http://www.charteredaccountants.com.au An insight into Chartered Accountants aged under 40 years.

1. Young professionals –
Career motivation study
An insight into Chartered Accountants aged under 40 years

2. The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia
The Institute is the professional body for Chartered Accountants in Australia and members
operating throughout the world.
Representing more than 70,000 professionals and business leaders, the Institute has a pivotal
role in upholding financial integrity in society. Members strive to uphold the profession’s
commitment to ethics and quality in everything they do, alongside an unwavering dedication to
act in the public interest.
Chartered Accountants hold diverse positions across the business community, as well as in
professional services, government, not-for-profit, education and academia. The leadership and
business acumen of members underpin the Institute’s deep knowledge base in a broad range of
policy areas impacting the Australian economy and domestic and international capital markets.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia was established by Royal Charter in 1928 and
today represents more than 58,000 members and around 12,500 talented graduates working
and undertaking the Chartered Accountants Program.
The Institute is a founding member of the Global Accounting Alliance (GAA), which is an
international coalition of accounting bodies and an 800,000 strong network of professionals and
leaders worldwide.
charteredaccountants.com.au
Disclaimer
The information in this document is provided for general guidance only and on the understanding that it does not
represent, and is not intended to be, advice. Whilst care has been taken in its preparation, it should not be used as a
substitute for consultation with professional accounting, tax, legal or other advisors. Before making any decision or
taking any action, you should consult with an appropriate specialist or professional.
No warranty is given to the correctness of the information contained in this document, or its suitability for use by you.
To the fullest extent permitted by law, no liability is accepted by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia for
any statement or opinion, or for an error or omission or for any loss or damage suffered as a result of reliance on or
use by any person of any material in the document.
Note:
• Significance tests are performed between groups in tables and charts at a 80%, 90% and 95% confidence level.
Where there are significant differences, these are marked with asterisks (* for 80% confidence level; ** for 90%
confidence level; *** for 95% confidence level).
• A 95% confidence level means that if the study was repeated with the same sample size we would be 95%
confident of finding the same differences.
Copyright
Copyright © The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia 2012. All rights reserved.
This publication is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, it must not be copied,
adapted, amended, published, communicated or otherwise made available to third parties, in whole or in part, in any
form or by any means, without the prior written consent of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia.
Published by: The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia
Address: 33 Erskine Street, Sydney, New South Wales, 2000
Young Professionals – Career Motivation Study 2011
First edition
ABN 50 084 642 571 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia Incorporated in Australia Members’ Liability Limited. 0412-44

3. Contents
A message from the General Manager – Members
and the NSW Young Professionals Panel Chairman. ..................................................................... 4
Executive summary. ............................................................................................................................... 5
Why analyse young professional career motivation?. ................................................................... 6
Career time line........................................................................................................................................ 7
Career expectations ................................................................................................................................ 7
Career path .............................................................................................................................................. 8
Career progression advice ...................................................................................................................... 9
Skill requirements. ................................................................................................................................. 10
Future directions..................................................................................................................................... 11
Appendices .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3

4. A message from the General Manager – Members
Our young members are an integral part of the future of the accounting profession in Australia. To put it
quite simply they are the future of the profession.
Year after year I am amazed at the high level of graduates that we have coming through the Chartered
Accountants Program who have worked hard to earn the designation of ‘CA’ after their name.
Against a backdrop of change including an ageing workforce in Australia and a continued demand
from business for quality employees, it is important that we as the accounting community understand
the challenges, developmental needs and demands facing young Chartered Accountants. In a move
supported by the NSW Young Professionals Committee, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in
Australia (the Institute) commissioned Beaton Research & Consulting to survey members under the age of
40 in Australia and overseas. The survey focused on finding out what young members felt was important
to them through key stages of their career to date.
The information contained in this report is intended for use by employers, young Chartered Accountants
and graduates.
In particular, employers should find the report useful and informative, particularly while building strategies
around attracting, recruiting, developing and retaining the best people in their organisations.
We would like to thank all the members who took the time to complete the survey. The success of the
report would not have been possible without their input.
Simon Grant FCA
General Manager – Members
A message from the NSW Young Professionals
Panel Chairman
The results of this survey have provided a valuable insight in to the current career motivations and
decisions of young Chartered Accountants. The Panel recognises that career expectations change over
time and this survey has provided a current view of young Chartered Accountants who are focused on
opportunities to learn, clear career progression opportunities and a work-life balance.
In response to the survey, the NSW Young Professionals Panel will continue to arrange and host events
which provide candidates and young Chartered Accountants with the information, skills and advice
required to progress their careers.
The survey benefits not only current young members but also employers as they compete to attract and
retain capable graduates and young Chartered Accountants to their organisations. The survey should
also be used as a guide to university graduates and young Chartered Accountants reviewing their career
opportunities and understanding that exemplary technical skills are only part of the total skill set required
to progress their careers.
This report is a summary of the full survey results, for those employers, graduates and young members
who are interested in career motivations, challenges and the skills required. It provides a thought
provoking insight into our membership.
Fergus Roughley CA
NSW Young Professionals Panel Chair 2012
©The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia

