ACC275-Professional Practice In Accounting

Introduction

This career research report will be based on an in-depth analysis of a specific area of employment in the accounting industry that I am interested in pursuing a career which is the job profile of a junior accountant. In order to make the research more valuable, a specific employer will be selected which I am interested in joining, and the job profile of a junior accountant will be applied to the selected employer by analyzing important aspects of the employer. The main focuses of this study will be analyzing the nature of the job, work environment, career development, entry-level positions and the required skills and qualifications for the chosen job. Most importantly, a self-reflection will be presented by identifying the key areas to be improved in order to be successful in a future career.

Section 01

Job Profile

As it is highlighted in the introduction, I am interested in pursuing my career as a Junior Accountant currently, I am gathering the specific qualifications about the accounting profession.

Nature of Work

As a junior accountant, the primary duties and responsibilities which I need to perform in an organization include the followings;

1. Maintaining a ledger; record and document company financial transactions.
2. Oversee bank reconciliations and balance financial records.

1. Keeping updated budgets; handle monthly payroll disbursements and invoices, and confirm expense vouchers and purchase orders.
2. Checking employee timesheets for accuracy.
3. Conducting or assisting with fixed asset audits.

1. Utilizing database management systems to maintain current record keeping of financial documents.
2. Providing feedback to supervisors regarding budget forecasts, resource utilization, and tax strategies.

Environment and Working Conditions

For this job profile, primarily an office environment will be required. Usually, most of the junior accountants work in comfortable offices around 40 hours per week. In certain circumstances, I may have to work late hours to assist my senior supervisors in meeting deadlines. 

Educational Qualification and Industry Experience

In order to obtain this job profile initially, a bachelor’s degree will be required from an accredited institution in accounting, finance or business or a related field. The experienced and knowledge of the industry are as well vital qualifications. Most importantly, minimum two or three-year working experience in the required field is very much essential. As per my findings, some companies also require candidates to be qualified or part-qualified with CA or CPA so that candidates can move successfully with their future career path.

Skills

Apart from the education qualification, I must possess some required skills in order to succeed in this job profile. Those skills will include critical thinking, strong written and oral communication skills, numerical skills, attention to detail, accuracy, team working abilities and meeting deadlines. Apart from those skills, I need to have a thorough knowledge of the accounting process and accounting software. Proficiency in Microsoft Excel including Vlookups, pivot tables, QuickBooks and Peachtree or Sage 50 Accounting is very much important to succeed in this job profile. 

Labour market outlook and Career Development

As per my research on the Bureau of Labour Statistics of United States Department of Labour, between the period of 2008 and 2018 junior accountants jobs are expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations. The new and changing laws have contributed a lot to the increased demand for junior accountants which will upsurge the requirement for accountants in the job market. For example, most of the new private companies will require accountants. 

Junior accountants who are specialized and experienced can eventually get promoted to senior positions like senior accountants, accounting supervisors or auditors. Individuals of qualified or partly-qualified with CA or CPA with experience have multiple opportunities to achieve those senior positions, or they can move to an Assistant Accountant role in commerce and industry or Managerial Accounting positions. 

Average Salaries and Benefits

Mainly, the salary of a junior accountant depends on several factors such as the location, size of the company, the tasks, experience, and related qualifications. The pay package of a junior accounting will increase as they gain more experience in the industry. According to my research, the average salary for the junior accountant is $41,000 per annum. They can enjoy benefits such as paid vacations, pension plans and health and life insurance plans. https://careers.stateuniversity.com/pages/cw03nzeg4g/Junior-Accountant.html

Related Positions

The related posts can be identified as a staff accountant or junior staff accountant. 

Section 02

I have a genuine interest in working at ‘Google’ for the above mentioned Junior Accountant job profile.  I rely on that Google maintains a strong Person-Organization fit by utilizing a ‘customer focused’ strategy and innovative and creative culture across the whole organization. I firmly believe that Google is one of the best places to work as it promotes flexible, fun, creative and relaxed working environment. Therefore, I have conducted an in-depth, detailed analysis regarding the selected employer in the below chapter.

Nature of the Organization

History

Even though Google has it’s headquarter in one country, it does not only operate in that country. It offers services to all countries in the world and this shows its multinational nature of the operation. It is charged with the responsibility of the worldwide internet provision and mostly on the basis of digital products and services, online browsing and advertisement. Advanced computer services such as computing and software are also provided by this company. Through the production and the provision of these important services that have connected the world, it has been considered the leading provider of information search engine among world competitors. They create a platform for easy and user- friendly internet applications like androids, google glasses and more. 

