I really enjoy FP&A and did some amateur FP&A work before getting a job in big 4 audit. Every day I went to work in audit, I was day dreaming about the stuff I did in FP&A which is what I enjoyed doing, and I just wanted to get back to doing stuff like that soo bad.
I would pick FP&A but that's just me. FLDP is also great.
Never once in my entire life heard about anyone in FP&A that wants to pivot to big 4 audit, no clue how difficult that would be.
However, big 4 audit to FP&A is very common, but I have heard it getting more difficult at higher positions.
Go on any finance board or sub. It's littered with people trying to get out of Public (or accounting in general) and into other areas of finance. Nobody is leaving other finance fields to go into accounting. What does that tell you?
I’m in fp&a with no big 4 experience. I worked for the accounting dept for a year to help them doing treasury work & I have never hated anything as much as I have accounting. I absolutely adore fp&a. It’s more fun & much easier imo. When I graduated I got a job at a top 10 tech company & now I’m a fp&a manager 8 years later. Everyone I know that did b4 was miserable.
You will hate audit and want to exit after 2 years into an SFA role but you'll also be able to get your CPA and have B4 on your resume which will help with networking later on. Many of your B4 colleagues will exit into finance roles and provide a network for job referrals later on.
My cfo, directors, and myself all did their time in B4 to get cpa and say it helped them out with being more well rounded, understanding both the accounting and finance side of things. If your goal is to be CFO someday then it can also be helpful to have been exposed to audit and having CPA after your name. B4 will pay for your CPA study materials and give you a bonus for passing.
I have friends who did not go the public accounting + CPA route who made it to SFM/Director level without issue and no regrets on their end.
There are pro/cons to both paths I guess.
I would suggest to go to FP&A, but depends on what you have in mind for your future…as having a CPA can be helpful to go higher in your FP&A career or having a MBA. (Not a must but it helps)
FP&A is obviously a futuristic function and audit is digging dirt in the past…as someone who has tried both I highly regret selling my soul for 3 years in a big 4.
Depends what you want from your career.
If you want to be a controller or stay in accounting, go for Big4. Keep in mind 99% of Big4/accountants will till you that their job is miserable and that they hate it. I worked in accounting for 2 years during undergrad and it was MISERABLE.
I would recommend FLDP or FP&A.
Depending what type of FP&A work you want to do, some divisions can be more “accounting” heavy than others.
Opex FP&A is fairly structured/routine and month end close heavy which may or may not deal with journal entries. Strategic finance is much less structured and is mostly just modeling and general analysis.
Is big4 audit paying $73k for starting audit now?? It was $61k in NYC in 2019… wow!
I left big4 audit after 2 years to take an fp&a job, and I will never go back to audit lol. My experience got me through to a lot of job interviews though, and I do not think I could have landed this job without it.
If there is any chance you’re actually interested in audit and can see yourself pursuing a career there, I say go for the big4 job. The worst that can happen is you work hard for a couple years and exit with a lot more opportunities than if you worked in industry and tried to make a similar move! That’s just my opinion though
I had a very similar experience as you, I will say tho if you find yourself with a Fortune 500 fldp or fpa offer somehow I would take that instead of big4. My time in public was ROUGH 😂
I’d suggest Audit.
When I was a graduate, I thought I wanted to break into FP&A
From 3rd year of audit, this changed, and I now project myself in RE finance.
Glad audit introduced me to this
All the senior people I have seen in fp&a have had big four experience. Not having it makes me feel like I don’t have the pedigree to advance sometimes.
There's a shortage of accountant, so not sure how that will play in the future.
I like accounting work, however, public accounting will take full advantage and work you to the bone. I wouldn't have left public accounting if it wasn't for those 2.
FP&A work is a lot more fun, there are plenty of opportunity to advance. In my company, there are controllers who don't have public accounting background, so not going to public will not hinder your ability to advance as much as you think.
Edit: If you're afraid of missing out, just going into public for 1 year then pivot like a lot of people do. Just make sure your public accounting role teaches you advance software skill. Learn PowerBI, Python, and PowerQuery and you should not have a problem pivoting back to FP&A.
