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• # 82060
• Thu 19 Apr 2012 07:05 PM

I wonder if anyone else has experienced this:

I applied for a bookkeeping role, filling out the application form as required. I knew I was well qualified, so imagine my surprise when I received an email saying I wasn't successful. I asked for feedback and was told it would be forthcoming. Suddenly, on a Thursday, I was asked if I could take up the role, starting the following Tuesday! When I asked what had happened, I was told the 3 applicants selected for interview were ACA/ACCA qualified but couldn't handle spreadsheets and bookkeeping in general (my client assumed as they were chartered they were suitable to do bookkeeping). I was number 4 on the list.

I've also been contacted for a post I applied for last year and, again was unsuccessful. The reason for contacting me now was given that my predecessor was also a chartered accountant, and my client felt he wasn't up to scratch on bookkeeping.

Is this normal?

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• # 82070
• Thu 19 Apr 2012 09:39 PM

Hi Vanessa,

I have found that a lot of accountants or anyone studying accounting courses don't go into bookkeeping in detail, they really just brush over the subject (quite surprising as without the bookkeeping they wouldn't be able to do their final accounts) so I'm not surprised a lot of them are not competant with the ins and outs of bookkeeping. 

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• # 82071
• Thu 19 Apr 2012 09:54 PM

Hi Ladies,

I am not surprised

Members of public need educating to know exactly what to expect from both!

In the past I had to correct bookkeeping mistake made by an accountant charging three time my rate!
Without being opinionated, this could have happened to any of fellow bookkeeper!

Kind Regards,

xxx

• Provide bookkeeping and virtual accountancy assistance service in English and French @nckaccountancy.
  West Essex Twitter:http://nckaccountancy.co.uk
  E-mail: info@nckaccountancy.co.uk
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• # 82072
• Thu 19 Apr 2012 09:55 PM

That's very interesting and it's something I've thought to be the case generally when dealing with accountants for the year end process.  You can tell they aren't that particular about the day to day bookkeeping or they wouldnt give you year end journals to do that are rounded up or down to the nearest £ so that the figures never quite balance!

Claire

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• # 82108
• Fri 20 Apr 2012 10:16 AM

Even better, years ago my mother asked me for advice for her hairdressed who had here bookkeeping and payroll done by a chartered accountant as she kept having lassies going off on maternity leave and it was costing her a fortune in SMP.  She wanted to know if she was not due some of that back.  It turned out the CA did not know that you could claim back SMP if your NIC was under a certain limit.  how basic was that?

• Pamela Dillon FMAAT MICB

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• # 82109
• Fri 20 Apr 2012 10:29 AM

Thanks for your replies guys.

I think I'm more annoyed that CA's are applying for roles they are clearly unable to do properly, and clients are just seeing their qualifications and assuming they can. They wouldn't like us to restructure a company, so what makes them think they can do bookkeeping?

@ Claire, that rounding winds me up no end!!

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• # 82110
• Fri 20 Apr 2012 10:38 AM

Ah, we're not all the same.

I'm ACCA qualified, and worked my way up as a trainiee, doing day release first to pass my AAT then after that my ACCA. I've always been very hands on and recently took the ICB exams to set up as a bookkeeper as I don't like the high level stuff and much prefer the detail.

I always hated newly qualified ACAs when I was training.  They'd go straight into their exams following their degree, and didn't know a debit from a credit.  It wound me up that they were always paid more then me, but didn't seem to have a clue. 

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• # 82111
• Fri 20 Apr 2012 11:18 AM

Jojo, you are different to the CA's I describe as you actively chose to qualify as a bookkeeper (best profession in the world!). Other CA's assume bookkeeping is simple when we know for a fact it isn't.

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