CPD for new accountants: the learning doesn’t stop
It’s easy to think that once your final assessment for your professional qualification is complete, you’ll never have to study or enter a classroom again. For accountants though, especially those […]
It’s easy to think that once your final assessment for your professional qualification is complete, you’ll never have to study or enter a classroom again. For accountants though, especially those who have aspirations for high-earning jobs, there is still plenty more learning to come.
Continuing Professional Development is just as important for your future career potential as passing those exams: to ensure that you learn new skills for roles which come with more responsibility, and to stay up to date with changing economic and social circumstances.
Each of the accountancy professional bodies actually require their members to undertake and record CPD to prove their ongoing commitment to advancing their knowledge, while many employers strongly encourage it as well.
Becoming a supervisor
Upon qualification, the first step for many accountants is to take up or extend their supervisory responsibilities, which can often be more complex than it seems on the surface. As well as the accounting side, there’s man-management responsibility, business strategy, office “politics” and all manner of other task that you’ll need to be able to handle, which we can’t all be naturals at.
Management skills
Perhaps the most important part of becoming a supervisor or manager is analysing and getting to know what your personal behavioural style is, and how to use it effectively. Self-awareness, including understanding what your strengths and weaknesses are, is vital if you’re going to get the most out of your team.
Our course covers all of this, as well as looking at individual styles and communication habits, in order to develop an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses associated with each. Plus we cover leadership and the techniques and skills needed to lead, engage and inspire your team.
All sound like too much? Don’t panic. No-one’s expecting you to know everything straight away – that’s why they call it continuing professional development. And the good thing about it is you can now set your own path – learn what you feel you need to and work on your own weaknesses while building on your strengths.
If you’d like to find out more about our CPD course – specifically aimed at accountants moving into supervisory positions – you can read more about it here. Your professional body will also have an array of CPD opportunities, and your employer should have something in place with regards to ongoing training as well.
With us or elsewhere, we wish you all the best in your own ongoing professional development.