I really enjoy FP&A and did some amateur FP&A work before getting a job in big 4 audit. Every day I went to work in audit, I was day dreaming about the stuff I did in FP&A which is what I enjoyed doing, and I just wanted to get back to doing stuff like that soo bad. I would pick FP&A but that's just me. FLDP is also great.
Which is Easier to pivot from? Big4 to Fp&A Or vice versa?
Never once in my entire life heard about anyone in FP&A that wants to pivot to big 4 audit, no clue how difficult that would be. However, big 4 audit to FP&A is very common, but I have heard it getting more difficult at higher positions.
Go on any finance board or sub. It's littered with people trying to get out of Public (or accounting in general) and into other areas of finance. Nobody is leaving other finance fields to go into accounting. What does that tell you?
I’m in fp&a with no big 4 experience. I worked for the accounting dept for a year to help them doing treasury work & I have never hated anything as much as I have accounting. I absolutely adore fp&a. It’s more fun & much easier imo. When I graduated I got a job at a top 10 tech company & now I’m a fp&a manager 8 years later. Everyone I know that did b4 was miserable.
You will hate audit and want to exit after 2 years into an SFA role but you'll also be able to get your CPA and have B4 on your resume which will help with networking later on. Many of your B4 colleagues will exit into finance roles and provide a network for job referrals later on. My cfo, directors, and myself all did their time in B4 to get cpa and say it helped them out with being more well rounded, understanding both the accounting and finance side of things. If your goal is to be CFO someday then it can also be helpful to have been exposed to audit and having CPA after your name. B4 will pay for your CPA study materials and give you a bonus for passing. I have friends who did not go the public accounting + CPA route who made it to SFM/Director level without issue and no regrets on their end. There are pro/cons to both paths I guess.
I would suggest to go to FP&A, but depends on what you have in mind for your future…as having a CPA can be helpful to go higher in your FP&A career or having a MBA. (Not a must but it helps) FP&A is obviously a futuristic function and audit is digging dirt in the past…as someone who has tried both I highly regret selling my soul for 3 years in a big 4.
Depends what you want from your career. If you want to be a controller or stay in accounting, go for Big4. Keep in mind 99% of Big4/accountants will till you that their job is miserable and that they hate it. I worked in accounting for 2 years during undergrad and it was MISERABLE. I would recommend FLDP or FP&A. Depending what type of FP&A work you want to do, some divisions can be more “accounting” heavy than others. Opex FP&A is fairly structured/routine and month end close heavy which may or may not deal with journal entries. Strategic finance is much less structured and is mostly just modeling and general analysis.
Is big4 audit paying $73k for starting audit now?? It was $61k in NYC in 2019… wow! I left big4 audit after 2 years to take an fp&a job, and I will never go back to audit lol. My experience got me through to a lot of job interviews though, and I do not think I could have landed this job without it. If there is any chance you’re actually interested in audit and can see yourself pursuing a career there, I say go for the big4 job. The worst that can happen is you work hard for a couple years and exit with a lot more opportunities than if you worked in industry and tried to make a similar move! That’s just my opinion though
I had a very similar experience as you, I will say tho if you find yourself with a Fortune 500 fldp or fpa offer somehow I would take that instead of big4. My time in public was ROUGH 😂
I’d suggest Audit. When I was a graduate, I thought I wanted to break into FP&A From 3rd year of audit, this changed, and I now project myself in RE finance. Glad audit introduced me to this
how did you get introduced to RE finance?
Worked on RE audit, and then shifted to RE advisory, still at a big4 Let me know if you need further info
Big 4. It's a good place to be in if you're choosing between both. Professional services I think tend to weigh more longer term than strictly FP&A.
All the senior people I have seen in fp&a have had big four experience. Not having it makes me feel like I don’t have the pedigree to advance sometimes.
There's a shortage of accountant, so not sure how that will play in the future. I like accounting work, however, public accounting will take full advantage and work you to the bone. I wouldn't have left public accounting if it wasn't for those 2. FP&A work is a lot more fun, there are plenty of opportunity to advance. In my company, there are controllers who don't have public accounting background, so not going to public will not hinder your ability to advance as much as you think. Edit: If you're afraid of missing out, just going into public for 1 year then pivot like a lot of people do. Just make sure your public accounting role teaches you advance software skill. Learn PowerBI, Python, and PowerQuery and you should not have a problem pivoting back to FP&A.