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69JULY
20
09 / THE CPA JOURNAL
By Susan H. Ivancevich,
Daniel M. Ivancevich, and
Richard Roscher
W
ith the economy facing a deep
recession and continuing job
losses, it is especially important
for employees to strengthen job security by
establishing a solid reputation at their work-
place. While seasoned employees are
aware of the requirements for profession-
al success, many new hires lack such
knowledge. Many accounting firms have
been forced to lay off staff in recent
months, so it is increasingly important to
work proactively to establish a reputation
as a hard-working, indispensable employ-
ee who provides value to the firm.
This article shares information gathered
from accounting and recruiting profes-
sionals to shed light on employer expec-
tations during an employee’s first two years
on the job. Accounting students, recent
graduates, and new hires will find this
advice useful when determining what
strategies will create a strong, positive rep-
utation at work.
The Survey
The authors surveyed 26 accounting and
human resource professionals from the south-
eastern United States to garner their opinions
regarding best and worst practices for new
hires during the first two years of employ-
ment. As illustrated in Exhibit 1, respondents
consisted primarily of professionals from
accounting firms. Most had upper-level expe-
rience in human resources, or as partners,
directors, or managers. Firm size was fairly
evenly split between smaller offices (
15
0 or
fewer employees) and larger offices (more
than 150 employees). Small, medium, and
large firms, as measured by revenues gener-
ated, were equally represented.
Best practices during the first two years
of employment. New hires should start
their careers on a positive note by striving
to accomplish as many of the items listed
in this section as possible. It is much eas-
ier to develop a good reputation at the onset
of one’s career, rather than trying to restore
a tarnished reputation later. Exhibit 2 sum-
marizes the best practices employees
should follow during their first two years
of employment.
Volunteer for new assignments. Employers
appreciate new hires who show initiative
and seek out new assignments and responsi-
bilities. If things are slow, an employee with
unassigned time should approach managers
in the office to see if there is anything she can
do to assist in the office. After finishing one
assignment, an employee should volunteer for
another. Doing so is likely to increase her
value in the office, and increase the likelihood
of her name coming to mind when sched-
ules are being prepared and assignments
awarded.
The First Two Years of Employment
R E S P O N S I B I L I T I E S & L E A D E R S H I P
p r o f e s s i o n a l d e v e l o p m e n t
Strategies and Pitfalls
15
JULY 2009 / THE CPA JOURNAL70
Be a team player. During the first two
years on the job, a new hire’s goal should
be to do whatever it takes to earn recog-
nition as a valuable member of the team.
Employees should not repeatedly ask to go
home early or complain about working late.
Instead, if the senior or other members of
the team stay late, newer employees should
offer to stay late as well. After establish-
ing a positive reputation, it becomes
much easier to manage one’s schedule and
balance work and personal life.
Show a desire to learn. This could include
reading the Wall Street Journal or trade jour-
nals in their clients’ industries, studying
new accounting standards, and asking rele-
vant questions about these readings as they
relate to job responsibilities. It is important
to be knowledgeable about clients and their
industries prior to starting a new engagement.
Display a positive attitude. Showing up
at work on time and having a great atti-
tude can do wonders for a career.
Employees known for having positive atti-
tudes are much more likely to be sought
after for assignments. New hires should try
to be optimistic and upbeat, even when
things are not going well. People are
instinctively drawn to others who have a
positive outlook on life.
Have a strong work ethic; go above and
beyond expectations. Employees should
demonstrate that they are willing to work
hard and go the extra mile for the organi-
zation. They should be willing to stay late
when needed and available to help out on
varying assignments. This strategy will
increase an employee’s knowledge base,
as well as his value to the firm.
Ask good questions. New hires should
ask questions when appropriate. Employers
expect to answer questions in the interest
of accuracy and efficiency after an employ-
ee makes every effort to complete an
assignment on her own but gets stuck. To
be respectful of a supervisor’s time,
employees should accumulate questions so
that several can be asked at once, instead
of interrupting several times.
Produce quality work; be committed to
excellence. It is important for employees
to take pride in their work. They should
spend time reviewing their work before
submitting it to make sure they accom-
plished what was asked; that the work is
clear, concise, and easy to review; and that
it supports the conclusions.
Display good communication skills;
interact well with clients. Employees
should communicate in a clear and timely
fashion with their supervisors and apprise
them of a project’s progress and any major
issues which may impact the work.
Assistance should be sought if needed. In
addition, employees should always treat
client personnel with respect. Requests
for documentation should be made cour-
teously and discussions should always be
professional.
Earn appropriate certifications. Many
promotions within an organization require
the completion of professional certification.