Vision

The vision statement of Google is “to provide access to the world’s information in one click’

Mission

The mission statement is “to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful”

Core Values

Google maintains its own set of core values, and those values are shared across the organization. Some of their values include technology, integrity, constant innovation, communication, diversity, risk-taking, simplicity, honesty, cooperation and so on. Apart from them, the most important key value that the company focuses is to keep their employees happy (Surtarjo, 2011).

Commitments of Google

The primary commitment of Google is to create an opportunity for everyone. It firmly believes that everyone deserves the chance to learn, succeed and be heard. 

Size of the Company

As per the statistics of Google headquarters, currently, the company has approximately 85,050 employees in worldwide Google offices in different countries (Hedden, 2016).

Products and Services

Google produces hundreds of products that are used by billions of people every day across the globe. Among those hundreds of products, some of the most popular Google products can be identified as Google Search, Mail, Docs, Plus, Drive, Translate, Maps, AdWords, Play Store, and Google News. However, according to my research, Google is so much beyond that. https://www.minterest.com/google-products-services-you-probably-dont-know/

Corporate Culture

Google has an innovative, creative and fun culture inside the company that successfully combines technological innovation with healthy organizational culture. The epic corporate culture of the company has made users highly satisfied and enjoyable in their work in a way that employees tend to feel like they are living in their second home. Also, Google promotes teamwork, respect, flexibility, transparency, sharing information, uniqueness, and openness through its corporate culture. According to Forbes Technology Council, they have revealed 13 reasons that Google deserves the "best corporate culture" title. The reasons can be listed below. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2018/02/08/13-reasons-google-deserves-its-best-company-culture-award/#3db6810b3482

• True flexibility
• Freedom to be creative
• A fun environment
• People and their expertise
• Dog- friendly workplace
• Shared values across the organization
• Constant innovation
• Trust
• Alignment with employee needs and wants
• Growth and improvement mindset
• A clear purpose
• Caring personally
• A dedicated focus on employee happiness

Organization Structure

Google maintains a ‘flat’ organization structure with minimal middle and upper- level management. As a result of that, individuals, teams, and groups have the opportunity to directly report to the CEO while bypassing middle management (Silverthorne, 2004).

The corporate culture of Google reflects in their decision making the process as well because decisions are made within teams. As it has been identified above, teamwork is highly appreciated in Google and decisions are not always made by senior people and applied top down. Autonomy is always encouraged inside the company (DeZube, 2017).

Branches and Subsidiaries

Google headquarters is located in Mountain View, California. It operates more than 70 offices in different 50 countries such as United States, Canada, Europe, Denmark, Latin America and many other international locations. Unlike other internet companies, Google is transparent when it comes to contact location information for the company

Clients and customers

Spanier, who is the Marketing Director of Google, has declared that everybody on the planet is their target audience (Hong and Kubik, 2013). According to him, Google’s marketing strategy is not bound within a group of people or a specific location.  Therefore, it has become challenging to get a bright idea to whom Google is targeting to gain profits and competitive advantage. 

Customer profile of Google

The customer profile of Google can be discussed by using three different categories such as geographic, demographic and psychographic dimensions. 

Geographic dimensions

1. Google has highly diverse markets and users as internet is a highly diverse tool in modern world. But, Google has restricted its access in certain countries and regions like China, Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Syria due to various reasons.   
2. Google search results can be conveyed in 80 different languages.

• More than half of the Google search results are delivered outside of the United States.

Demographic dimensions

 According to surveys it is found that,  

35. The most popular user category of Google is under the age of 35.
36. Among them, 55% of users are male.

Psychographic Dimensions

As per the surveys, it has been found that people who are educated and intelligent who need to access to information anytime quickly from any internet related devices are more Google users. The main reason is that they mostly have a busy life style. Analyzing data regarding typical Google users, it can be assumed that typical Google users prefer more innovative and privacy oriented internet service experience.

