Reading summary

69JULY 2009 / THE CPA JOURNAL

By Susan H. Ivancevich, Daniel M. Ivancevich, and Richard Roscher

W ith the economy facing a deep recession and continuing job losses, it is especially important

for employees to strengthen job security by establishing a solid reputation at their work- place. While seasoned employees are aware of the requirements for profession- al success, many new hires lack such knowledge. Many accounting firms have been forced to lay off staff in recent months, so it is increasingly important to work proactively to establish a reputation as a hard-working, indispensable employ- ee who provides value to the firm.

This article shares information gathered from accounting and recruiting profes- sionals to shed light on employer expec- tations during an employee’s first two years on the job. Accounting students, recent graduates, and new hires will find this advice useful when determining what strategies will create a strong, positive rep- utation at work.

The Survey The authors surveyed 26 accounting and

human resource professionals from the south- eastern United States to garner their opinions regarding best and worst practices for new hires during the first two years of employ- ment. As illustrated in Exhibit 1, respondents consisted primarily of professionals from accounting firms. Most had upper-level expe- rience in human resources, or as partners, directors, or managers. Firm size was fairly evenly split between smaller offices (150 or fewer employees) and larger offices (more than 150 employees). Small, medium, and large firms, as measured by revenues gener- ated, were equally represented.

Best practices during the first two years of employment. New hires should start

their careers on a positive note by striving to accomplish as many of the items listed in this section as possible. It is much eas- ier to develop a good reputation at the onset of one’s career, rather than trying to restore a tarnished reputation later. Exhibit 2 sum- marizes the best practices employees should follow during their first two years of employment.

Volunteer for new assignments. Employers appreciate new hires who show initiative

and seek out new assignments and responsi- bilities. If things are slow, an employee with unassigned time should approach managers in the office to see if there is anything she can do to assist in the office. After finishing one assignment, an employee should volunteer for another. Doing so is likely to increase her value in the office, and increase the likelihood of her name coming to mind when sched- ules are being prepared and assignments awarded.

The First Two Years of Employment

R E S P O N S I B I L I T I E S & L E A D E R S H I P p r o f e s s i o n a l d e v e l o p m e n t

Strategies and Pitfalls

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Be a team player. During the first two years on the job, a new hire’s goal should be to do whatever it takes to earn recog- nition as a valuable member of the team. Employees should not repeatedly ask to go

home early or complain about working late. Instead, if the senior or other members of the team stay late, newer employees should offer to stay late as well. After establish- ing a positive reputation, it becomes much easier to manage one’s schedule and balance work and personal life.

Show a desire to learn. This could include reading the Wall Street Journal or trade jour- nals in their clients’ industries, studying new accounting standards, and asking rele- vant questions about these readings as they

relate to job responsibilities. It is important to be knowledgeable about clients and their industries prior to starting a new engagement.

Display a positive attitude. Showing up at work on time and having a great atti-

tude can do wonders for a career. Employees known for having positive atti- tudes are much more likely to be sought after for assignments. New hires should try to be optimistic and upbeat, even when things are not going well. People are instinctively drawn to others who have a positive outlook on life.

Have a strong work ethic; go above and beyond expectations. Employees should demonstrate that they are willing to work hard and go the extra mile for the organi-

zation. They should be willing to stay late when needed and available to help out on varying assignments. This strategy will increase an employee’s knowledge base, as well as his value to the firm.

Ask good questions. New hires should ask questions when appropriate. Employers expect to answer questions in the interest of accuracy and efficiency after an employ- ee makes every effort to complete an assignment on her own but gets stuck. To be respectful of a supervisor’s time, employees should accumulate questions so that several can be asked at once, instead of interrupting several times.

Produce quality work; be committed to excellence. It is important for employees to take pride in their work. They should spend time reviewing their work before submitting it to make sure they accom- plished what was asked; that the work is clear, concise, and easy to review; and that it supports the conclusions.

Display good communication skills; interact well with clients. Employees should communicate in a clear and timely fashion with their supervisors and apprise them of a project’s progress and any major issues which may impact the work. Assistance should be sought if needed. In addition, employees should always treat client personnel with respect. Requests for documentation should be made cour- teously and discussions should always be professional.

