Just wanted to wish everyone a happy busy season. For many of you the long nights and weekends will be coming to an end soon. For all the first-years, hope you learned a lot, had some fun and mastered the art of ordering dinner for your whole team. Keep your head up – the end (and Spring) is in sight.
Regards,
The Big 4 Guru
Add comment March 6th, 2010
Have a question about getting hired with the Big 4 or working for one of the Big 4 accounting firms? Submit your question to big4guru@yahoo.com
Add comment March 4th, 2010
For those of you keeping tabs on the ongoing saga of IFRS (and that should be all of you interested in working for the Big 4!), this week marked a major development. The SEC unanimously agreed to publish a statement of continued support for a single set of high-quality global accounting standards. Most importantly, the SEC reaffirmed that significant convergence of GAAP and IFRS statements must be achieved before conversion to IFRS is considered a viable solution. For more info, check out this excellent synopsis from PwC’s CFODirect.com:
Add comment February 28th, 2010
Hello,
PwC has a great search tool on their site that lets you search for open positions by city and practice area. For instance, you can search for “Assurance” positions in “Los Angeles” or “Advisory” positions in San Francisco.
Once you find the position that fits your search criteria, you can apply directly to that position online. Definitely worth checking out. Best of luck!
http://www.pwc.com/us/en/careers/experienced/search.jhtml
Add comment February 6th, 2010
Just in time for the 2010 recruiting season, the Big 4 Guru’s Book of Secrets, 2010 Edition, is now available. Our #1 selling product has been updated to include the latest and greatest tips and techniques to get you hired with the Big 4. Best of luck to everyone!
http://big4guru.com/big_4_hiring_guide
Sincerely,
The Big 4 Guru Team
Add comment December 31st, 2009
This month BusinessWeek revealed its list of the best places to launch a career. Once again the Big 4 firms took home the top four spots on the list. To prepare the ranking, “BusinessWeek polled 60 college career services directors across the country; collected data from a survey of 60,000 U.S. undergrads by Universum USA, a Philadelphia research company; and required employers to submit statistics on everything from pay and benefits to training programs and retention.”
The article sites the level of responsibility given to new hires, opportunity for advancement and learning opportunities as some of the top reasons why working for one of the Big 4 is so beneficial.
While this is great news, the article also contained some cautionary advice. As is expected, hiring is down greatly and competition is greater than ever before:
“Getting a job in the first place is no slam dunk. Many companies have been cutting back on entry-level hiring—one survey of 2009 college grads found that only 1 out of 5 who applied for a job succeeded in landing one—and the employers in our ranking are no different. Entry-level hiring in the first half of the year was down across the board, with at least 50 of the 69 employers who took part in our survey reporting an average decrease of more than 20%.
Never fear – we’ve got your back. If you haven’t already done so, please check out the Big 4 Guru’s Guide to Getting Hired with the Big 4
Please see the links below for the individual firm profiles.
1. Deloitte (2008 rank 2)
http://www.businessweek.com/careers/first_jobs/2009/1.htm
2. Ernst & Young (2008 rank 1)
http://www.businessweek.com/careers/first_jobs/2009/2.htm
3. PricewaterhouseCoopers (2008 rank 3)
http://www.businessweek.com/careers/first_jobs/2009/3.htm
4. KPMG (2008 rank 5)
http://www.businessweek.com/careers/first_jobs/2009/4.htm
Add comment September 23rd, 2009
Hello Everyone,
As you can see, it has been awhile since the last post. It has been a very busy summer around here and we’ve been working on some new and exciting projects. I’ll get into those more in later posts. I’d like to thank all our readers and everyone who has purchased the ebook. Also, thank you to all of you who have written in to say thanks. We love hearing from you. To all of you who are entering the fall recruiting season – best of luck! We hope that our site and books will give you the tools you need to land the job of your dreams!
Stay tuned!
Big 4 Guru
Add comment September 12th, 2009
Rapport–noun Relationship, especially one of mutual trust or emotional affinity.
