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giving thanks

In the spirit of thanksgiving, I'd like to drink the kool-aid a bit and note the perks of working at a big 4 firm, perks that you can't get at most other companies -

a) Flexibility - If i wanted to, I could work from home unless i had a scheduled meeting somewhere or a commitment to be at a client. If i wanted to, i could "work" remotely, but be out at the golf course instead (Thank you, almighty blackberry). Granted, you won't get this your first few years at the firms, and you still need to put in the work (late nights to make up for the amount of time you slacked off), but a lot of ex-coworkers have expressed this lack of flexibility as the biggest intangible they miss.
b) Recruiting - Yea, you can do this at every company. But because of the volume of college students we hire yearly (full time and internships), the opportunity to go back to college and participate in full fledged recruiting activities is something you have to appreciate. Looking at the changes in your alma mater every year, eating out at your favorite cafes in college on the Company's dime, the nostalgia that overwhelms you overtime you go back, good times.
c) Peers - Your peers are more fun your first few years at the firm. Then they all leave, and you are stuck with the people who are way more serious about this job. But think of the number of people starting right out of college, and working together, and b*tching together. Good times.
d) Mileage, cellphone reimbursement - Drive a 120 mile roundtrip, collect $60 for the day. Granted, you are running up the miles on your car, but it's pretty sweet to never care about gas money. And with the amount of data we use up with our blackberries, with bills averaging about a $100, that's another bill we don't have to worry about.

I'm sure there's more, but these are the only ones i can think of right now.
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Comments

seth439 said…
Kind of a random comment, but what is your take on staff/seniors/managers who smoke at a client (of course outside). We have a staff acct here who takes constant smoke breaks, and when said staff comes back in, the whole room smells. I feel it is very unprofessional. What is your take (or the take of the big 4) on this?
December 6, 2010 at 2:31 PM
Anonymous said…
Its only a big deal if the person is a chain smoker. I do not think a manager or above would do this, but anyone below that it is fine as long as it is not an hourly routine. If anything you need to tell the person that the smell is annoying and is distracting, so they either need to stop smoking so often, or learn to disguise the scent better.
December 6, 2010 at 6:45 PM
Anonymous said…
Mileage reimbursement at $0.50/mile is pretty standard. Even my penny pinching government employer gives it. However, I will only drive rental cars when on business. Your personal car insurance is supposed to cover you while on business. Make sure you are actually covered. I am not taking the risk in case some yahoo wants to sue me and my employer over an accident. Guaranteed, I end up being stuck in the middle and get sued by the employer on top of it. I have way too many non-exempt assets to protect. I don't need the extra headache over a few pennies.
December 7, 2010 at 7:40 PM
NerdyMe said…
I don't see how mileage reimbursement becomes an incentive for any kind of job. I get milage remibursement too for my job. But I don't enjoy driving so much for the sake of working. If you get a job within 5 miles of work that requires no travel to clients, it is a much better deal for your car and your time, and your life than doing audit for a big 4 and get mileage remibursement. There can be many good things working for big 4, but mileage reimbursement is definitely not it.... Are you really an auditor? You don't seem to have the analytical mind that I would expect from an auditor in a big 4....
January 4, 2011 at 1:53 PM
Anonymous said…
China- mileage reimbursement isn't the only side of that being a pro to working in public accounting. Travel time is chargeable time, so time spent behind the wheel counts toward your charge budget which is the key part here. Plus, especially when you are a staff/senior, inventory observations can take a full day but only 2-3 hours of that is spent counting. The rest is spent getting paid to drive your car which, for the most part, is far less stressful than being out at a client on an audit.

Mileage reimbursement is one thing I miss about public accounting.
January 6, 2011 at 2:21 PM
Anonymous said…
China - You must be an idiot. It saddens me that you are interested in public accounting.
January 10, 2011 at 12:16 PM
Anonymous said…
I'm a new graduate starting in a big 4 soon, just wondering how easy or hard is it to transfer offices in Big4 and also to transfer departments (such as audit or consulting -> M&A or strategy consulting?)

Thanks
January 16, 2011 at 12:51 AM
Anonymous said…
i rather spend more time travelling to clients'places than working haha. it's getting paid for travelling, so why not. i wouldnt mind taking public transport too :)

i realised that the best part of audit is starting off at the same rank with many people of the same age and mindsets. you make many new FRIENDS who are not just colleagues. but it's a sad place bcoz people keep quitting and it's demoralising.
February 2, 2011 at 10:45 PM
Anonymous said…
in regards to the smoking comment, i was on a smoking team once and it was the best team i have ever been on. i was the only non-smoker, but i tagged along and joined the group to go outside for 10 minutes every 3-4 hours. i loved taking a break from work and clearing my mind, it really felt like i was more focused when i would go back to work. it was amazing how a few breaks a day really helped my morale. we were working til midnight every night but i felt refreshed and focused. i am a big fan of smoking teammates, as long as i get to take a break too!
February 8, 2011 at 7:46 PM
Anonymous said…
how about some new post?....
March 14, 2011 at 11:34 PM
Anonymous said…
Shit son! You done get fired, yo? Where all them posts at? Yeee boyeee? lemme get some posts up in huurrrr. Chicka chicka hrrrnnnnn!
March 19, 2011 at 4:47 PM
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