Earn appropriate certifications. Many promotions within an organization require the completion of professional certification. For example, many accounting firms will not promote employees to the senior level until they have passed the CPA exam. Employees should try to earn certifications as early as possible in their career, ideally before starting work. It is much easier to pre- pare for and complete certification exams closer to graduation when the material is still freshly learned and before facing the demands of full-time employment.

Produce timely work. It is important to produce high-quality work in a timely, effi- cient manner. It may help, however, to add a little cushion to the projected completion time on assignments—it is always better to turn something in early than to turn it in later than expected.

Demonstrate leadership ability. The ability to lead and teach others is a key

Organizational Type Respondents

Accounting Firm 20

Other (Industry, Government) 6

Position

Campus Recruiting/Human Resources 7

Partner, Director 7

Manager/Senior Manager 6

Senior Accountant 4

Other 2

Size of Office

51–150 employees 12

≥ 150 employees 11

Size of Firm (In Revenues)

≤ $750 million 6

$751 million–$2 billion 7

> $2 billion 9

EXHIBIT 1 Demographic Information

It is important to produce high-quality work

in a timely, efficient manner.

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trait. Employees cannot be effective lead- ers without vision, patience, and good communication skills. It is important to show subordinates that they are valued and to show superiors that they are respected.

Establish good mentor–mentee relation- ships. A great way to earn recognition as a valuable member of an organization is to serve as a mentor to junior staff. The abil- ity to mold and grow new talent within a firm is valued highly. Similarly, making a strong connection with a well-respected, higher level mentor is also important for younger employees. This connection can provide an individual with important guid- ance throughout her career.

Other. A few other good traits to demon- strate during a new hire’s first two years of employment include the continued devel- opment of technical skills, a willingness to take appropriate risks, and creativity.

Common pitfalls during the first two years of employment. The practices dis- cussed below are to be avoided in the inter- est of establishing a solid reputation early on in an employee’s accounting career. Exhibit 3 summarizes the worst practices for employees to follow during their first two years of employment.

Poor work ethic/poor-quality work. New hires should avoid taking too many breaks, performing personal tasks on company time, turning in poor-quality work, or deliv- ering an overall substandard performance. Failure to pay attention to detail, failure to complete work, and failure to follow through with tasks can also saddle an employee with an unfavorable reputation. Careless errors in workpapers, correspon- dence, and other documentation must be avoided—correspondence should be proof- read and workpapers carefully reviewed prior to submission.

Unprofessional behavior. There are many things that constitute unprofessional behavior, including inappropriate con- sumption of alcohol, flirting in the work- place, making rude comments or telling questionable jokes, speaking negatively about other people or organizations, dis- cussing confidential client information in public places, falling asleep on the job, missing deadlines, engaging in office pol- itics or gossip, or speaking disrespectfully to a client or coworker. These behaviors should be avoided.

Not a team player/shirking responsibility. No one enjoys working with a free-rider. It is not pleasant for everyone else on a team to carry the load of a person who chooses to be lazy. Eventually, things catch up with an underperformer and that person ends up with neither a job nor a reference.

Having a negative attitude. Negative people can poison a team or an organiza- tion. People identified as overly negative are more likely to have short careers with a firm than positive people. A negative per- spective reveals itself in both actions and language. Employees should make a con- scious effort to be upbeat in written and verbal communications with others, as well as react positively to the stresses of a demanding job.

Unwilling/unable to learn new things. Some students enter the accounting pro- fession with the idea that they already know all they need to know to be suc- cessful. They feel that once they have assimilated the material tested on the CPA exam, they are fully prepared and done learning. Nothing could be further

from the truth. College teaches a person how to learn. Effective accountants con- tinue to learn new things throughout their careers. An employee who cannot or will not learn new things is likely to have a short career.

Lack of commitment. If a firm feels that an employee is not committed to the pro- fession and to the job, he is a more likely candidate for termination. Every organiza- tion tries to retain talented people who are committed to their careers. Many people leave their first accounting job much too early, before they have time to really eval- uate the position and the opportunities it pre- sents. Changing jobs too early results in lat- eral movement. A graduate who is com- mitted to his first job and stays at least five years will reap significant rewards. Other examples of lack of commitment include a lack of career focus and a failure to seek or earn professional certification.

