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Too busy for volunteer work? There's a reason you may want to find time to squeeze some in: It can boost your career, and even help you be a better accountant. Indeed, through volunteering many CPAs have been able to shore up skills, gain management and international experience, widen their network of professional contacts and generate new business. Some say working for worthy causes has given them a new appreciation of the importance of their expertise, because it allows them to see results more directly than they do on larger team projects.
Many regional and national firms have long recognized the career benefits of volunteering. They encourage their accountants to get involved through a range of formal and informal initiatives. Grant Thornton had 37 employees volunteer a total of 70 days in its Tax Assistance Program, which provide financial services to low-income families. The Big Four all feature programs through which personnel can find opportunities for volunteer and pro bono work.
Meaningful Impact
A 2005 survey by Deloitte found that nearly nine in 10 workers believe volunteering can have a positive impact on their careers. About four in five respondents said volunteering could help them develop business skills, including decision-making, problem-solving and negotiating. The study also found about three in four of the respondents who serve on boards of directors believe volunteering can help their leadership skills.
Wendy Schmidt, a Deloitte principle who provides due diligence for companies in domestic and international transactions, serves as a board member for the New York Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International, and more recently for the National Association of Women Lawyers. She says her work for the Diabetes Foundation, which includes lobbying trips to the New York Congressional delegation, have helped her improve problem-solving and leadership skills and widened her professional network. "I've had the opportunity to network with senior executives and accomplished people," she says. "It has given me new business opportunities."
Impact and Perspectives
In its internal communications, Ernst & Young lists organizations that need accounting and managerial help. The New York-based firm also includes community involvement in its twice-yearly performance evaluations, and in some cases such service can be a factor in promotion. "Given similar performance ratings, this is a big differentiator," says Andee Gerhardt, E&Y's director of community engagement.
Many of E&Y's initiatives are long-running. Some require weekly or monthly participation while others last for limited periods of time. The latter have become more popular among busy employees who are less intimidated by a yearly or bi-yearly engagement than more regular service.
The work may include hands-on accounting for non-profits and community organizations, assistance for low-income families, consulting assignments for small-business entrepreneurs and board assignments. In one popular program in New York, consultants mentor at-risk high school students. A number of E&Y employees serve on boards, although the firm has encouraged them to seek non-financial positions to broaden their general business acumen.
The crown jewel of E&Y's Corporate Social Responsibility program is a three-month fellowship in Latin America, where the firm's consultants work with entrepreneurs on specific problems. Competition for the openings is strong, says Maria Pena, who oversees the program. She describes it as "highly selective."
The chance to have an impact on a young business attracted one E&Y staffer, Jenny Balaze, to the program. She also saw an opportunity for growth working in an environment far different than her Washington, D.C., home base. Balaze spent her three-month assignment creating a cash forecasting model for a Buenos Aires gift-book publisher. Ten years old, the 85-person company was struggling to finance its business in a country with an unstable banking system and exorbitant interest rates. Balaze's model helped it continue its growth within both Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries.
Doing the nuts-and-bolts work herself - instead of supervising staff - sharpened her skills, Balaze says. Beyond that, she believes the international experience and birds-eye view of the challenges faced by an emerging company will help her better understand her U.S. clients - and further her career.
Originally published Jan. 22, 2008
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