5. Executive summary
Opportunities to learn and develop new skills, career
progression and prestigious places to work were
determined as the most important factors for young
Chartered Accountants in their early careers. These
become significantly less important as they progress.
Being well paid, work-life balance and flexible work
arrangements become increasingly important later on in
their careers.
While many Chartered Accountants start their careers in one
of the Big 4 accounting firms, they typically move on to work
for large commercial organisations or large, medium to small
practices. Career change is mostly driven by new challenges
and opportunities, pay increases or the desire to develop
new skills.
Professional networking is the single most important skill
that Chartered Accountants have identified for their future
careers. Other future skills for the next two to five year
career timeframe are teamwork, leadership and
communications skills.
5

6. Why analyse young professional career motivation?
Young members are the future of the Chartered Accounting The survey was conducted with a random sample of
profession and the Institute of Chartered Accountants Chartered Accountants, up to 40 years of age. The
in Australia (the Institute) is committed to increasing its respondents were Institute members based in Australia
relevance and engagement with this segment. and abroad.
As part of this commitment, the Institute established The NSW Young Professionals Panel would like to
the Young Professionals Panels in each region to act as acknowledge the assistance of other Young Professionals
advocates, provide support for other young members and to Panels nationally and Beaton Research & Consulting in the
provide leadership in the development of events. Each panel development of this survey and thank those members whose
is made up of Chartered Accountants under the age of 35 responses contributed to these findings.
from small, medium and large practice and Big 4 as well By sharing our findings with other members and colleagues
as commercial and finance organisations, the public sector in the profession, we hope to work collaboratively to
and academia. deliver more in terms of development to young accounting
In order to improve our support for and engagement with professionals and to ensure that we continue to support the
this growing demographic, the NSW Panel felt that there diverse needs of a growing young member base as they
was a need to better understand our young members – how progress through their professional life.
and why they make certain career decisions, what motivates
them, what is important to them in terms of retention and
what they are looking for in their employers.
In response to this, the Institute partnered with the NSW
Young Professionals Panel and commissioned Beaton
Research & Consulting to conduct a national career
motivation survey to explore:
• How career expectations shift throughout members’
careers;
• Why members change organisations and jobs,
the challenges they face in this transition and their
expectations for the future;
• What information and resources are used for career advice
by members; and
• Which skills are important to members today and in the
near future.
©The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia

