Careers in Corporate Finance / Management Accounting

The intent of this article is to discuss about career opportunities in Corporate Finance / Management Accounting roles with a focus on the education and key skill requirements, the job description and the career progression. In terms of education, a typical Corp Fin role would require an Accounting background (like CA, ICWA, B.Com etc)and sometimes even an MBA (finance) is preferred. However, in general industry does not prefer MBAs with engineering background. The simple logic behind this is perhaps most of the day to day work in such profiles relies heavily on a sound understanding of accounting concepts. Some of the other specific skills apart from knowledge of accounting subjects also include working familiarity with computers especially excel, word and tally.  Also, the lateral hiring in this industry requires relevant sector knowledge and experience.

Some of the most common jobs which fall under this domain are related to Costing / Cost Accounting(of a product / service), MIS reporting, Budgeting, Book keeping (Account maintenance), Billing / Invoicing, Taxation, Internal Audit etc. The typical job responsibilities in these roles include Generating Invoices, Account Preparation, Account Reconciliation / Maintenance, Preparation of Trial Balance, Closing of Accounts (during period end) MIS Reporting, Budgeting, Arranging funds for Working Capital management, Maintaining Audit trails, Taxation, Finance Control, etc.

The work in all of the above profile is also customized depending on the kind of industry or sector you choose to work in.  For instance, a FMCG based role would be very different from that of the IT Industry, as FMCG sector has many low value products and a vast customer base versus IT industry which has more concentrated customers using fewer products / services of higher value. So, in broad terms it can be understood that the end products worth, volume of the business and end users of the product / service play a major role in defining the actual work profile. Shift from one industry (sector) to the other is possible  /easier at entry level but as one progresses in his or her career, this becomes relatively tougher and is also not recommended.

Most of the entry level of work initially starts with basic accounts / book keeping /invoicing which later on develop into more mature role focusing on control / management of finances, costs, budgeting, etc. The designation usually starts from Finance Analyst / Executive and progresses to the CFO level.

CA/ICWA are the most preferred candidates for these profiles and generally given more complex responsibilities. Professionals with such backgrounds go on to become the key finance decision makers for the company eventually land up with designations such as CFO / Finance Director etc.  Management graduates initially start their career as MIS reporting and compliance analyst while undergraduates work primarily revolves around data entry and analysis, report making, etc. Like every other industry, performance is the key factor for career growth here, however the career progression for CAs tends to be faster than MBAs. The career growth for undergraduates is relatively slow and may have to start their job on a temporary / contract basis.

Here, it is critical to understand that although the initial compensation in these profiles are lower when compared to the jobs in the capital markets, Corp fin roles are equally competent and can provide professionals with successful career growth opportunities. Professionals with 4-5 years of experience in Management Accounting / Corp Fin in a particular industry (sector) have moved into Front End Investment Banking / Equity Research roles.  For more details on the career growth and job profile in investment banking and equity research please refer to our pervious blogs and published newsletters.