Opportunities for promotions

Google offers numerous opportunities for career growth and development in order to help employees advance in their careers. It also provides employees a reason to stick around and work hard. Employee recognition is highly valued at Google. They consider people as their best assets and employees find themselves challenged and energized from working so closely with other great mind (Hedden, 2016)

Inside Google, I will be able to gain various growth opportunities as there is the huge scope of learning new facts which can improve my skills and capabilities under the supervision of highly specialized experts who has great expertise. Further, I will be able to make use of knowledge in a feasible manner. In addition to this, on the basis of my work performance, I will be able to grow up in the career ladder by receiving promotions to the senior managerial position with the time.

Opportunities for Promotions

Google offers numerous opportunities for career growth and development in order to help employees advance in their careers. It also provides employees with a reason to stick around and work hard. Employee recognition is highly valued at Google. They consider people as their best assets and employees find themselves challenged and energized from working so closely with another great mind (Hedden, 2016)

Inside Google, I will be able to gain various growth opportunities as there is the vast scope of learning new facts which can improve my skills and capabilities under the supervision of highly specialized experts who has considerable expertise. Further, I will be able to make use of knowledge in a feasible manner. In addition to this, by my work performance, I will be able to grow up on the career ladder by receiving promotions to the senior managerial position with the time.

Employee benefits

Google creates an environment where employees feel that their work makes the world a better place (Hedden, 2016). Google shows consideration towards its employees by providing different types of benefits packages such as free food, facilities for free health/dental, entertainment, shower, gym, sports, child care, welfare schemes and many other comforts. Employees feel highly satisfied, and they tend to contribute their maximum with ultimate motivation for the company as they are treated very well as they expected, and their needs are taken care of (Greer, 2014).

Section 03

Career path

Entry- Level Positions

Entry level positions can be identified as the positions which an individual does not require prior experience in the related field. An entry-level job allows an individual to enter into the workforce. These roles may include some on-site training. Over the time, employees can learn the process of the business and gain valuable experience to increase the potential for high ranking positions and better pay (Hedden, 2016).

As per my research regarding the job profile of a junior accountant, entry-level positions may include an accounting intern, bookkeeper or a trainee junior accountant. The career path can be chosen according to the alternatives available inside the company.  Individuals can choose more than one career path in this industry as a broad exposure is available, and one can make maximum efforts in possible ways until success (Hong and Kubik, 2003).

As individual advances in this career, middle and upper-level positions that can be achieved are identified as below.

From the bottom/middle level to top-level positions,

1. Bookkeeper
2. Junior accountant

• Staff Accountant

1. Senior Accountant
2. Accounting Supervisor
3. Accounting Manager

• Financial controller
• Chief financial officer (CFO)

Required Qualifications

For an entry-level position, the primary qualification that needed is some knowledge regarding the related industry and the qualified education. Apart from these, the working experience in the similar industry is an added advantage and an essential factor to justify the allocated roles and responsibilities with related to the specific job. With the advancement of the career, an individual may need further higher education qualification, a professional qualification like Certified Accounting (CA) or Certified Public Accounting (CPA) and more years of experience in order to get into senior positions.

Section 04

Self-Reflection

After conducting in-depth research regarding the chosen job profile in the accounting industry, my desire for starting my career as a junior accountant became more confirmed and realistic. I found that starting my career as a junior accountant will lead me to a successful end point as I will be able to climb in my career ladder step by step starting from an initial level. Before conducting this career research, my understanding regarding the job profile and responsibilities of a junior accountant was quite confused. This research helped me massively in order to gain a better understanding and improve my knowledge regarding required skills; personal traits as well as technical characteristics that I should possess to be successful in this job profile. The conducted study cleared many of my confusions regarding my responsibilities and assisted me in taking an efficient and appropriate decision.

As per my perspective, Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance will be a sufficient education qualification for me to start my career initially as a junior accountant. However, this qualification will not be sufficient for career advancement. As I have identified earlier, some companies also require candidates to be qualified or part-qualified with CA or CPA so that candidates can move successfully with their future career path. Therefore, qualifying CA or CPA will be beneficial and an added advantage for me to build my future career path. Also, pursuing an MBA in Accounting or Finance will also help me to move to senior positions and advance in a career with the time.

When talking about the necessary technical skills related to the job profile, currently my knowledge regarding different types of accounting software is not sufficient. Therefore, it is very much important that I take immediate steps to be proficient in accounting software like Vlookups, pivot tables and QuickBooks which are useful in performing my job tasks efficiently. Also, I need to concentrate more on enhancing my interpersonal skills to work with diversified people and improving verbal communication skills which will be an important factor to be succeeded in my career.