7. Career time line
This report has been divided into four sections: career A graphical representation of the results of these questions is
expectations, career path, skills requirements and future presented below.
directions to reflect the chronological order of a young What motivates members at the outset of their career
Chartered Accountant’s career cycle. appears to shift as they build on their experience as
professionals. Opportunities to learn and develop, career
Career expectations
progression and a prestigious place to work are the most
Young members were asked questions about what was most important factors for those starting their careers. These
important to them when they first started their career. They become significantly less important as their career
were also asked to comment on what is currently important progresses. Conversely, being paid well, work life balance
to them and what they believe will be important in their and flexible work arrangements are less important at the
career in two to five years time. beginning of members’ careers but become increasingly
important later on.
Early career Current career Future career
Opportunities to learn and develop 52.3 27.3 14.3
Opportunities for career progression 44.2 32.3 26.9
Prestigious place to work 26.7 3.2 3.4
Being paid well 24.9 47.4 48.3
A clear career path 24.4 9.1 9.1
Challenging work/being pushed to learn 23.8 26.6 14.5
Gaining transferable skills 17.1 8.1 5.9
The quality of the people in the organisation 12.5 20.7 18.5
Mobility (i.e. opportunity to travel) 12.2 3.6 3.6
Organisational culture 9.9 14.3 14.5
Great work-life balance 7.3 41.2 53.5
Immediate team culture 5.9 7.9 6.2
Variety 5.8 6.8 6.5
Effective leadership 4.8 11.3 13.8
Flexible work arrangements 1.8 18.2 33.1
Ethical practices 1.3 5.7 5.6
Social and environmental responsibility 0.4 1.7 2.2
Other 0.9 1.2 1.3
0 20 40 60 0 20 40 60 0 20 40 60
% % %
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8. It is also worth noting (in the data below) the differences of Career path
what aspects young members felt was currently important Members typically start out in practice, predominantly
according to their gender. The graph shows that being well at one of the Big 4 firms and move to large commercial
paid is far more important to men than to women. Women organisations or another practice role outside of the Big 4.
are also more interested in flexible work arrangements and Career change is mostly driven by members seeking new
work-life balance. Both genders were evenly matched when challenges and opportunities, pay increases or the desire to
it comes to organisational culture, with marginally greater develop new skills.
numbers of women interested in opportunities to learn and
Almost half of the respondents started out in the Big 4
develop.
(42%). Since then, the majority have moved on to
different organisations (79%) or changed jobs within an
Aspects currently most important in career by gender.
organisation (59%).
Total Male Female A large commercial organisation is cited most commonly as
% % % a current workplace (22%), followed by Big 4 (13%), small
Base (n) (1113) (571) (537) practice (13%) and large practice (11%).
Being paid well 47.4 54.5*** 39.4*** One in three respondents express some loyalty to their
Great work-life balance 41.2 39.4 43.4* current organisation, stating their next career move is
Opportunities for career 32.3 32.7*** 26.7*** likely to be another role in the same organisation in the
progression same country (27%) or a role with current organisation in a
Opportunities to learn and 27.3 26.0 28.8 different country (9%).
develop Currently, members working in practice and business are
Challenging work/being 26.6 25.0 28.2 significantly more likely to be looking at another role in
pushed to learn the same organisation in the same country (30% and 35%
The quality of people in the 20.7 21.1 20.3 respectively).
organisation
Close to one in five, however, will look for a role in their
Flexible work arrangements 18.2 9.6*** 28.0*** current profession in the same country (17%), significantly
Organisational culture 14.3 14.4 14.1 more prevalent among those working in government (29%)
Effective leadership 11.3 10.2 12.2 and business (29%).
A clear career path 9.1 11.1*** 6.9*** Changing roles within their current organisation was more
Gaining transferable skills 8.1 8.1 8.1 likely to be the next step for males (30% looking for another
role in the same country and 10% looking to move to a
Immediate team culture 7.9 6.4** 9.6***
different country), while females are significantly more
Variety 6.8 6.6 7.2 likely to look for a role in their profession in the same
Ethical practices 5.7 5.8 5.6 country (20%).
Mobility (i.e. opportunity to 3.6 3.6 3.5
travel)
Prestigious place to work 3.2 3.6 2.9
Social and environmental 1.7 1.6 1.8
responsibility
Other 1.2 1.2 1.2
©The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia

9. Career path in the accounting profession
Starting out Present Future
> Big 4 (42%) > A large commercial (34%) > Another role, same org.,
> Large practice (19%) > Big 4 (10%) same country (30%)
> Medium practice (16%) > Small practice (10%) > A role in current profession,
> Small practice (16%) same country (21%)
> Large practice (8%)
> A role in current organisation,
different country (7%)
A typical career path in the Chartered Accounting profession is summarised
above, including only most frequently mentioned responses.
(Note: the total will not add to 100%)
Number of times changed organisations
> None (21%) > 61% of members changed jobs within an
> Once (24%) organisation with most of those changing jobs
> Twice (17%) up to three times (82%)
The top three reasons for changing organisations and jobs One in four respondents have not changed organisations
within an organisation are: since starting their career. This is more likely for those
• To embark on new challenges / opportunities (48% of working in the Big 4 (57%) or practice (31%).
respondents who changed organisations vs. 67% of those Career progression advice
who changed jobs within an organisation); Respondents are most likely to seek out career progression
• To increase pay (30% vs. 27%); and advice and information from friends, colleagues and family.
• To develop new skills (27% vs. 53%). Mentors also ranked highly as sources of advice, with HR
departments coming in second last in the ratings.
Other reasons for changing organisations include mobility
and international opportunities (20%), dissatisfaction with the The value of advice provided by mentors is again emphasised
job (19%), lack of promotion (19%) and to improve work-life as they were viewed as being the group that provided the
balance (19%). most valuable source of professional career advice.
Sources of professional advice Providers of valuable professional advice
Friends 52 Mentor/s 77
Colleagues 50 Managers/s 66
Family 48 Colleagues 64
Mentor/s 36 Family 60
Managers/s 34 Friends 54
Recruitment firms 24 Recruitment firms 39
Job websites 23 Job websites 31
HR department 4 HR department 30
Don’t know/have not sought career advice 6 None of the above 9
0 25 50 75 100
Other 2
%
0 20 40 60
%
9

