3 Tips to Future-Proof Your Accounting Career

As a child, I used to envision working on a ship, but I have since discovered that even running a ship takes a lot of financial management into consideration. I am glad to say that this path of pursuing an accounting profession was a good choice as I am now on a journey towards discovering how businesses work in both my homeland and the international playing field.

The accounting profession has also been the most rewarding. I chose accountancy because of this career’s doors, from career advancement opportunities, geographic mobility, and the steady, if not increasing, demand for highly skilled accountants. All businesses need competent accounting professionals, well-versed with international standard practices and know the local market’s requirements. 

Having clocked in 4 years in this profession and being a Certified Public Accountant, Malaysia, or CPA (M), as well as a Chartered Accountant, Australia & New Zealand, or CA (ANZ), I took a step back to observe the changes the world is facing and how that has shaped the skill set needed to be a future-proof accountant.

Below are the three tips to get you started on your accounting career:

Be GLOCAL

The terminology of being glocal-ready has become relatively relevant in recent days. Glocal, by definition, is “reflecting or characterized by both local and global considerations.” In a sense, it’s – thinks globally, act locally – and this has never been more important than now. Embracing a glocal mindset and accounting capability means combining international standard expertise with local country requirements.

As a glocal accountant, one can get a first-hand understanding of how inflation, cost of products, exchange rates, and other factors impact business performance and sustainability in both local and international landscapes. It also gives you a broader perspective that goes a long way when offering effective solutions for businesses in the local marketplace. This is because you can adopt global solutions that may be useful for local businesses.

Indeed, many Malaysian businesses are planning for global expansion or have global offices that need accounting experts that can guide them on local and international standards, laws, and other regulatory requirements. 11,123 Malaysian businesses registered with the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) as of April 30, 2022.  These numbers indicate local companies keen to participate actively in the international market.

A qualification that combines global and local context is a must.  The MICPA x CA ANZ Qualifying Programme I graduated from was designed to match international and local country requirements and context.  As a result, I was confident applying for jobs because of my educational advantage over my accounting peers. I experienced a smooth work transition when I was transferred from Malaysia to Deloitte New Zealand.  The education I had prepared me well for an international career.  Best of all, I knew what I was doing and that things made sense, just as they did in Malaysia. It’s safe to say my preparation at home to be trained as a global accountant helped me to be a truly international accounting professional.

Always stay on top of the latest accounting developments

It has been a tiring past three years as we have been hit by the pandemic, inflation, and possibly a recession. As an auditor and a professional accountant, I review accounting papers from many organizations. I have seen how various businesses apply a broad spectrum of strategies that helps mitigate these economic threats. Companies are now looking to the finance department to help ensure they are following the latest accounting standard and complying with them in the face of the abrupt changes in the economy in recent years.

How one formulates a winning strategy depends on their experiences and training. I recall a situation when the Malaysian Financial Reporting Standard (MFRS) 16 was brand-new at the time. I was working in Malaysia and had no prior knowledge of it. Fortunately, the MICPA x CA ANZ Qualifying Programme that I was enrolled in taught me about it, which was very helpful and efficient at work as I could apply it right away.

As a result of my training, I often combine what I know about Malaysian accounting practices and international standards. A comparative view helps improve my work by allowing me to view things from different perspectives.

Be tech and data savvy

As a result of geopolitical and global economic factors, companies have also invested in a lot of technology as a method of cost reduction and to increase operational efficiency. Accountancy is no longer the age-old method of flipping through sheets of invoices. Everything is digitized, and we must ensure that we are savvy enough to operate the multiple platforms available for record-keeping, tracking, and other purposes.

As I see it, accounting is about truly knowing a business from the inside out and helping it grow. Bookkeeping (what is being taught in schools) is important, but it is just the tip of the iceberg, especially with technological advances making their way into this profession. These days, analytics derived from financial data is crucial for decision-makers. However, for a person to be able to understand how to analyze financial data, one needs to have proper training.

Professional qualifications like the MICPA x CA ANZ Qualifying Programme that helps provide local and global knowledge can give candidates the best of both worlds. By going through the programme, I could explore how international and local companies applied different approaches to harness the benefits of technology and financial data analytics. This includes identifying patterns and understanding what business costs to reduce to make room for investments that would increase business efficiency and promote long-term business sustainability. Here, having the right accounting qualifications will enable future graduates to understand global practices that can be implemented locally.

The accounting industry has been through a rapid transformation, and it can get tough to keep up. To be a skilled accounting professional that moves forward with the current changes, you will need a clearer focus on the industry updates, skill set, technological tools, qualifications, and understanding to future-proof your accounting career.

The MICPA x CA ANZ Qualifying Programme is an opportunity to be this future-proof accountant as it offers a transformative learning experience that is carefully curated to address the current and relevant needs of the industry.