All interviews eventually turn to the section where the person being interviewed is given the chance to ask the interviewer questions. This is one of the most overlooked areas in interview preparation and can be very costly. I have had interviews where, had I not prepared several solid questions, the interview would have been over in 10 minutes. I go into this more in my book, the Big 4 Guru’s Book of Secrets, but for now I’ll talk about one great question that you can ask in any interview. Here it is:
“How long have you been with
This question seems simple, but there is alot going on under the surface. First of all, people love to talk about themselves. One of the basic lessons in how to build rapport with someone is to get them talking about themselves. People feel good when they talk about their own lives and interests and will leave the conversation feeling that it went well. By asking the interviewer to share some personal information, you are planting the seeds of rapport. Second, you will learn more about the environment and culture that you will be working in. The person interviewing you was once in your shoes. He/she made the decision to join the firm and will like to explain why it is that they are still there. This reaffirms in their own mind that you respect their position of leadership and value their wisdom.
One of the keys to interviewing, especially in such a cutthroat job market, is to stand out from the crowd. At the end of the day, when countless people just like you have sat in front of the interviewer, you want to be remembered. Asking questions such as this one and those in my book will make you easy to remember. Your interviewer will think, “well, many of these people looked the same on paper, but there was that one guy/girl who I really hit it off with. I gave him/her advice and I have a vested interest in them succeeding.” Often, interviewers are just waiting to find that one person that clicks with them. Build rapport, make yourself memorable and you will be one step closer to the job of your dreams.
Next —–> Summer Reading
Add comment June 9th, 2009
Authors Note: This post is purely based on personal experience with PricewaterhouseCoopers. Though it is likely that this system is used at the other Big 4 accounting firms, this my not necessarily be the case at Deloitte, Ernst & Young and KPMG.
The Big 4 employ an “up or out” mentality, meaning that staff are either promoted each year or asked to leave the firm. While this is something you are not likely to come across in your recruiting experience, this is generally good news for employees. If you take your career seriously and work hard, there is a very good chance that your roles and responsibilities (and pay) will grow with each year of Big 4 accounting. This is a major benefit of the Big 4 as opposed to, say, a staff accounting position in industry.
PricewaterhouseCoopers uses a 4 tiered rating system to rank and compare each “class” of staff. When you come into the firm you are filed into a “class” with those who start at around the same time as you. Much like school, you and your class will progress through the firms ranks at roughly the same pace. Before we discuss this further, here is a brief refresher on the firm hierarchy. For those of you interviewing for an experienced position, this will help you determine which level you will come in at.
Intern – Typically a college student who has just completed their junior year or, in the case of Masters candidates, just completed their senior year of college.
First year Associate – This is the rank that college grads come into the firm as. Known as “new hires” for the first few months or so, and then “first years” for the remainder of the year. This level is targeted most heavily by the firms’ campus recruiting program. How much do Big 4 associates make? These positions typically have a very competitive starting salary. Check out THIS POST for specific info on salaries and compensation:
Experienced Associate – After your first year, or in some cases after your first busy season, you will become an “experienced associate.” This is not technically a promotion, but rather an indicator of rank. Many offices have an annual promotion day. On this day, every staff member who is eligible for a promotion or a move up in the ranks is officially given their new title. It is common to spend two years as an Experienced Associate before moving on to the Senior level.
Senior Associate – After spending two years at the Experienced Associate level staff are likely to be promoted to Senior Associate. This is the first change in rank that is considered an actual “promotion.” Accordingly, candidates are expected to meet predetermined criteria and performance metrics to achieve the promotion. The ranking system, which I will discuss below, comes into play here. It should be noted that some staff are promoted to Senior after only one year at the Experienced level. This is uncommon but, due to the specific office/ team needs or in the case of exceptional performance, it does happen. Seniors are responsible for running audit engagements on the front lines. It is widely considered that seniors bare the toughest work load due to the fact that they are responsible for performing the most difficult front line audit work and reviewing nearly all of the work done by first-years and experienced associates. This is the level at which many staff leave for the sparkling positions open to them in industry with a Big 4 resume.
