Before starting university, I had to choose between a technical or a business career path (IT developer vs business administration). I wanted at that time more interaction with people which I thought the business studies would provide, I even did a Master’s degree in HR.

I worked briefly for a bank, then started the accounting path qualifying with a mid-tier firm, then making the switch to Big 4. Ten years ago I moved from Romania to the UK (Aberdeen) and six years ago I left practice for a role in industry.

Around five years ago I started to take an interest in automation out of necessity (to cut down on time spent in the office) and I’m now a certified Power BI Developer and Power Apps maker.

I enjoy roles where I can tidy up and fix issues. I’ve always liked to learn new things and this translates into understanding and challenging how processes work. People are happy when they can finish work on time and this means giving them the right tools/processes for the job.

I enjoy coaching people and I believe people should be developed and supported to achieve their potential. There is no better way to test your skills/knowledge than when you have to coach/train them.

I also enjoy the data aspect of my role. Data is becoming a valuable asset for companies to gain timely insights and be able to take action and the demand for finance people with data skills is increasing. While accounting is about the numbers, data analytics helps to surface the issues in a timely manner.

After graduating, I wanted to be a coach or a trainer, but I realised I could do that as part of other roles as well. I ended up in audit because of its financial stability, but I enjoyed it because it wasn’t bookkeeping and I traveled quite a bit, which is a good experience for a young person to see the world.

The change has already started. A lot of time is spent on manually producing custom/ad-hoc reports if the ERP cannot provide them and there are already technologies like Power BI that can save all this time. Or using low-code apps like Power Apps/Power Automate where citizen developers can create simple apps or approval workflows. Excel is so prone to errors and these can guide the user through a process, making it less error prone.

There are certain aspects about A.I. that have to be regulated for it to gain acceptance, but that’s going to transform how we work. It’s already exciting to see how IT developers benefit from it.

I always thought the choice is between outsourcing to lower cost locations and automation. I believe in the latter option as it keeps the jobs here, but the challenge is to manage the upskilling. The launch of the low code tools means that people like me with no IT formal background can use them and at the same time it has sped up a lot the work done by IT devs.

Yes, it was challenging to work from home and do home schooling at the same time. I think it made me appreciate more multitasking and the impact of personal life on work life.

I was a believer in flexible working, but now even more.

I’ve been a hiring manager and I’ve not heard many candidates asking some of the questions I think are important when looking for another role.

For example, about the systems and how manual the processes are, ie to what extent Excel is used.

If you are starting your career, it’s best to make sure you will have somebody to learn from and how willing they are to coach you.

Not many people are asking the simple question of “tell me about the tasks you do during a typical month, from week 1 to week 4”. It could be the normal stuff (month-end, reconciliations, audit etc), but it gives you the opportunity to ask more questions about the role, specific projects, scope for improvements, etc. Then ask about what’s driving the busy periods.

Finally, develop your skills which are more important than the tools used. My biggest bugbear is when I see the role mentioning knowledge of some specific ERP, instead of skills of working with ERPs. Advanced knowledge of Excel – but how about data analysis and presentation skills? A good tool will give you the functionality to use your skills, but most often there are tools not used to their full extent because the skill is not there.

Definitely you need to be working in a role that has some tangency with your passions. Every role is a mix of skills and it depends how much time you spend using the skills you enjoy, but at the same time develop the ones that are out of your comfort zone.

Every job has a level of human interaction and meaning is most often found there. Your knowledge or skills might be valuable, but not more than your character and how you treat people.

Money is important, especially when you’re from a modest background or you have a young family. Sometimes it’s a good trade off with the freedom to do what you want and experiment.

When choosing your model in life, remember that what is visible is only the tip of the iceberg (success) but not the hard work/time sacrificed to get there. When you’re at the top, you’re still sitting on the iceberg, it’s not like the submerged part suddenly disappears to leave just the tip.

Professionally, I’m happy where I am at the moment on my career path. I think the mix of finance and data /automation skills opens up several opportunities and I’m always open to broaden my experience.

I enjoy spending time with my family outdoors (cycling or walks). My son likes to play football or video games and I join him when I can.

I try to keep up to date with technology. I also started a YouTube channel and would like to dedicate more time to it.

I climbed the highest mountain in Romania. I hope to get to Ben Nevis one day. We were there this summer, but I’m waiting for my son to grow some more before we can head to the top together.