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Best Place to Work Bupkis

Posted on by Caleb Newquist

Last week we went through the painful ritual of listing out the accounting firms blessed with a spot on Fortune’s 100 Best Places to Work. All the usual suspects made an appearance but ultimately a regional firm, Plante & Moran, took the highest spot among accounting firms (but they didn’t get to ring the closing bell, did they?).

None of this is of interest to you and frankly we’ve had about all we can stand when it comes to these lists but Adrienne pointed us to this post by Laura Vanderkam that takes the debunking to an intricate level, starting with something that we all know, that most of these lists are opted into by the companies HR or Marketing Departments (emphasis ours):

To be eligible for a list, you have to fill out whatever paperwork the tabulators require […] This means that not only do you have to be a great place to work, you have to be a company where management cares about being listed in magazines as a great place to work. Only 311 organizations bothered this year, out of thousands of employers in the US. So if you went through the whole process, your odds were pretty good. But that doesn’t means that the 311 employers that did try are better than the thousands that didn’t.

Our resident math genius is on vacay but if you do some rough calcs, your chances are, what, 1 in 3? Decent odds. Then, comes the strange phenomenon of where these companies fall and why:

[I]t’s strange that a magazine with such great reporters as Fortune relies on such a flimsy methodology for creating their rankings. If you believe this list, then Americans prefer to work at Nugget Market (a 9-store supermarket chain) than at McKinsey, at Google vs. Facebook even though some headline-making defections would point otherwise, and we should want to work at Aeropostale because, as one young employee put it “Where else can you talk to the boss over pizza?” (Um, where can’t you?)

The Trouble With “Best Places To Work” Lists [BNet]

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Can a Future Big 4 Associate Expect a Salary Adjustment When He Starts Work?

Welcome to the aren’t-you-glad-healthcare-reform-is-back-in-the-news? edition of Accounting Career Emergencies. In today’s edition, should an incoming associate expect a salary adjustment on day one or they doomed to a pittance?

Find yourself in a jam at work? Do you have eight hours to spare and aren’t sure how to best spend this rare free time? Wondering what you should get Sharon Allen for a retirement gift? Email us at [email protected] and we’ll make sure you stay away from vacuum cleaners.

Returning to our Big 4 in waiting:

Can I expect to have my salary adjusted to market when I start employment? I will be starting in 2011. Reading through some of the articles and comments on here, it seems that new hires easily start with a salary above $50K. I received three offers from three Big 4 firms but all offered salaries were relatively far from $50K.

Each firm was within 1K-1.5K range from each other though. I know that starting salaries have even decreased in my area overall. I am not enjoying the thought of making less than what these firms have proven to have the potential to offer, or even making less than what another firm had to offer (although I knew that was the outcome by choosing this firm). I personally do not think it is worth asking for a raise or a salary adjustment since I feel that would only hurt my future annual raises. Should I just wait it out and see?

[Doubled over, catching breath, holding up hand with ‘I need a minute’]

Oh, dear. We had to take a break for a second, in fact our face hurts from laughing uncontrollably. Sorry about that.

Look friend, we don’t mean to make light of your question but a reality check is necessary here. There is virtually no chance that your firm will adjust to your salary when you start. You write, “I am not enjoying the thought of making less than what these firms have proven to have the potential to offer, or even making less than what another firm had to offer (although I knew that was the outcome by choosing this firm).”

We find this confusing for a couple of reasons – 1) obviously the Big 4 have “proven to have the potential” to pay more than $50k. It just happens this is occurring in a place where you don’t currently reside. If you did reside in one these places, your starting salary would eclipse the magical $50k. Were you expecting a big city salary for your mid-sized city lifestyle? 2) if you don’t like the idea of earning less money, why did you go with the firm that offered you less money? This simply doesn’t compute.

If making $50,000 is such a sticking point for you, move to a city with a higher cost of living so that you can eclipse the magic number you so desperately desire. If that’s not reasonable, then the best you can hope for is a pleasant surprise like PwC gave its recently hired peeps ($500 bonus for those hired post-June 30, 2010).

This may sound crazy but don’t get too caught up in what your salary is at the beginning of your career. So, to answer your question – sit tight and start your career. It’s a little early to be bitching about being underpaid when you haven’t billed a single hour.

Job of the Day: Bloomberg Needs a Technical Revenue Analyst

Bloomberg is looking for an experienced accountant to join its Revenue Operations Team in a Technical Revenue Analyst role.

Key responsibilities include technical reporting for the closing process, implementing procedural and assisting with external audits.

Candidates need 3 to 5 years experience, CPA is a plus and knowledge of SQL server required.


Company: Bloomberg

Title: Technical Revenue Analyst

Location: New York, NY

Description: This position is responsible for playing a contributing role in all aspects required of the Revenue Operations Team. Key responsibilities include technical reporting for the month close process, ad hoc analysis involving complex system data pulls incorporating analytical insight, automating reporting capabilities, revenue and variance analysis, implementing procedural and operational controls, assisting with the interim and annual external financial audits as needed, and responding to sales/senior management requests.

Responsibilities: Accounting, Reporting & Internal Controls Expertise – Demonstrates appropriate understanding / working knowledge of accounting principles and internal controls, and applies them (as required for the position held) to provide objective, timely, and accurate financial information to meet / exceed regulatory and legislative requirements and to help drive business results; Works to ensure compliance of all financial requirements and reporting are met for all products, countries and policies; Ability to document, control, review, and improve policy and procedures as well as departmental tasks to enhance for efficiency and effectiveness.

Financial Analytics Expertise – Demonstrates insightful use of financial analysis techniques, tools, and concepts, to provide practical counsel to business area partners and management in order to drive business results.

Process & Systems Expertise – Understands and facilitates the integration of business processes, people, and relevant technology, in order to identify, configure, and communicate useful information, and to provide practical business leadership to drive business decision making across the company; Identifies non-value added processes within the department and seeks solutions; Effectively makes decisions on more complex issues, giving consideration to relevant costs, benefits and risks; Demonstrates the initiative to drive change and influence others across the organization in support of the company’s goals and objectives; Ensures achievement of desired results by making appropriate recommendations and providing appropriate financial leadership through completion.

Qualifications/Skills: Bachelors in Business Administration (Finance, Accounting, Computer Programming); CPA a plus; 3 – 5 years experience with demonstrated performance assisting/supporting a department; Knowledge of SQL server (version 2000 or higher) required; Knowledge of procedural controls and data validation techniques required; Ability to determine technical requirements for a project given a business request required; Strong MS Excel skills required; SAP/Business Warehouse knowledge a plus; Financial reporting experience a plus; Financial modeling expertise a plus.

See the entire description over at the GC Career Center and visit the main page for all your job search needs.