In Hong Kong, where the financial industry is the backbone, business courses are a popular choice for college students. According to the 2021 Census of the Census and Statistics Department, among the 2.28 million post-secondary education population in Hong Kong, the largest number of people choose to study business courses, reaching 732,000 , far surpassing the second-ranked literature and social sciences (393,000).
Will came to Hong Kong from the Mainland and previously studied for a master's degree in accounting at the City University of Hong Kong. Next month, he will join the Big Four accounting firms in Hong Kong for audit work.
Although Hong Kong's economy has not yet recovered, he is optimistic about the development prospects of the audit industry, and regards "working hard to make money" as his goal, because it is difficult for an individual to change the general environment, and the only way to make his life better is to work hard to make money.
In 2022, life will not be easy.
Many young people leave their hometowns, but many more young people stay to guard their homes. They still have all kinds of dreams, hoping to share the responsibility with this city and go further together.
Expanding the field of financial technology is regarded as a new trend in the post-epidemic era.
(File photo/photo by Zheng Zifeng)
Contact high-quality customers
to improve professional level
During his undergraduate studies in the Mainland, Will had learned about the career development paths of business students, and was very interested in working in an accounting firm because of the higher salary and benefits and the wider development platform.
However, he also realized that his professional knowledge was still insufficient, so he applied to come to Hong Kong to study for a master's degree program, hoping to enter the Big 4 accounting firm (Big 4).
The reason why he chose Hong Kong is because his family members are all here and he wants to reunite with them; on the other hand, because Big 4 has many high-quality clients, he can use this to learn more cutting-edge auditing methods and accounting standards, and constantly improve his professionalism. Level.
In recent years, the social turmoil in Hong Kong, coupled with the impact of the epidemic, has caused the economy to fall into recession, and many talents have left. The audit industry is one of the hardest-hit areas, and there is a considerable shortage of manpower.
Fang Yunxuan, president of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants, said in an interview with "Hong Kong 01" earlier that the turnover rate of the association recorded 11% this year. If some staff transferred to the FRC, it would reach 30%. The attrition rate of accounting firms, large financial institutions or financial regulatory agencies also reached 30%.
The new SAR government hastily advocated the policy of "grabbing talents". The pilot form is extended to graduates of Hong Kong universities in the Greater Bay Area, etc.
Will is happy to see the introduction of relevant policies, and believes that it will help attract foreign talents, especially mainland students, to work in Hong Kong, alleviate the shortage of talents in the industry, and make his job easier.
However, the high turnover rate and talent shortage in the industry have also raised the salary level in disguise. The human resources company Randstad pointed out in the "2023 Hong Kong Market Outlook and Salary Report" that the number of job vacancies in the accounting and financial industries has remained high. level, employers are adjusting salary benchmarks to meet job-seeker expectations due to the high brain drain.
During the period from 2018 to 2021, accounting practitioners expect a salary increase of 10-15%, and this figure is expected to rise to 20-35% in 2023.
Will also believes that the development prospects of the audit industry in Hong Kong are bright. He expects that he will stay in Hong Kong to do audit work in the next three to five years, and for the time being, "I can't think of any reason to leave Hong Kong."
Human resources firm Randstad's report on salary levels in the accountancy profession.
Image source: "Hong Kong Market Outlook and Salary Report 2023"
Career prospects are bright and
there is no reason to leave Hong Kong
In fact, not only Will, Hong Kong has always been the dream paradise for many business graduates, because Hong Kong adopts international standard accounting standards, has a sound regulatory framework, and the accounting industry is developing stably.
According to the statistics of the Census and Statistics Department, in December 2021, there were 6,259 accounting, bookkeeping, auditing and tax consulting service organizations in Hong Kong, with 33,098 employees. The total service output in 2020 was US$287 million, an increase from 2019 5.8%.
Under this basic condition, "Big 4" is regarded by graduates as a safe starting point for career development. Although the starting salary is not high, the annual salary increase is 20-30%, and the promotion speed is relatively fast. Possess professional skills and have more options for job transfer in the future.
With the development of technology, many traditional financial industries have begun to undergo digital transformation, and Will is also concerned that the audit industry is facing many challenges.
As early as 2017, "Big 4" successively launched financial robots for basic audit work to save labor costs; in recent years, there have been discussions in the market to replace accounting and audit work with artificial intelligence.
However, Will is confident in the development prospects of the auditing industry, and believes that the auditing work will not be replaced by artificial intelligence.
Because the main job of auditing is to review the financial data of listed companies, there are still many tasks that require communication with people. Auditors will also develop their own professional judgments with the accumulation of working hours and experience.
Although the industry is constantly changing, he believes that these changes "require us to keep learning and learn some software that helps us improve efficiency."
We did not leave Hong Kong｜Not reconciled——fulfill the responsibility of a generation and practice the original intention｜Let's go!
We did not leave Hong Kong in 2022｜Railway Dream——Wherever we are, we will work hard for Hong Kong｜Let’s go!
We haven't left Hong Kong in 2022｜I want to learn from Stephen Chow-do our best to entertain everyone as an actor｜Let's go!
We have not left Hong Kong in 2022｜Classes suspended and online classes resumed--the burden of education is heavier｜Let’s go!
We have not left Hong Kong in 2022｜Focus on the vulnerable—let the frontline cleaners be seen｜Let's go!
We did not leave Hong Kong in 2022｜Enjoy scientific research - Hong Kong is more objective and diverse｜Let's go!
In 2022, we did not leave Hong Kong｜Work hard to make money-if you can’t change the environment, you can change your life｜Let’s go!
2022
