The increasing emphasis on education, job opportunities and industrial growth in India have made the country the land of opportunity. India is a developing country and believes in an educated population and systematic development. The honourable finance minister said in a conference that Company secretaries are helping for the high standards in the listed Companies that promote the stock market and investment opportunities.
As the origin of many Big Four come from foreign countries, Can a Company secretary get an opportunity to work in Big Four? The US country named the accounting firms with high revenue as Big Four Firms. Centring the role of Company secretary, this blog shows the available opportunities for Big 4 Auditing Firms for CS students. The dream of every passing Company secretary is to get a job in Big Four or prove their skills through independent practice. Let us discuss the years 2021 and 2022 for the growth of Company secretaries.
Top Companies for Company Secretary Internship:
For the search word “Company Secretary Internship” the job portals indeed and Naukri lists enormous results. The skills specified in the job portals for Company Secretary from Big 4 jobs are about drafting and multi-tasking. These skills are primary level skills to handle corporate clients and work pressure. The Companies deal with private companies, LLP, government, venture capitalists, and stockbrokers. The knowledge about the incorporation, annual Compliances, issue of shares, allotment of shares, venture capital investment management, due diligence, redemption, trademark, FEMA related compliances, and alteration of official documents. The new training suggests the students undergo 21 months for the article ship training. The Best CS article ship Firms in India are Ernst & Young, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, PWC, KPMG, Bajaj, Reliance, TATA, ITC, Goods and services tax network, and Hindustan salts limited. The MNC Companies offer the best experience to the secretarial works in comparison to the private companies and Government companies.
Job opportunities with Big Four Firms in 2021:
Company secretaries can enter into Government sector jobs. They can work as Bank employees, UPSC, Railway, and PSC. Many students dream about Big Four Companies. The hierarchy in a Big Four Company is formed by the junior auditors, junior Company secretaries, senior auditors and senior Company secretaries. Many students have been inspired by the functions of Big Four Companies like KPMG, Deloitte and PWC. The clients that they serve and the projects that they deliver shows their professional circle. Job readiness is essential to manage the work in Big Four Companies. The Big Four Companies have dealings with the CA/CMA and ACS institutes. As per the Indian rule, Big Fours must appoint a Company secretary. Apart from Big Fours, the Companies like SBI and Bhel have a wide range of opportunities for Company secretaries. The risk management and client advisory services are the departments that need the quality service of a Company secretary.
Growth of Big Four Accounting Firms in 2022:
The year 2022 is hopeful than 2021 for Company secretary professionals. Let us elucidate some points to support the argument.
• As mentioned in the Economic Times dated 29th June 2021, the Big Four Firms are participating in the economic surge that came along with the pandemic crisis.
• The post-covid business needs professionals for senior roles. The top Big Four Firms EY, KPMG, Deloitte and PWG need more than 100 partners for rendering service in India.
• The new professionals need to possess the skills of emerging businesses. The technical skills of cybersecurity, cloud, digital and analytics drive the business environment in post-Covid processes.
• EY has declared that in the Indian region the promotion plans are planned with 43 partnerships. The PWC Firm expands its business with 129 directors, 35 to 40 numbers of executive directors.
• The EY chairman says that domain knowledge and technical knowledge help to solve issues that the client put forth. The traditional competencies of strategic management, tax consultation, risk assessment, and assurance play a crucial role in the senior-level executives.
• During the pandemic, the Companies with digital transformation performed well. So, the employees with desired skills get monetary benefits in the firm.
• In 2021, the Big Four firms have announced a pay-out of 75 per cent more to the employees.
• The statutory auditor in India goes as 2,300. Large Companies in India prefer Big Four Firms as their auditing partner.
• NFRA recommend audit rotation to help the auditors to manage the prevailing competition in the market.
• PWC has invested around $12 billion for ESG reporting. The role of auditors is not only about reporting, it is beyond that. ESG is about supply chain management, risk assessment, business models and artificial intelligence.
• As the markets value intangible assets and investor’s interests, there is a growing demand for data-related work.
• Big Four Companies develop training modules to educate about ESG reporting. The Social environmental and governance-related issues are given more importance to measure sustainable growth.
Salary of CS in Big Four:
Company secretaries work by state laws. Company secretaries also contribute to the public sector as they tend to follow state laws and international processes. The starting salary is moderate, and as the experience moves salary increases. All the other departments of the business are monitored by Company secretaries. The demand for Company secretaries are high as the finance and legal formalities are changing the economic climate. In India, the average salary is 6, 21,583/- per annum. The starting salary is around 20,000 to 30,000/-. The maximum salary as per the job portals in Big Four firms for Company secretaries range from 22 lakhs to 25 lakhs per annum.
Bottom Line:
The opportunities and salary create interest to the upcoming Company secretaries. The growth is the relativity term, and it has to be evaluated as per the periodic changes. So, the above details clarify that the demand for Company secretaries be high in 2022. In general, the job of the Company secretaries earns a high value. They contribute to corporate governance and increase the investment opportunities of the remote industries.