[Anonymous]

Hello all. I am in need of some advice here. I have been with a Big 4 firm in audit for about 8 months now. I started off pretty good – my ratings were a solid 3 (right where an associate wants to be at). On my next engagement, I worked with a senior who seems to like to make people miserable. She didn’t give me a 4 rating per se, but I got a rating of “working towards a 3.” I guess I’m lucky I didn’t get a 4 because I know some associates who had solid 3 ratings before working with this senior, only to have their ratings tarnished with straight 4s. During busy season, I got to work on an engagement with a different office, and I got a solid 3 rating. Unfortunately, I think word circulated about my “working towards a 3” rating, and now nobody seems to want me on their engagements. I have been unassigned since the end of February, and I am unassigned until May. Also, I’m scheduled to work next busy season with this senior. I’ve been asking why this was the case, and I haven’t received much of a response. I feel like I am in quicksand, and I am sinking faster and faster.

One day, I put my resume on Monster, just to see what’s out there. Over the past few days, I have been bombarded with calls and emails from recruiters and firms about potential opportunities. I’m hesitant on leaving the Big 4 before one year, especially because I will forfeit the reimbursement for my CPA exam fees. I know finding a new job can take a few months. That’s why I decided to put my name and resume out there now. I really don’t want to leave before September.

Does anybody have advice about what I should do? I’m not sure if I should start taking interviews or pull my resume off if I’m not ready to leave right away. Thanks for the help everybody!

[mla1169]

Never worked in Big 4 but wanted to give you a word of advice about posting your resume on Monster. Companies that hae recruiters (in industry as well) constantly search for resumes posted not ONLY for potential candidates but to see who internally is out looking for a new job.

I got busted at a previous employer who saw my resume posted. Didn't lose my job over it but they made my life more difficult than they had previously. Be careful, you don't want your office to know you're looking.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[FlipACoin]

Big4Slave-mla is right about that, you always want to be sure who know you are working with. I pretty much avoid monster nowadays and used Indeed, Linked In & recruiters that I know or people who I know know. The other thing is, people in similar industries often know each other from conferences, functions, school, what have you. Even when you apply to an internal job posting the hiring manager could know your boss. Just a few things to look out for, although it looks like you are headed out of public so outside of a client relationship it looks like you might be ok on that front.

Regarding your situation, that really sucks! It's unfortunate that this had to happen only 8 months in. The good news (and I've never worked in public) is that if a year is considered ok for public accounting, you aren't that far out. I always start looking early, about 3-6 months before my target leave date. The reasoning is that I like to “warm up” if you will. Interview skills come with practice and I've found the longer I am searching in any one job hunt, the better interview skills get due to the practice. I think about better answers, how to answer questions I didn't get perfect last time and it becomes more of a natural conversation than an interview. That is a lot of what employers are looking for: The “personality” fit. Nerves often get in the way but if you go on a ton of interviews to the point where it becomes somewhat routine, all of that goes away and you deliver a better interview.

SO..that was my long, drawn out way of saying…you have perfect timing. Get out there, interview. Worst case scenario is that you get an offer with 2-3 months left to go in your year and then you have to make a decision. Not the worst position to put yourself in 🙂 good luck.

[Author]

Replies