How easy is moving careers?
#1
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Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 15
How easy is moving careers?
Hello fellow expats
I have only recently moved to Melbourne and kind of in dilemma.
I am an ACCA qualified accountant, finding very difficult to find a job as a management accountant despite having worked for the NHS for almost 6 years.
Well to avoid drying my bank accounts off, I am taking a job in a contact centre for a energy billing department. The money aint good but atleast keeps my expenses covered.
So coming to my query, how easy it is to move between careers, like I would definitely want to move back to finance & accounting field? Is it frowned upon here, or just like the UK, employers look for professionals with varied experience (yes that btw does mean you have to have local experience irrespective of the field). Would it look bad on my resume if they see contact centre experience despite ACCA? Also how easy it is to move between departments, for e.g. I apply for a job in the same company in their accounts department in near future?
Sorry fellow expats, there are quite a few questions that I have asked, just want to make sure I am doing the right thing.
Cheers
Zaheer
I have only recently moved to Melbourne and kind of in dilemma.
I am an ACCA qualified accountant, finding very difficult to find a job as a management accountant despite having worked for the NHS for almost 6 years.
Well to avoid drying my bank accounts off, I am taking a job in a contact centre for a energy billing department. The money aint good but atleast keeps my expenses covered.
So coming to my query, how easy it is to move between careers, like I would definitely want to move back to finance & accounting field? Is it frowned upon here, or just like the UK, employers look for professionals with varied experience (yes that btw does mean you have to have local experience irrespective of the field). Would it look bad on my resume if they see contact centre experience despite ACCA? Also how easy it is to move between departments, for e.g. I apply for a job in the same company in their accounts department in near future?
Sorry fellow expats, there are quite a few questions that I have asked, just want to make sure I am doing the right thing.
Cheers
Zaheer
#2
Re: How easy is moving careers?
Operational experience has its value for accountants, but it depends what you do and contact centre work might not exactly enhance your CV no.
But you have to live, so if funds are drying up then yes I would take the job too and maybe if you can get into the finance department of this company in due course it will ease your path back onto the accounting one.
Market is very tough here for accountants at the moment, far more accountants than there are jobs.
But you have to live, so if funds are drying up then yes I would take the job too and maybe if you can get into the finance department of this company in due course it will ease your path back onto the accounting one.
Market is very tough here for accountants at the moment, far more accountants than there are jobs.
#3
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Joined: Feb 2013
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Re: How easy is moving careers?
Hello Bermudashorts.
Its always nice to hear from you. Hope alls well with you. So I did finally take the plunge and I am here in Melbourne from past 3 weeks.
Well the contact centre is basically taking calls for energy company's billing queries. So not necessarily accounting, but closely related to invoicing or maybe collections/AR role. This was the whole reason why I am going for this job and not the other 2, since they were hardcore selling contact centres.
The market is definitely tough, but I what I fail to understand is, I am an ACCA with six years plus experience with NHS, I am sure I am good enough to join management accountant or even AR/AP roles for that matter. Its a shame that I am not even getting calls for that. Just crazy
Its always nice to hear from you. Hope alls well with you. So I did finally take the plunge and I am here in Melbourne from past 3 weeks.
Well the contact centre is basically taking calls for energy company's billing queries. So not necessarily accounting, but closely related to invoicing or maybe collections/AR role. This was the whole reason why I am going for this job and not the other 2, since they were hardcore selling contact centres.
The market is definitely tough, but I what I fail to understand is, I am an ACCA with six years plus experience with NHS, I am sure I am good enough to join management accountant or even AR/AP roles for that matter. Its a shame that I am not even getting calls for that. Just crazy
#4
Re: How easy is moving careers?
The market is definitely tough, but I what I fail to understand is, I am an ACCA with six years plus experience with NHS, I am sure I am good enough to join management accountant or even AR/AP roles for that matter. Its a shame that I am not even getting calls for that. Just crazy
#5
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Re: How easy is moving careers?
oh yeah I get it. Infact I was talking to someone at Hays and she's from UK as well, and then she recalled her experience of settling in and how the guys here look for local experience. So I agree with you the job market is very tough, I just dont get my head around how people get local experience when everyone is looking for their first job You are always helpful bermudashorts, so nothing taken personally
#6
Re: How easy is moving careers?
oh yeah I get it. Infact I was talking to someone at Hays and she's from UK as well, and then she recalled her experience of settling in and how the guys here look for local experience. So I agree with you the job market is very tough, I just dont get my head around how people get local experience when everyone is looking for their first job You are always helpful bermudashorts, so nothing taken personally
#7
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Re: How easy is moving careers?
Trust me, I was under the same impression of leveraging UK experience. Especially having worked for the NHS, felt would be easier for people to relate to the size of the organisation and exposure I would have got, but so far it has not been less than a shocker.
Well I am trying my luck with one of the hospitals in Sydney, keeping fingers crossed
Well I am trying my luck with one of the hospitals in Sydney, keeping fingers crossed
#8
Re: How easy is moving careers?
