Sorry to hear that. Being laid off sucks. We have had several rounds off layoffs in our group and not one former colleague that I know has found another gig. Also, don't try and make sense of why you were laid off. It's a convoluted thought process. Thankfully for you accounting is a very broad field and almost every organization needs it. Keep your head up, stay confident and go hunting. Hopefully your company did the right thing and gave you a severance.
Yeah, focus your time on yourself and your next steps. Everyone is going to be facing days like this unless they own their own company. And even then it can happen of course. Did this happen basically at the end of the fiscal year? Is that a tense time for accountants? Honestly don't know.
I've actually been studying for the exam. Now that I have some free time I'm just going to cram audit for 2 weeks (have taken it 3 times already) and then do the same for 1 or 2 sections after that. Definitely need to take advantage of the free days to study now. No excuses I can't pass at least one section. Thanks for the advice on the audit roles but I was on the tax side. Not sure how much more difficult it would be to find a job in that field. Maybe it's time for a change, who knows. And yes I applied for unemployment the minute I got home this afternoon.
Yea the year end is next week. My firm acquired another larger firm last year and many people feared lay offs were coming once the merger had settled. Didn't help that the tax managing partner relieved himself of his duties and let another partner take over ( a guy people feared was very cut throat).
Here's what you're going to do. You're going to take a day or two to be sad, angry, depressed, whatever emotions you feel like emoting. Then, you're going to say, "Alright, I gave myself 2 days- now it's time to prepare for job search. And you're going to get the Big 5 ready: RESUME COVER LETTER LINKEDIN PROFILE REFERENCES SUMMARY THANK YOU LETTER This is the Job Search Document Portfolio (JSDP) that you have to have to give yourself the best chance for success.
#1: RESUME You're going to put together a resume that has 3 main sections: SUMMARY, EXPERIENCE, and EDUCATION SUMMARY Here, you're not going to waste your time putting the usual BS most people do "Self-starting, results-driven, client-focused, blah, blah, blah." You're going to get right to the point and summarize your skills/experience/credentials in accounting: "Over 5 years in accounting. Advanced skills in Excel and Great Plains. Currently enrolled in CPA program; passed Part I and Part II. B.S. in Accounting. Recently contributed to a successful __________." Then, maybe some keywords: Skill Areas: Sarbanes-Oxley; Auditing; Month-End Closing; Account Reconciliations; Interactions with State Auditors; Financial Analysis; Public Accounting EXPERIENCE For each job: COMPANY NAME, Location, Dates Job Title Brief description of responsibilities ** achievement 1 (e.g. "Met all quarterly filing deadlines over a 3-year period). ** achievement 2 (e.g. "Earned high marks on most recent performance evaluation for ____, _____, and _____). EDUCATION Included education, training, licenses, certifications, etc. The hardest part, but the most important, is to include a few ACHIEVEMENTS, HIGHLIGHTS, KEY CONTRIBUTIONS, ETC. with each of your jobs. Even for accounting, this sets you apart. Think of special projects, overall performance like meeting deadlines, high level of accuracy, finding a discrepancy in the books that saved your company money, etc.
I think tax may actually be the better side of public accounting to be able to either catch on to another firm, or get on in industry. Good luck to you. Wish I knew of anything. Have you contacted any headhunters?
#2: COVER LETTER I am writing to express my interest in your current opening for a (Position Title); therefore, please accept my résumé for your review. With X years of experience in accounting and an excellent work ethic, I am confident I can help your organization achieve its goals. A VERY BRIEF DESCRIPTION ABOUT YOUR SKILLS AS AN ACCOUNTANT AND HOW YOU HAVE USED THEM IN YOUR MOST RECENT JOB AS WELL AS OTHERS. Key points from my background include: • repeat/reword an achievement from your resume. • repeat/reword another achievement from your resume. • repeat/reword another achievement from your resume. My résumé contains additional details regarding my background. I would welcome an opportunity for a personal interview to discuss your organization’s needs and the dedication you can expect from me. Thank you in advance for your consideration.
