Managing your career in a downturn

With the latest research from www.careersinaudit.com, the leading provider of jobs for auditors, revealing that just under half (41%) of accountants expect a recession this year and three-quarters of accountants (74%) want to move jobs in 2008, many accountants could be at sea about what choices to make in their career.

Many could worry such a downturn may mean redundancy for them or an unwelcome deceleration in career development. However, leading accountancy recruitment expert Max Williamson, Director of CareersinAudit.com, believes that there are steps you can take not only to avoid redundancy but crucially also to maintain your career development.

Max Williamson has devised seven career ideas for auditors worried about the recession:

1) If in doubt, opt for a big company

There is a general truth that larger companies are better insulated against recession. Although large companies hit the headlines with redundancy figures, these companies have continued to exist and grow by virtue of their ability to survive downturns. Neither BP nor Coca-Cola will disappear overnight, but smaller firms might.

2) Do nothing

Consider staying exactly where you are. Companies rarely get rid of their top employees and if you are in this safety zone then you probably have little to worry about.

3) Move to a market with better growth prospects

In Europe that means Greece or Russia. Greeceís growth is being fuelled by its success in positioning itself as the gateway for SE Europe and the appetite of Russiaís Oil & Gas industry for strong finance professionals is set to continue. Even better, native English speakers are valued at a premium and knowledge of local languages is not required.

4) Move to another department

Look at other departments within your firm that look set to grow. Moving from audit to a growing advisory function or from a stagnant division to one which is driving profits may be worth considering. In previous downturns, many auditors have moved to the insolvency department and then returned to audit once the climate improved.

5) Get involved in a major lengthy project

Get yourself stuck into a project which is likely to last for many months and which should be exempt from any redundancies.

6) Donít choose a risky industry sector

Certain industry sectors are at greater risk than others during a downturn. Housing and construction is an obvious case in point and weíre already seeing large building companies with hiring freezes, whilst at the same time making significant redundancies. If you do move, look for those with strong brand names in their field, a reputation for quality and excellent customer service.

7) Develop your education

If youíve always been keen to tackle an MBA, then this may also be the time to start filling out application forms. Hopefully your graduation will tie in perfectly with an upturn in the economy and see you well-equipped to take full advantage. But be warned, timing is crucial here and difficult to predict. In the last downturn, even many INSEAD graduates found themselves struggling to find a suitable role.

Max Williamson, Director of CareersinAudit.com adds ìWhether youíre worried about your career prospects or not, if thereís one thing every auditor should be doing, is strengthening their professional network.

ìWith companies looking to reduce costs in all departments, hiring managers and heads of department will examine their networks and the networks of other friends and colleagues in an attempt to avoid costly recruitment fees. Itís also important to maintain a good online profile through specialist job boards or networking tools such as Linkedin and xingî