Top Tips for Big 4 Professionals Seeking to Move

Ambition Hong Kong recently held its Finance & Accounting career event on the topic of 'What's Next After the Big 4?'. We were honoured to have Pierre Sze, Corporate Finance & IR Director at SkyOcean International, to speak at our event as a guest speaker.

In front of a full house of Big 4 professionals, Pierre shared his invaluable past experiences and challenges on his transition from a Big 4 firm to going in-house in finance. The audience were fully engaged in an interactive and insightful discussion on the potential career path after the Big 4.

Below is a summary of the top tips for Big 4 professionals who are seeking to move into the commercial industry:

The Big 4 is a great place to start your finance and accounting career. Not only do you receive free training and support on obtaining your CPA qualification, you also get name recognition and the valuable time and project management skills for your future career
There is no 'best' time to leave the Big 4. Seize the opportunity when it comes as it will become more difficult when you advance your career
Plant your seed and something will grow out of it! Build a good relationship with your manager, your colleagues, and your clients. You'll be surprised how it might open new doors of opportunities
Learn how to talk about your achievement with specific examples to set yourself apart from your peers
Focus on the areas that you are strongest at; over time you will become an expert at it. Trying to be great at every aspect could be spreading yourself thin and keeping you from reaching your full potential in your strongest areas
Don’t put yourself into pressure to make the 'right' career moves. There are no right or wrong career moves. Whatever decision you make, the most important thing is that you make the most of it and continue to create opportunities for yourself

Many thanks to Pierre and to all those who attended and if you are interested in attending our future Ambition events please do get in touch!