms stating that I have to pay for tuition which i took while working for the company and employer was aware of the tuition and verbally said he will pay for it.)
Answer 2
You need to sit down with your employer and be direct in your communication, as there appears to be confusion.
When you have this meeting or discussion in the same room, you need to clarify, whether they will be paying your July 2008 fees.
If they are not paying going to be paying your fees, after this discussion, you will probably have your answer, whether to seek employment elsewhere
In my mind it would not be worth pursuing the legal route to ensure that they are going to pay the fee.
Good Luck
let me know how it goes
Question 3
hello,
I'm a woman that wants to start her career in accounting with no alevels (they're lost) is there any advice you could give me on how to start my career? I can't afford the exams at the moment.
Answer 3
Without knowing your circumstances, it is difficult to be specific; however, the goal is getting some experience as this is what will increase your marketability. There are primarily 2 ways to get a chance in accounts without experience - these are through getting some qualifications, which sounds difficult at the moment; or by temping. Temping will depend on your availability, but is a useful route. You will need to start at the administrative end of an accounts department providing temporary cover offered primarily through agencies. To do this, you would need to ensure that your IT skills are up to date and your accuracy levels are high.
I would recommend registering with a number of agencies on most high streets that are likely to cover the administrative end of accounting to see if you can make a breakthrough.
