That small firm life – Why I think audit articles are worth the trouble

Your three-year articles as an audit trainee are like entering an intricate labyrinth; this experience will become a pathway of major wins, challenges and lessons meant to shape your professional career.

This thing called ‘articles’ is meant to mould your raw talents into a seasoned professional.

This kind of professional development aids in gaining insight into real-world scenarios and industry best practices, exposure to multiple industries, and loads of soft skill development.

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Learning Curve

But it comes with long hours, as is the nature of the auditing industry.

You will find yourself struggling with tight deadlines and immense workloads.

If not managed efficiently, you can experience burnout.

What makes the pressure worse is some people have to endure “the balancing act”.

Most trainees pursue their dreams while juggling work, studies and personal lives. 

It can be draining. Now that I have gotten the PR pleasantries out of the way, let’s unpack what I really think about articles to prove to the bots that I am, at the end of the day, human.

When I reflect on my articles, these are the first things I would scream out:

• Exposure
• Rigorous
• Challenging
• Rewarding
• Emotionally draining

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Let’s start with exposure. You have the opportunity to gain experience across the board:

The public sector: 

For those of us at small firms, this sets you apart from the rest. The unsaid bias still exists: small firm guys aren’t taken as seriously as ‘the big 4. You can fight me on this, but it is what I believe is true. You might be assigned to a few auditor general engagements; you will meet some incredible people. This will broaden your horizons and add to your network. 

The private sector 

You’ll eventually figure out what tickles your fancy most, but this is bread and butter for me – my interests lie in wholesale and retail (even some e-commerce)

International work 

(new accounting frameworks and colleagues from different countries). I am so grateful to Accensis for allowing us to work with clients from different countries due to our outsourced accounting services. I urge international audit firms to use more South African firms for remote audit work. The truth is, we are hardworking, and we deliver!!

Here are some more of the lessons I have learned so far:

You’ll be taught, and you’ll teach as well. You’ll unlock parts of your brain that you had never used before, be it learning how to deal with different personalities or learning what type of person you really are beneath the surface.

You’ll learn how to pick yourself up after you’ve been knocked down. You might even be depressed for a bit, but you’ll learn how to change that feeling into drive and raw ambition.

You’ll be miserable and will already have your resignation in your drafts, just in case, but you will also become resilient. You will work so hard to make those after you do not want to draft that Word document of their own.

You’ll learn what works for you: what hours of the day do you work best? Remote work or in-person?

I enjoy actual human interaction in person.

Who would give the managers ongoing questions and hypotheticals if I’m not there? 

You’ll learn about what fights are worth the time and where you need to take your L and move on.

You’ll be praised by your managers and partners for a job well done, for delivering excellent work, for leading by example, for killing your close-out meetings, and for getting write-ups for developing a new way of audit. Hell, your face will even make it onto your company email banner.

You’ll go to SAICA events, put on a fancy suit, and admire the people who paved the way. You’ll be proud of the monopoly you’re now entering. You’ll strive to also become a difference maker one day.

All of which will groom you into a person of principle with an unshakeable ethical compass.

And most importantly, you’ll survive.

To the prospective trainees out there, buckle up. You’re in for one hell of a ride, but it will be worth every minute of those three years.

To my fellow small firm trainees who feel like you might not be seen in the way you would like to be seen, remember:

When you’re a rose growing in a pavement, you need to look after yourself because there is no gardener coming to tend to you. 

-       Water yourself

-       Trim your own leaves.

-       Give yourself enough sunshine.