10. The main challenges listed in changing organisations A high proportion of those who responded said they were
included the lack of mentors to approach about advice and keen to gain access to increased mentoring services or to
guidance and also not knowing about options that might be learn how they could access those already available to them.
available to assist with change.
Challenges to changing organisations
40 39
33
31
30
24
33
21
% 20
17 17
15 14 13
10
6
0
No mentor to give Not knowing career Not knowing where to go Too many options available Other Don’t know
me guidance options available for information/resources making choices difficult
Challenges in changing organisations Challenges in changing jobs
Skill requirements The need for communication skills, along with the ability
The graph below indicates what respondents viewed as the to network remain strong motivators throughout the three
most important skills in the various phases of their careers. phases of career (as indicated below).
Professional networking increased exponentially as a
required skill as Chartered Accountants move through
their careers.
When starting out At present In the future
Task and time management 67.7 44.9 20.3
Technical skills 58.8 42.9 27.3
Communication skills 47.9 60.5 56.1
Critical thinking and problem solving 32.5 45.4 37.2
Teamwork and leadership 29.1 49.4 58.0
Self direction and autonomy 20.2 21.4 20.1
Professional networking 5.0 22.7 60.7
Other 0.4 0.5 1.1
0 25 50 75 0 25 50 75 0 25 50 75
% % %
©The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia

11. Future directions New South Wales
Young Professionals Panels are key in driving the Institute’s Natalie Fallon
increasing focus on young member engagement, directing natalie.fallon@charteredaccountants.com.au
initiatives and discussions around support for the demographic.
The panels provide advice in career progression, training, Queensland
development issues and challenges facing regional areas. Chris Hurling
The Institute, together with the Young Professionals Panels, chris.hurling@charteredaccountants.com.au
regularly host events that bring together young Chartered
Victoria/Tasmania
Accountants in multiple locations across the country.
Elaine Coughlan
The aim of these events is to create a forum for networking and elaine.coughlan@charteredaccountants.com.au
sharing knowledge among peers. Many of these events have
been run in conjunction with different industry professional South Australia/Northern Territory
bodies and this has afforded members the opportunity to Rebekah King
generate networks across various professions. rebekah.king@charteredaccountants.com.au
Through sharing the results of this survey, the Institute hopes
to provide firms and employers of Chartered Accountants with Australian Capitol Territory
information to enable them to expand their offerings of skill and Laura Hannan
personal development for their young Chartered Accountants. laura.hannan@charteredaccountants.com.au
This report is only intended as a concise snapshot of the survey.
A more complete set of graphs and statistics is available via Western Australia
www.charteredaccountants.com.au. Brian Martin
brian.martin@charteredaccountants.com.au
The Institute has representatives dedicated to working with
young professional members in each of the major centres in
Australia. Please feel free to contact the representative in your
centre if you have any queries about the young professionals
program or if you would like to get involved with activities
around young members.
11

12. Appendix 1: Appendix 2:
Research Methodology Respondent segment
• Research method – Email invitation to a web based Other, 0.4
survey. Big 4, 16.0
• Target population – Full members up to 40 years of age
Overseas, 28.5
at time of survey.
• Sampling – A random sample of 10,000 was taken from
the above target population. This sample was cleaned
against the Institute sample laundry criteria of:
– Maximum one completed survey per year;
– Maximum three invitations for survey participation
per year; and
– Only members with 6+ months membership.
• While the cleaning process produced a total of 8,748 Members in Practice, 38.0
business, 13.4
records, email invitations and reminders were sent to 7,973
live emails – excluding bounces, irrelevant respondents Government, 3.7
and those away for the survey duration.
– 1,113 completed the survey, yielding a response rate Question
of 14.0% Segment
• Survey period – 29 August to 19 September 2011.
Base
• Questionnaire instrument – Assessed career
All respondents (n=1113)
expectations, the process of changing organisations and
roles, reasons for change and major challenges faced in
this process; it also assessed resources used for career
advice as well as skill requirements at different stages of
career growth.
• Weighting – The distribution for age and segment was
checked against the population distribution. While the age
distribution was consistent, the segment distribution was
significantly different. As a result, the survey sample data
was weighted accordingly by this variable to reflect the
population.
©The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia

