I was able to get in touch with 3 CPAs. I gave each one of them 5 open-ended questions. I informed them of the nature of my study beforehand.

The first person I interviewed is a Tax Accountant for Deloitte, which is a BPO company that covers accounting practice for companies in the US. The second person I interviewed is a Finance Manager for Ayala Education, a local company that provides education and training for the youth. The third person I interviewed is a freelance CPA. She has clients all over the Metro and she performs various accounting-related tasks for them. All three of them are CPAs and have less than 10 years of accounting experience.

What’s it like being a CPA?

Tax Accountant: Being a CPA is difficult. You have to remember a lot of rules and practices. However, with the help of the internet, all that information is readily accessible. The hardest part, I guess, is becoming a CPA. The studying and reviewing is very stressful.

Finance Manager: I find the job of a CPA to be prestigious. No matter the industry, or how the economy is doing, accountants will always be in demand. Not everyone can be a CPA. It takes a lot of hard work and perseverance. Being a CPA is something to be proud of.

Freelancer: Being a CPA is tough! I remember when I was starting out. It took me 3 attempts to get my license. But it’s all worth it. I chose not to be employed by a company because I want to be my own boss. There’s a lot of opportunity for CPAs in the Philippines and abroad. 

What are the skills and talents required for this job?

Tax Accountant: You need to be good in comprehension. You don’t really need to be good in Math, since you’ll be using a calculator, anyway. Also, the operations are mostly basic. The important skill is comprehension and logic. You have to be able to look at something and know what’s wrong with it AND how to fix it.

Finance Manager: You have to be good at diagnosing and explaining your diagnosis. I think of CPAs as doctors, but for numbers. When you’re given a report, you need to be good at paying close attention to details. When it comes to handling a company’s money, there’s a lot at stake. You also need to be good at handling stress and pressure.

Freelancer: You have to be good at communicating with people. Right now I have 8 active clients, and 14 dormant ones. I need to know how to explain things to them in a not-so-technical manner. You have to know your stuff, so that means you need to have a good working memory. You also need to organized and logical, aside from being able to communicate properly.

What do you do every day?

Tax Accountant: Each day is different from the last, so I don’t exactly stick to a daily schedule. Instead, we go by periods. One period lasts 3 months, and periods are somewhat similar to each other. When we are given a project by our client abroad, we start by discussing the requirements as a team. We talk about the deliverables and deadlines. Then, we analyze their paperwork. We go through their financial documents – this can be receipts, journal entries, what have you. This is the boring part, but you have to be alert for details. I then create a spreadsheet. Knowledge in Excel is also important when you’re a CPA. We also work with SAP, which is a software for accounting. To be a CPA, you also have to knowledgeable in using accounting software. You’ll be using it every day.

Finance Manager: It depends. Usually I talk to the heads of different departments. We could be negotiating budgets, discussing their last month’s spending, or verifying major purchases. I’m also somewhat in charge of purchasing and lending. I talk to suppliers all the time. I make sure that the company is spending the right amount of money. This means I need to speak with a lot of people, both inside and outside the company. I do that from the office, though, so I don’t physically go places – I call them up. When you’ve been working for over 5 years, you start to get the hang of the operations. It’s the communication with other people that’s always changing – and challenging.

Freelancer: It depends. I usually start off the week by planning what I’ll be doing for each day. It varies greatly, especially if you work freelance full time. I always have to be communicating with my clients, of course. I also do a lot of reading. The reading is mostly for reviewing the financial documents of my clients. I also do a lot of reviewing when it comes to laws. That’s because my clients have different needs and problems. I need to be an expert in tax, audit, and management accounting services, all at the same time – and that’s just for three clients!

What companies have you worked for?

Tax Accountant: I’ve worked for SGV and Deloitte. In SGV, the salary was low, but the company is well known. I needed the experience right after graduation. Contrary to what everyone says, being a fresh CPA isn’t exactly financially rewarding. There are approximately 8,000 new CPAs every year. Although we’re in demand, the starting salary of CPAs is still low. But the growth rate is high, as long as you know what you’re looking for and where to go. I spent just 2 years in SGV, just to get the experience. I then moved to Deloitte for more than double the salary.

Finance Manager: Aside from Ayala Education, I’ve been employed by 4 other companies. That’s Villarica Pawnshop, BPI, KPMG, and Manabat Sanagustin. I spent a year in Villarica, working as an Accounting Clerk. I spent a year and a half with BPI as a Finance Supervisor. In KPMG, I was there for a year. In Manabat Sanagustin, I spent almost two years there. I kept shifting companies because I wanted to get a lot of experience right away in different core accounting functions. I was able to work in tax, financial management, payroll, and auditing, all under 7 years. As a CPA, there are thousands of things you can be doing after getting your license. It all depends on your current position. You have to be skilled and flexible.

Freelancer: Before freelancing, I was employed by Punongbayan & Araullo for four years. I left the company because I felt that the exposure and experience I got was enough to start working on my own. I always wanted to be my own boss. That’s why I became a freelancer in the first place. After getting your license, though, you still need to work for a company – even for a little while – just to understand the ins and outs of the industry.

What is the most challenging part of being a CPA?

Tax Accountant: The hardest part is passing the CPA board exam! After you do that, everything will be a hundred times easier.

Finance Manager: For me, being versatile is challenging. As the only finance manager in Ayala Education, people come to me for all sorts of advice. They assume that since I’m a CPA, I should know about anything that’s money-related. Most of the time, they’re right. As a CPA, I should know these things. It’s just difficult to remember and keep track of all the details and rules. Also, the accounting principles are always changing. Adapting and changing all your current papers to reflect the new principles can be exhausting.

Freelancer: The most challenging part of being a CPA is passing the exam! Even my friends and former colleagues think so too. After passing the exam, everything gets easier and more fun. You just have to get past that hurdle.