ACCG315: 1B -Reflect on how your personal understanding of the accg profession has developed

during this unit (June 5, 2018)

In my Reflection 1A, I have stated that the accounting profession is personally “an exciting, diverse and versatile career that requires persistence and responsibility”. Interestingly I got that right, but my view on the spectrum of the versatility has immensely widened. I knew accountants were vital in all aspects, but I never imagined accountants to be hosting podcasts, writing newspapers, transitioning from CFO to CEO, transferring to different industries… just doing whatever they want.

I have also figured out that every speaker from the lectures have emphasised the need for soft skills in the accounting profession. Going back to the beginning of the semester, I would have never imagined the speakers would be telling us to be a social butterfly instead of studying hard (although we do need to study hard). The technical skills are indeed necessary but I didn’t expect a partner at EY to say he regrets not reading Psychology book in his younger days. I guess the axiom “your network is your net worth” is actually true.

It was also surprising to see how quickly Information Technology is taking over the roles of accounting profession. Although the accounting industry had relatively slow change in the technological aspect, there is a rapid growth with the rise of Blockchain Technology, Cloud Computing, Virtual CFO and many more to come. Following the issue of disruptive technologies in the accounting profession, there are two more major issues accountants face in their profession. Firstly (and most obviously), ethical responsibility issues are inevitable when a human is involved in the accounting process. Secondly, the emergence of technologies also leads to compliance issues. For instance, the announcement of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will begin to affect numerous multinational accounting corporations.

I’ve said in my Reflection 1A that it is inevitably for accountants to interact with a diverse range of people, from people within the company (which may be solely an accounting company or a company with different departments within) to existing and potential clients; not bounded by geographical restrictions. Adding on to that, I’ve realised that accountants also interact with other accountants. I never imagined that there is an event like World Congress of Accountants where over 6,000 accountants from all over the world gather to network. This manifests the significance of networking in the accounting profession.

For now as a graduating student, I will be focusing on trying to balance my education and extracurricular activities while studying disruptive technologies on the side, to be a more rounded accountant in the future. By doing so, I hope to add value to the accounting community in the future. I dream of being an accountant who my clients and fellow employees expect to be colourful yet professional. And perhaps these traits can have an impact on changing the stereotypical view of accountants. In order to achieve all, I will be continuously learning and networking.

I genuinely appreciate ACCG315 unit for allowing me to discover skills that I thought I never had, which are soft skills. I didn’t think I would be giving a presentation to the industry professionals this early in my career. And I never knew that I was capable of it. That made me first-hand experience that anything is possible with hard work (and an opportunity). The unit also made me realise that I’m a people person. I learned that I find joy in listening to success stories and learning from them. I’ve learned so many things from different industry partners but if I had to sum it all up in to one, it would be that you could do anything with a little bit of luck, a lot of hard work, networks, resilience and trust in yourself.