The job market is shot at the moment. It hasn't much to do with local experience vs UK experience. Everyone I know that got a job in the last year 'knew someone'. I have been out of work for over 12 months - I'm a UK chartered accountant - my experience was in risk and internal audit. I tried to 'change' career into - well anything actually - accounting, training, finance, external audit. I had only about three interviews in 12 months - all of which came from contacts I know. I have 14 years experience - 7 of those in Australia. There was nothing wrong with me or my resume - it is just for every job there are over 100 candidates. The UK market is buzzing though.
To be honest = a call centre won't look good on resume if you are an accountant - I would totally lie on your resume and say you were doing accounting anyway. Call centre is kiss of death on a professional resume - it makes you look desperate and unsure about what you want or you don't take your career seriously. The only other thing is to try and apply for accounting jobs at whichever company the call centre is.
Good luck with it all.
To be honest = a call centre won't look good on resume if you are an accountant - I would totally lie on your resume and say you were doing accounting anyway. Call centre is kiss of death on a professional resume - it makes you look desperate and unsure about what you want or you don't take your career seriously. The only other thing is to try and apply for accounting jobs at whichever company the call centre is.
Good luck with it all.
#9
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Joined: Feb 2013
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Re: How easy is moving careers?
Hello Alex.
When I was reading your post, it looked as if it was me who had written it. So yeah, doing exactly the same thing, pruning my resume down to a level where I am now Ok to join at junior accountants position too. Its just such a difficult time to be in the market, and to think I was hoping I will leverage ACCA and NHS experience to get a better role here in Aus. But I am not going to regret my move and will hang in there. Yeah UK job market has started to pick up, atleast guys i know get calls for interviews, but I don't know if I am ready to go back already
Yes you are right about the call centre jobs, but some guys that I know have advised me otherwise and said all the employers know how the market is. So even if you have the contact centre experience and you tell them that you had to take it to meet your expenses, they are Ok with that. But I will keep that in mind, and probably do window dressing when I apply for accounting roles and yeah my first motto is to look if I can move quite quickly into this ompanies finance department.
Its just so frustrating sitting at home, and I really wish you luck in getting your next job soon.
When I was reading your post, it looked as if it was me who had written it. So yeah, doing exactly the same thing, pruning my resume down to a level where I am now Ok to join at junior accountants position too. Its just such a difficult time to be in the market, and to think I was hoping I will leverage ACCA and NHS experience to get a better role here in Aus. But I am not going to regret my move and will hang in there. Yeah UK job market has started to pick up, atleast guys i know get calls for interviews, but I don't know if I am ready to go back already
Yes you are right about the call centre jobs, but some guys that I know have advised me otherwise and said all the employers know how the market is. So even if you have the contact centre experience and you tell them that you had to take it to meet your expenses, they are Ok with that. But I will keep that in mind, and probably do window dressing when I apply for accounting roles and yeah my first motto is to look if I can move quite quickly into this ompanies finance department.
Its just so frustrating sitting at home, and I really wish you luck in getting your next job soon.
#10
Re: How easy is moving careers?
I started looking for work back in the UK a month ago and in three weeks I got a job - paying as much as I was on before here. I am actually leaving next month. The way the recruiters treat you in the UK is so much better. I felt like I was talking to intelligent people again!
After 8 years I am ready to go back and really I don't have much choice. Its just a big move with kids and disrupting schooling. But overall I have had a good run here, it just ended in not such a great way.
It is just the job cycle - it will pick up again but it will take a couple of years - I still think Australia is headed for a recession. It will get much worse before it gets better.
Good luck.
After 8 years I am ready to go back and really I don't have much choice. Its just a big move with kids and disrupting schooling. But overall I have had a good run here, it just ended in not such a great way.
It is just the job cycle - it will pick up again but it will take a couple of years - I still think Australia is headed for a recession. It will get much worse before it gets better.
Good luck.
#11
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Re: How easy is moving careers?
Tell me about it. My boss still asks me why I decided to make the move when everything was working fine. But yeah, sometimes destiny does like to play games. I totally agree with you in regards to recruiters in the UK, like I was so pleased talking to this recruiter at Hays who had also moved from UK few years ago. And she can totally relate to what I was going through and it was just so much easier conversing with her, hope there are more like her in the market.
I can imagine the hassle of moving back to UK with school going kids, but I guess if you have the job sorted, everything else falls in place in no time.
You are maybe right about the recession in Australia, it has been insulated for far too long and time will come when people will start defaulting and banks going berserk. I just hope by then I have made enough savings to last the tidings.
Well, I am really happy for you and wish you all the best.
I can imagine the hassle of moving back to UK with school going kids, but I guess if you have the job sorted, everything else falls in place in no time.
You are maybe right about the recession in Australia, it has been insulated for far too long and time will come when people will start defaulting and banks going berserk. I just hope by then I have made enough savings to last the tidings.
Well, I am really happy for you and wish you all the best.