For example, many accounting firms will
not promote employees to the senior level
until they have passed the CPA exam.
Employees should try to earn certifications
as early as possible in their career, ideally
before starting work. It is much easier to pre-
pare for and complete certification exams
closer to graduation when the material is still
freshly learned and before facing the
demands of full-time employment.
Produce timely work. It is important to
produce high-quality work in a timely, effi-
cient manner. It may help, however, to add
a little cushion to the projected completion
time on assignments—it is always better
to turn something in early than to turn it
in later than expected.
Demonstrate leadership ability. The
ability to lead and teach others is a key
Organizational Type Respondents
Accounting Firm 20
Other (Industry, Government) 6
Position
Campus Recruiting/Human Resources 7
Partner, Director 7
Manager/Senior Manager 6
Senior Accountant 4
Other 2
Size of Office
51–150 employees 12
≥ 150 employees 11
Size of Firm (In Revenues)
≤ $750 million 6
$751 million–$2 billion 7
> $2 billion 9
EXHIBIT 1
Demographic Information
It is important to produce high-quality work
in a timely, efficient manner.
16
71JULY 2009 / THE CPA JOURNAL
trait. Employees cannot be effective lead-
ers without vision, patience, and good
communication skills. It is important to
show subordinates that they are valued
and to show superiors that they are
respected.
Establish good mentor–mentee relation-
ships. A great way to earn recognition as
a valuable member of an organization is to
serve as a mentor to junior staff. The abil-
ity to mold and grow new talent within a
firm is valued highly. Similarly, making a
strong connection with a well-respected,
higher level mentor is also important for
younger employees. This connection can
provide an individual with important guid-
ance throughout her career.
Other. A few other good traits to demon-
strate during a new hire’s first two years of
employment include the continued devel-
opment of technical skills, a willingness to
take appropriate risks, and creativity.
Common pitfalls during the first two
years of employment. The practices dis-
cussed below are to be avoided in the inter-
est of establishing a solid reputation early
on in an employee’s accounting career.
Exhibit 3 summarizes the worst practices
for employees to follow during their first
two years of employment.
Poor work ethic/poor-quality work. New
hires should avoid taking too many breaks,
performing personal tasks on company
time, turning in poor-quality work, or deliv-
ering an overall substandard performance.
Failure to pay attention to detail, failure
to complete work, and failure to follow
through with tasks can also saddle an
employee with an unfavorable reputation.
Careless errors in workpapers, correspon-
dence, and other documentation must be
avoided—correspondence should be proof-
read and workpapers carefully reviewed
prior to submission.
Unprofessional behavior. There are
many things that constitute unprofessional
behavior, including inappropriate con-
sumption of alcohol, flirting in the work-
place, making rude comments or telling
questionable jokes, speaking negatively
about other people or organizations, dis-
cussing confidential client information in
public places, falling asleep on the job,
missing deadlines, engaging in office pol-
itics or gossip, or speaking disrespectfully
to a client or coworker. These behaviors
should be avoided.
Not a team player/shirking responsibility.
No one enjoys working with a free-rider. It
is not pleasant for everyone else on a team
to carry the load of a person who chooses
to be lazy. Eventually, things catch up with
an underperformer and that person ends up
with neither a job nor a reference.
Having a negative attitude. Negative
people can poison a team or an organiza-
tion. People identified as overly negative
are more likely to have short careers with
a firm than positive people. A negative per-
spective reveals itself in both actions and
language. Employees should make a con-
scious effort to be upbeat in written and
verbal communications with others, as well
as react positively to the stresses of a
demanding job.
Unwilling/unable to learn new things.
Some students enter the accounting pro-
fession with the idea that they already
know all they need to know to be suc-
cessful. They feel that once they have
assimilated the material tested on the
CPA exam, they are fully prepared and
done learning. Nothing could be further
from the truth. College teaches a person
how to learn. Effective accountants con-
tinue to learn new things throughout their
careers.
An employee who cannot or will
not learn new things is likely to have a
short career.
Lack of commitment. If a firm feels that
an employee is not committed to the pro-
fession and to the job, he is a more likely
candidate for termination. Every organiza-
tion tries to retain talented people who are
committed to their careers. Many people
leave their first accounting job much too
early, before they have time to really eval-
uate the position and the opportunities it pre-
sents. Changing jobs too early results in lat-
eral movement. A graduate who is com-
mitted to his first job and stays at least five
years will reap significant rewards. Other
examples of lack of commitment include a
lack of career focus and a failure to seek or
earn professional certification.