Manager – After working as a Senior Associate for two – three years, the next promotion is Manager. (Note: Some make the designation of “Second Year Senior” or “Experienced Senior” prior to Manager). At this point, Managers will have had roughly five to six years with the firm. There is a major increase in salary at this point. At this level it is likely that managers will begin to seriously consider the “Partner track.” Managers are not in the field nearly as much as seniors and, as the name implies, take on a far greater managerial role.
Senior Manager – Senior managers are really Partners in training. By this point Big 4 public accounting has become a career. While many view the Big 4 as a launching pad for their career, Senior Managers view the Big 4 as a career in itself. Because Senior Managers are able to leave the firm and hand pick their dream job in industry, the compensation at this level is extraordinary.
Partner – This is the highest level attainable in Big 4 accounting firms. Partners have a vested interest in the firm and buy into the partnership. What is the life of a partner like? A salary of at least $Million, a reputation as a trusted member of the elite business community and a American Express Black card, and much more. You are the best of the best.
Stay tuned. In the next post we will examine the ranking system used by the Big 4 firms.
Add comment May 20th, 2009
It’s beginning to look alot like summer. For those of you in school, final exams and presentations are over (or close to over) and the sights and sounds of graduation can be seen and heard on campus. For those of us in the working world, busy season is hopefully by now only a distant memory. For me this is the time of year where I like to think about things I can do to make sure my career is on track and moving full speed ahead. We often get so bogged down by the day-to-day details that we lose sight of the big picture. I find that there is no better way to spark big picture thinking than reading books about insanely successful individuals. Autobiographies, in particular, are an excellent way to discover new insights and ways of thinking. So with that in mind, here are a few of my personal recommendations.
#1 Jack – Straight From the Gut – Jack Welch
For those of you who don’t know, Jack Welch is the former CEO and Chairman of GE. In this book, Jack simply explains how he went from a low middle class kid to leading one of the biggest companies in the world. Of the hundreds of books that I have read, no other is able to capture the shear drive and determination of a successful business person as well as this one does. Reading this book will make you ecstatic about trying to duplicate his success.
#2 The One Minute Manager – Kenneth H. Blanchard and Spencer Johnson
For everyone who plans to lead people and manage teams, this book presents indispensable lessons that everyone should learn. Why this book is not required reading in all business programs is a mystery to me. Presented simply and honestly, the lessons in this book jump off the page and beg to be implemented immediately into your life and career.
# 3 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change – Stephen R. Covey
Don’t be fooled by the fact that this book is often labeled as a “self help” title. This book is all about the fundamental mindset that is absolutely crucial to starting and growing a successful career. Of all the books that I have read, this is perhaps the one that has given me the most “a-ha” moments. Rather than a checklist of minor changes to make, this book presents a revolutionary change in one’s perceptions and interpretations of how the world works.
# 4 Never Eat Alone – Keith Ferrazzi
This one has a very strong tie to the Big 4. Ferrazzi was Deloitte Consulting’s youngest partner ever! This one is all about networking, a skill that is often overlooked by accountants. Accounting has become, more than ever, a people business. Long gone are the days where accountants sat with their green visor in a lonely cubicle. Networking is a skill that will pay off time and time again. Rather than promoting cheap tricks, Ferrazzi shares the secrets to building lasting and sincere relationships.
Ask yourself this question: if you’re starting a career in accounting or finance, how long do you think it is going to be before someone asks you your opinion about the economic crisis? A day? A week? As a business professional it is assumed that you have a strong knowledge of current events. This book will give you everything you need to know about the current economic climate in the U.S. and the world. Best of all, this book is actually a fascinating read.
P.S. Here is one more. This isn’t for everyone but for those of you who it clicks with you will consider it your secret weapon. The power that this book can give you is astonishing. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE.
Add comment May 19th, 2009
© Copyright 2010 Big4Guru.com Blog – Big 4 Accounting Secrets. All rights reserved.
Blix Theme by Sebatian Schmieg. Icons by Kevin Potts . Powered by WordPress . Log in