#3: LINKEDIN PROFILE You have 4 main content sections in your LinkedIn: maximize them. 1: HEADLINE (under your name) You only have 120 characters, so not much room. Best thing to do here is put the type of keywords hiring managers and recruiters would use to search for someone like you. Most of the time, these are job titles. They might also type in CPA or a specialized skill like SOX Compliance Ex: Targeting Accountant & Financial Analyst Positions | Enrolled in CPA Program | Strong Knowledge in Public Accounting 2. SUMMARY Just like your resume- except max of 2,000 characters 3. EXPERIENCE Just like your resume - except 2,000 characters per position 4. SKILLS You have a max of 50- so you want to put 50. If you get stuck: a. Type in Accountant, look at other accountants' LI profiles, and borrow from them (you can borrow keywords-just don't borrow their achievements:grin b. For an important keyword like Accounting, you can't use it more than once - it will say "This is a duplicate skill." However, you can create a few extra phrases with that word in it: Accounting Principles; Accounting Procedures; Federal & State Accounting Regulations
4. REFERENCES SUMMARY What most people do is list their references' name, phone and email, which is fine. However, you're not going to be like everyone else. You're going to take it one step beyond. You're going to create a 2-column table (Table, Insert Table, and 2 for column). Then,you're going to use NAME & CONTACT INFORMATION on the left and RELATIONSHIP on the right. I cant' do the column format here, but if you can visualize it, it will look like: LEFT SIDE John Doe VP of Finance, XYZ company Phone Number Email RIGHT SIDE John was my supervisor for 3 years at XYZ company. He can (attest to, confirm, verify, acknowledge, speak to, provide information about- pick any one of those) my background in meeting every assigned deadline and .... DO THAT FOR 3-5 REFERENCES TOTAL. TRY TO COME UP WITH A DIFFERENT "WHAT THEY WOULD SAY ABOUT ME" FOR EACH REFERENCE.
#5: THANK YOU LETTER 92% of job seekers don't send a TY letter- so even sending a card saying "Thank you for the interview!" is more than most do. However, you're not even satisfied with what the 8% do. You want to, again, go one step beyond and write a very brief TY letter like this: Dear Mr. (or Ms.) _______: It was a pleasure to speak with you regarding the XYZ position with COMPANY NAME. I appreciate the information you shared about the position and COMPANY NAME'S current goals. After reviewing our conversation, it is evident that a key aspect of this position is PICK ONE ITEM THE INTERVIEWER EMPHASIZED. I would like to reiterate my strong background in ITEM. THEN GIVE AN EXAMPLE OF HOW YOU WERE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS. I am confident that my abilities in this area, along with additional complementary skills, illustrate the value I can bring to this role. Thank you again, Mr. or Ms. NAME, for your time. Sincerely,
The Job Search Document Portfolio (well, LinkedIn's not really a document - maybe Tool is a better word) is the start. Then, you have the Job Search Strategy Plan. This is what someone alluded to above. So, it's things like: 1. You apply for every job possible. 50,100, 200- who gives a **** how many, right? Ultimately, it doesn't matter how many-because all you need is 1 job. 2. Depending on your field, seek out recruiters in your area. 3. Join Accounting groups on LinkedIn- also join an accountant's association like AICPA, NSA, etc. 4. Ask for help for everyone in your network- friends,family, former colleagues, former customers or vendors, acquaintances, the Clutch Fans family, etc. Everyone is fair game. Send it to whomever you can- promise that you'll return the favor if they ever need this type of help, and mean it.
1. Medication 2. Psychiatric Counseling 3. Both That's not a joke- if you lean towards these types of thoughts, try to think about anti-depressant medication and counseling as an ongoing, for-the-rest-of-your-life strategy. Nothing else will stop truly suicidal people from doing it- not friends, family, wealth, fame, positive health, etc. (see: Robin Williams). Medication and counseling are the ONLY solutions.
Dandorotik, I think what you did in this thread is admirable. Good for you. I'd shake your hand if I could.
You can look at some of these for ideas on LinkedIn Profiles: https://www.linkedin.com/vsearch/p?...254257451466571304933,VSRPcmpt:people_cluster