13. Appendix 3: Appendix 4:
Respondent region Respondent location
Regional area, 11.4 ACT 2.3
NSW 24.5
NT 1.0
Qld 12.4
SA 7.2
TAS 1.5
Vic 16.6
WA 6.8
Outside Australia 27.8
0 10 20 30
Capital/major city, 88.6 %
Question Question
And is that in a capital/major city or Where are you currently working?
a regional area?
Base
Base All respondents (n=1113)
All respondents (n=1113)
13

14. Appendix 5: Appendix 5:
Response age Main reasons for changing
organisations by gender
Unwilling to disclose, 2.1
Total Male Female
% % %
35 or older, 30.4
Base (n) (882) (453) (425)
To embark on new 47.9 50.6** 44.7**
challenges/opportunities
To increase pay 30.4 36.4*** 23.7***
To develop new skills 26.9 31.0*** 22.3***
For mobility/international 20.0 24.7*** 14.9***
opportunities
Due to a lack of promotional 19.7 23.4*** 15.3***
prospects/career growth
Under 35, 67.5 Due to low job satisfaction 19.1 16.6*** 22.1***
To improve work-life balance 18.5 14.6*** 23.2***
Due to poor management/ 16.1 16.4 15.4
leadership
Question
Due to a change in personal 13.6 8.3*** 19.7***
What is your age in years?
circumstances
Base For a better culture fit 9.9 9.4 10.5
All respondents (n=1113)
To move to a more 7.8 7.6 8.1
prestigious place to work
To pursue other interests 7.6 8.1 7.2
For more flexible work 3.4 1.5*** 5.5***
arrangements
Due to unethical practices 2.2 2.6 1.7
To move to a more socially 0.4 0.0** 0.8**
responsible organisation
Other 6.2 6.3 6.2
Question
What are the main reasons for changing organisations?
Base
Respondents that changed organisations (n=882)
©The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia

15. Appendix 5:
Main reasons for changing
roles by gender
Total Male Female
% % %
Base (n) (662) (355) (305)
To embark on new 66.8 67.5 65.8
challenges/opportunities
To develop new skills 53.3 57.0*** 48.3***
To increase pay 27.5 32.5*** 21.0***
For mobility/international 16.1 19.7*** 11.6***
opportunities
To pursue other interests 11.1 8.6*** 14.1***
Due to low job satisfaction 5.6 5.0 6.3
Due to a lack of promotional 5.2 5.0 5.5
prospects/career growth
To improve work-life balance 5.2 3.8** 7.0**
Due to a change in personal 4.3 2.1*** 7.1***
circumstances
Due to poor management/ 3.3 3.2 3.5
leadership
For more flexible work 3.2 0.0*** 7.4***
arrangements
For a better culture fit 1.6 1.7 1.6
Other 9.2 8.9 9.6
Question
What are the main reasons for changing roles within
an organisation?
Base
Respondents that changed roles within one
organisation (n=662)
15

16. Contact details
Customer Service Centre 1300 137 322 South Australia / Northern Territory
Westpac Building
National Office / New South Wales Level 29, 91 King William Street
33 Erskine Street Adelaide SA 5000
Sydney NSW 2000 GPO Box 9985
GPO Box 9985, Sydney NSW 2001 Adelaide SA 5001
Phone 02 9290 1344 Phone 08 8113 5500
Fax 02 9262 1512 Fax 08 8231 1982
Australian Capital Territory Victoria / Tasmania
Level 10, 60 Marcus Clarke Street Level 3, 600 Bourke Street
Canberra ACT 2601 Melbourne Vic 3000
GPO Box 9985, Canberra ACT 2601 GPO Box 9985, Melbourne Vic 3001
Phone 02 6122 6100 Phone 03 9641 7400
Fax 02 6122 6122 Fax 03 9670 3143
Queensland Western Australia
Level 32, Central Plaza One Ground Floor, BGC Centre
345 Queen Street, Brisbane Qld 4000 28 The Esplanade, Perth WA 6000
GPO Box 9985, Brisbane Qld 4001 GPO Box 9985, Perth WA 6848
Phone 07 3233 6500 Phone 08 9420 0400
Fax 07 3233 6555 Fax 08 9321 5141
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supporting responsible use of forest resources.
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