What is the future of the accounting profession under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act- job opportunities, etc.?
409052
Job opportunities have absolutly exploded as a result of S-O.  I was an Accounting Recruiter for a while and firms are extremely anxious to hire accountants who can help them comply with S-O.
140
Yes, not any time soon, but expect the trend to increase as companies find ways to reduce costs. Get into management and your job will be saved.
574062
Well Let me compare for you.\nBIG accounting firms                  \n1. Good salray        \n2. Extra work         \n3. Excess Pressure from top\n4. Limited learning environment\n5. Future is Good \n6. Limited change options \nMid tiers\n1. Lower salary\n2. Work not so hard\n3. Not so much\n4. vast field of work\n5. Furure also good\n6. Unlimited options\n\n\nHope this helps you
875557
Finance is the one that pays off the most followed by Health Care Management. The problem with accounting is that there are people certified with a MS in accounting taking those jobs. The management and leadership stuff are just completely useless. And the new "entrepreneurship" is actually counterproductive because the employers consider you as someone that'll leave.
1084143
I am a public accountant who deals with small businesses.  I like to think of accounting as detective work with numbers.  When a client supplies me with information, I go through the numbers and see which ones are innocent (ie clean), and which ones are guilty.  I keep my clients on the straight and narrow by reporting ALL their income, and finding ALL the appropriate deductions.   I interview the clients to get more information, I do research on the internet to learn more about the client's vendors, and I consult with colleagues to discuss best procedures.  It can be a rewarding job.
502348
Accounting is a sure bet (all companies will always look for journal keeper), but business (like stock exchange), being riskier, will often lead to much better and gratifying jobs than boring acocuntant-work-in-the-dark-of-everybody job.
581947
I am a trainee actuary working in a financial reporting department of a major Irish life assurance company.\n\nAt the moment, all of the modelling that we do is deterministic in nature - we set assumptions, run them through our model and analyse the results. We then might run the model with slightly different assumptions to see how sensitive the results are.\n\nHowever, this approach will have to change in the near future. IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) are being brought in many countries (including the UK and Ireland) which require products with guarantees to be modelled stochastically. This will require far more runs and will place a lot more demand on computing power.\n\nIndeed, in the UK, I believe they have already brought in some form of stochastic modelling as part of the reappraisal of the way that with-profit business (i.e. policies that pay bonuses) is valued by the life assurers in the UK. The financial regulators have brought in a "realistic balance sheet" for with-profits that uses market consistent stochastic modelling.\n\nI can't speak for the situation in the US as I'm not aware of the situation there. I imagine it's much the same - if not more advanced.\n\nI'm sure stochastic modelling will also be used more in the future in general actuarial modelling as well as financial reporting as it more accurately takes account of risk.\n\nSo to answer your question, stochastic modelling is being used and will be used increasingly over the near future as the computing power capabilities and regulatory requirements increase. It's the way of the future!\n\nI don't know much about the second part of your question but I did a couple quick searches on Google and they seemed to show up a few results (see below).\n\n(I hope my answer wasn't too long and technical - excuse me if it was.)
1074190
I'm a CMA.  I can tell you that in the 10 years or so that I have been, its certainly gained more prestige in industry, to the point where quite a few jobs out there are looking for it.\n\nThat being said, getting your CPA and getting on with a public accounting firm (particularly big 4) is another notch up for sure.  If you put your time in at a public firm... say 5-7 years to get you to the manager level, you've got the golden key to a lot of high level corporate jobs.  If you're going to have anything to do with SEC reporting they particularly demand a CPA.  My understanding is that the price is pretty steep to get that golden key though... the burnout rate is pretty high.\n\nWhichever way you go, the future is certainly bright for accountants, at least as long as the whole Sarbanes-Oxley and hightened corporate governance and awareness is with us.\n\nGood luck.
299839
Look up the "Sarbanes-Oxley Act" online.  It was the law that congress passed to try and stop things like "Enron" from happening again.  It isn't perfect,(government work never is) but it will give you an idea of what type of controls you should have in place to prevent fraud.....
932314
When I review a prospective business plan, I like to see current audited financials if they have a revenue stream. If it is a new start-up, then i'd like to see 5 years of financial projections with comps from similar businesses in the same industry. Everything should be quantified as much as possible.\n\n\nIf you have any questions you would like to ask, email me.\n\nGood luck!
509527
Most important thing to consider before taking a job?  Will you be happy there?\n\n\nThe accounting field generally requires at least a bachelor's degree with an MBA or CPA preferred.
617241
The role of an Accountant may include aspects of the following:-\n\n- Tracking company expenses\n- Writing, error checking, analysing financial documents\n- Identifying problems and inefficiencies with the way the business is run\n- Ensure the correct tax is paid\n\nDepending on the job, the accountant may also perform audits of any client companies.\n\nA management accountant works at the cross-company level, looking at budgets, costs, assets, yearly targets, tracking year to date against and highlighting issues and areas that can benefit from streamlining efficiencies.\n\nYou will need a good head for figures and numbers, enjoy analysis, and will need a BA degree.\n\nJob prospects are good for graduates - lots of large firms hire many trainees every year. Training salary is low but once qualified the rewards can be very good.
807817
Maybe I should mention a couple of names, like Enron, Tyco, CitiCorp, ImClone...All these companies were "cooking the books," which means they were manipulating their accounts to make it look like they had a lot more money than they really did.  Independent audits are required to make sure a company's accounting practices are ethical and that their figures are generally correct.  \n\nEnron is a perfect example of what happens when a company is not properly audited -- they went out of business and the execs walked away with millions of dollars while most of the employees lost their retirements and all the money they invested in the company.  If the employees and investors had known that Enron was in financial trouble, they could have invested their money elsewhere or taken other steps to protect their money.\n\nDoes that make sense?
677376
The demand for fully qualified actuaries is increasing in many specialties.  The Sarbanes-Oxley Act is creating more requirements of a publicly held business than ever.\n\nMore and more small companies are hiring their first actuary instead of relying on consultants.\n\nThe demand for actuaries in some specialties is not increasing.\n\nAlso, the supply of recent college graduates looking for beginning actuarial jobs is high, so it is not easy to get your first job.\n\nA CPA is not an actuary, by the way.  CPAs do valuable functions, but actuarial is not one of them.
860649
It is an excellent field, especially when an accountant becomes a CPA.  Your local Dept. of Labor will have the average income, however it also depends on who you clientelle are, and if you specialize or not.
1019757
You can try applying for a domain expert position at a software company that develops financial and accounting software.
697003
Hope so.  For all that have been downsized out of good paying jobs, I hope they get their just reward.\n\nFor all the big shot profiteers and C.E.O screw-ups, I hope they get what the Enron boys got.\n\nPeace.