Poor communication skills. Poor writ- ing and speaking skills can be detrimental to a career. Inadequate communication skills also include things like asking

Number of Best Practice Responses

Volunteer for new assignments 12

Be a team player 12

Show a desire to learn 12

Display a positive attitude 10

Have a strong work ethic; go above and beyond requirements 8

Ask good questions 7

Produce quality work; be committed to excellence 7

Display good communication skills; interact well with clients 4

Earn appropriate certifications 2

Produce timely work 2

Demonstrate leadership ability 2

Establish good mentor–mentee relationships 2

Learn the organization 1

Demonstrate technical skills 1

Take appropriate risks 1

Demonstrate creative ability 1

EXHIBIT 2 Best Practices During the First Two Years of Employment

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repetitive questions or failing to ask appro- priate questions. Employees who have dif- ficulty speaking in public should join an organization such as Toastmasters to work

on their public speaking skills. If writing is a problem, it is a good idea to ask other people to review and provide feedback on drafts. One of the best ways to improve writing skills is to practice. Reading pro- fessional publications and office memo- randa with the intent of becoming com- fortable with the language of accounting is also helpful.

Arriving late to work or meetings. Arriving late to work or meetings can be extremely frustrating to coworkers.

Employees with a habit of running late may want to set their clocks and watches ahead to provide a time cushion. It is important to allow adequate time to trav- el to work or to a client office, anticipat- ing the possibility of traffic delays or other problems. Repeatedly leaving work early will similarly have a negative impact on relations with coworkers.

Acting arrogantly. Accounting profes- sionals are intelligent by nature and do not enjoy working with people who have condescending or arrogant personalities. Arrogant people are often unwilling to per- form tasks that they think are beneath them, and frequently use a condescending tone with associates. This is a sure way to earn a reputation as a problematic employee. New hires should be gracious and respectful of others rather than falling into the arrogance trap.

Unreceptive to feedback/unwilling to take responsibility for mistakes. Many students have trouble accepting construc- tive criticism, viewing it as a personal attack rather than a strategy for improve- ment. Because new accounting hires can expect frequent performance evaluations, it is important that they view these as well- meaning and constructive rather than as

denigrating. At the same time, it is impor- tant to take responsibility for mistakes— admit errors and correct them, rather than blaming others.

Lack of leadership or client service abil- ities. While climbing the career ladder in accounting, employees will be increasing- ly called upon to lead and supervise oth- ers and to represent the firm in interaction with client personnel. The ability to suc- cessfully handle these added responsibili- ties is one of the keys to continued pro- fessional growth. These types of skills are less often the result of study or training than they are the byproduct of confidence in one’s abilities and observations of the leadership and interactive styles of others in a firm.

Other. There are a number of other mis- takes people often make during the first two years of employment, including failing to foster professional relationships, an inabil- ity to see the big picture (too focused on details), and failing to distinguish oneself (failing to stand out in terms of performance).

Put Your Best Foot Forward In today’s economy especially, there are

no entitlements. Employees will be evaluat- ed on their most recent performance and con- tributions, not the distant past. The phrase “What have you done for me lately?” is one that should always be kept in mind. New hires who were heavily recruited after grad- uation must continue to prove themselves after starting a job and throughout their career. As the results of this study show, new hires should show initiative, be team play- ers, have a good attitude, and possess a great work ethic. They should also avoid inferior performance, unprofessional behavior, dys- functional teamwork, and a negative persona.

An awareness of the character traits to be emulated and avoided in the work- place should prove helpful as employees enter the early, formative stage of their accounting careers. ❑

Susan H. Ivancevich, PhD, and Daniel M. Ivancevich, PhD, are both Dixon Hughes Faculty Fellows, and Richard Roscher, CPA, is an assistant professor, all in the department of accountancy and business law at the Cameron School of Business, University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Worst Practice Number

Poor work ethic/poor-quality work 11

Unprofessional behavior 11

Not a team player/shirking responsibilities 10

Having a negative attitude 8

Unwilling/unable to learn new things 5

Lack of commitment 5

Poor communication skills 5

Arriving late to work or meetings 5

Acting arrogantly 4

Unreceptive to feedback/unwilling to take responsibility for mistakes 4

Lack of leadership or client service abilities 3

Failure to foster professional relationships 1

Failure to see the big picture 1

Failure to distinguish oneself 1

EXHIBIT 3 Worst Practices During the First Two Years of Employment

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An employee who cannot or will

not learn new things is likely to

have a short career.

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