Poor communication skills. Poor writ-
ing and speaking skills can be detrimental
to a career. Inadequate communication
skills also include things like asking
Number of
Best Practice Responses
Volunteer for new assignments 12
Be a team player 12
Show a desire to learn 12
Display a positive attitude 10
Have a strong work ethic; go above and beyond requirements 8
Ask good questions 7
Produce quality work; be committed to excellence 7
Display good communication skills; interact well with clients 4
Earn appropriate certifications 2
Produce timely work 2
Demonstrate leadership ability 2
Establish good mentor–mentee relationships 2
Learn the organization 1
Demonstrate technical skills 1
Take appropriate risks 1
Demonstrate creative ability 1
EXHIBIT 2
Best Practices During the First Two Years of Employment
17
repetitive questions or failing to ask appro-
priate questions. Employees who have dif-
ficulty speaking in public should join an
organization such as Toastmasters to work
on their public speaking skills. If writing
is a problem, it is a good idea to ask other
people to review and provide feedback on
drafts. One of the best ways to improve
writing skills is to practice. Reading pro-
fessional publications and office memo-
randa with the intent of becoming com-
fortable with the language of accounting is
also helpful.
Arriving late to work or meetings.
Arriving late to work or meetings can be
extremely frustrating to coworkers.
Employees with a habit of running late
may want to set their clocks and watches
ahead to provide a time cushion. It is
important to allow adequate time to trav-
el to work or to a client office, anticipat-
ing the possibility of traffic delays or other
problems. Repeatedly leaving work early
will similarly have a negative impact on
relations with coworkers.
Acting arrogantly. Accounting profes-
sionals are intelligent by nature and do
not enjoy working with people who have
condescending or arrogant personalities.
Arrogant people are often unwilling to per-
form tasks that they think are beneath them,
and frequently use a condescending tone
with associates. This is a sure way to earn
a reputation as a problematic employee.
New hires should be gracious and
respectful of others rather than falling into
the arrogance trap.
Unreceptive to feedback/unwilling to
take responsibility for mistakes. Many
students have trouble accepting construc-
tive criticism, viewing it as a personal
attack rather than a strategy for improve-
ment. Because new accounting hires can
expect frequent performance evaluations,
it is important that they view these as well-
meaning and constructive rather than as
denigrating. At the same time, it is impor-
tant to take responsibility for mistakes—
admit errors and correct them, rather than
blaming others.
Lack of leadership or client service abil-
ities. While climbing the career ladder in
accounting, employees will be increasing-
ly called upon to lead and supervise oth-
ers and to represent the firm in interaction
with client personnel. The ability to suc-
cessfully handle these added responsibili-
ties is one of the keys to continued pro-
fessional growth. These types of skills are
less often the result of study or training
than they are the byproduct of confidence
in one’s abilities and observations of the
leadership and interactive styles of others
in a firm.
Other. There are a number of other mis-
takes people often make during the first
two years of employment, including failing
to foster professional relationships, an inabil-
ity to see the big picture (too focused on
details), and failing to distinguish oneself
(failing to stand out in terms of performance).
Put Your Best Foot Forward
In today’s economy especially, there are
no entitlements. Employees will be evaluat-
ed on their most recent performance and con-
tributions, not the distant past. The phrase
“What have you done for me lately?” is
one that should always be kept in mind. New
hires who were heavily recruited after grad-
uation must continue to prove themselves
after starting a job and throughout their
career. As the results of this study show, new
hires should show initiative, be team play-
ers, have a good attitude, and possess a great
work ethic. They should also avoid inferior
performance, unprofessional behavior, dys-
functional teamwork, and a negative persona.
An awareness of the character traits to
be emulated and avoided in the work-
place should prove helpful as employees
enter the early, formative stage of their
accounting careers. ❑
Susan H. Ivancevich, PhD, and Daniel
M. Ivancevich, PhD, are both Dixon
Hughes Faculty Fellows, and Richard
Roscher, CPA, is an assistant professor,
all in the department of accountancy and
business law at the Cameron School of
Business, University of North Carolina
Wilmington.
Worst Practice Number
Poor work ethic/poor-quality work 11
Unprofessional behavior 11
Not a team player/shirking responsibilities 10
Having a negative attitude 8
Unwilling/unable to learn new things 5
Lack of commitment 5
Poor communication skills 5
Arriving late to work or meetings 5
Acting arrogantly 4
Unreceptive to feedback/unwilling to take responsibility for mistakes 4
Lack of leadership or client service abilities 3
Failure to foster professional relationships 1
Failure to see the big picture 1
Failure to distinguish oneself 1
EXHIBIT 3
Worst Practices During the First Two Years of Employment
72 JULY 2009 / THE CPA JOURNAL
An employee who cannot or will
not learn new things is likely to
have a short career.
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