Apart from education and technical qualification, industry qualification is also a must to be successful in my career. Currently, I do not have any industry experience. Therefore, working as an intern at a well-known internet service related company will help me in order to gain industry information and experience.

How well I fit with the employer

Person-Organization fit can be defined as “the compatibility between people and organizations occurs when an entity provides the needs of employees, or they share related fundamental characteristics or both’’ (Kristof-Brown, Zimmerman and Johnson, 2005). Employees may fit or misfit towards an entity due to their reasons (Sutarjo, 2011).

In the modern business world, achieving P-O fit has become an integral factor towards the success of both employees and entity. Further, it can be identified as a significant predictor of job satisfaction, employee commitment, and job performance and employee turnover. The fundamental factor that needs to achieve P-O fit is that values, goals, personality and other characteristics of employees should match with those of the entity. Eventually, a strong person-organization fit favorably affect company bottom line (Silverthorne, 2004).

After conducting in-depth research regarding Google Company, I undoubtedly believe that I would fit quite well with the employer due to its corporate culture. In theoretical terms, organizational culture is defined as “values shared by members of an organization” (Chatman, 1991). As discussed in the above sections, the culture of Google is fun, innovative and creative. I believe that I will be able to enjoy a perfect person-organization fit with the employer as my values, personality and attitudes are aligned with the shared culture of the employer. I always respect freedom, and I am a person who enjoys living in a fun and enjoyable environment since my childhood. I believe that freedom is the path to creating the same as the belief of the employer. I believe that inside Google, I will be able to gain the opportunity to learn new things under best experts and also I will have the opportunity to work with diversified people which will be a valuable experience for me to start my career. Also, I think that I will be quite fit with the employer because Google is continuously aligned with the needs and wants of employees as well as the employer has a dedicated focus on employee happiness.

Job satisfaction

I believe that working for Google Company will increase my job satisfaction level due to the unique culture and characteristics of the company as well as its dedication to keeping employees happy. Further, the amazing perks and benefits packages of Google will also make me feel highly satisfied towards the company. Working in the job profile of a junior accountant will be highly satisfied for me as I will get the opportunity to work with highly talented experts under their supervision.  Further, I will not feel overburdened with work as the company promotes teamwork. However, in certain circumstances, competitiveness may annoy me.

Conclusion

As per the conducted study, it can be identified that the job profile of a junior accountant has its duties and responsibilities towards an organization.  It is also found that an individual can obtain the job profile of a junior accountant easy if he or she has industry experience in the related field. Industry experience can be considered as a significant impact on the success of the job profile. Therefore, I will join an internship program in order to gain industry and work experience.

Further, qualifications like CA or CPA also can make a massive influence on the job success which has now become one of my goals. By the present study, I will work more on enhancing my interpersonal skills apart from the education qualification and industry knowledge. I believe that adopting the approaches mentioned above will add more value to my resume and make it more attractive to employers.

References

DeZube, D. (2017). Accounting career path options, Retrieved from https://www.performance.edu.au/blog/accounting-career-path-options 

Hong, H., & Kubik, J. (2013). Analyzing the Analysts: Career Concerns and Based Earnings Forecasts. The Journal of Finance. VOL LVIII, NO 1.

Hedden, F. (2016). How many users does Google+ really have’? Tech times.

Retrieved from https://www.techtimes.com/articles/51205/20150506/many-users-google-really.html

Kristof, B., & Zimmerman, T., & Johnson, S. (2005). Consequences of Individuals’ Fit At Work: A Meta-Analyis of Person-Job , Person –Organization, Person-Group, and Person-Supervisor Fit; Personed Psychology: Summer ABI/INFORM Global.

Occupational Outlook Handbook. (2018). Bureau of Labour Statistics, United States Department of Labour, Retrieved from.

https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and financial/accountants-and-auditors.htm

Silverthorne, C. (2004). The impact of organizational culture and person?organization fit on organizational commitment and job satisfaction in Taiwan, Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 25(7), 592 – 599. DOI: 10.1108/01437730410561477.

Surtarjo, R. (2011). Ten Ways of Managing Person Organization Fit (P-O Fit) Effectively: A   literature Study TELKOM Management Institute, Bandung. Retrieved from https://www.ijbssnet.com/journals/Vol_2_No_21_Special_Issue_November_2011/25.pdf