What working in a Big 4 Firm is really like

What Working in A Big 4 Firm is Really Like

Because I worked in both KPMG and Deloitte to Senior Management level I often get asked what the Big 4 environment is like from the Graduates I coach every Autumn.  They do get the bells and whistles presentations at college and the fancy websites and brochures to read but we all know those are selling hard.  The Big 4 enter a huge competition every Autumn fighting to attract the very best candidates to accept their offers.  Many top Graduates with excellent academics and placement experience will have the pick of 4 offers if they attend all 4 interviews.  So be under no illusion that these firms aren’t selling with every line they write and every word they utter on campus and in videos.  So how do you as a Graduate read between the lines and really understand what it is like to work in a Big 4 firm?

Firstly, there are people like me who can give you an excellent and unbiased account of the firm’s dynamics and then there are the anonymous accounts on Glassdoor and other company review platforms, though they can be taken with a pinch of salt, as more often than not it is the grumbling review of someone who didn’t make the cut past their traineeship.
 
Here are my top eye openers for you to understand what environment you are targeting.

1. These firms are hierarchical.  That means there is a clear line of command down the chain and as a fresh graduate you will enter near the bottom but above any intern’s present.  The reporting line of a Big 4 is this:
   

 1. There are no guarantees you will make it through the traineeship.  If you fail in your exams repeatedly and for no good reason you will not be kept on.  If you are applying for an Audit position you will be sponsored to take the Chartered Accountancy exams, the ACA, if you are targeting Tax it will be the professional Tax exams.  The Big 4 are a great place to study and work as they get the best exam pass rates.  They have excellent training in place to support your studies and you get regulated study leave to give you plenty of time to grind before exams.  But outside of study leave you will also be expected to work long hours and study in your spare time too.  This can be quite taxing in the busiest parts of the year such as Winter for Audit and Autumn for Tax.
 
2. You will be expected to work in teams and to enjoy working in teams as the firms are keen on keeping high staff morale to prevent turnover.  If you do not enjoy team work you will not enjoy a Big 4 environment.
 
3. You will be expected to work long hours when required.  Sometimes Auditors find themselves working through the night into the early hours of the morning. If you are in the Corporate Finance team this can include several long nights of work in a row and weekends.  There really is no such thing as 9-5.30pm in these firms.  But saying that, in the summer, when it is quieter, a lot get to leave early on a Friday and holidays/time in lieu are mostly fully taken. 
 
4. A Big 4 firm can be a political environment.  The further you go in a firm past Manager level the more competitive it gets.  Accountants bill their clients in time units so the more an individual is billing the more chance they have of getting to Director and then Partner level.  But to get to Director is tough, in a high numbered team, and not everyone will get there, which creates a level of attrition at Senior Manager level when a lot opt out and move into industry roles.
 

Getting to Partner in a Big 4 Firm

5. Getting to Partner is very difficult in a Big 4 firm.  Only the very best will make it.  They will make it by bringing in clients at Director level by doing business development.  That means hard core selling.  They will engage in contacting companies by ‘cold calling’ them and presenting to them.  They will be competing with other firms for this business, so it can also involve excellent charisma and charm and a good deal of contacts in the right decision-making roles.  If you don’t like the idea of selling you will not enjoy being a Director and you will not get to Partner level.
 
6. Partnership is structured into different levels of hierarchy too.  There are salaried Partners which is one step up from a Director and the work is very similar, it’s just that they are paid more money than Directors and will have bigger bonuses.  Then there are equity Partners, not every salaried Partner will be invited to be an Equity Partner. You get invited to Equity Partner level by bringing in huge clients that generate more fees than salaried Partner employees. They ‘buy in’ to the practice by purchasing equity in the firm. Often a loan arrangement is organised, which they will pay off over a number of years from their earnings.They are technically self-employed.

7. Equity Partners also have a hierarchy depending on the firm and the different amount of equity put into the firm. They will have voting rights and decision-making rights on who gets promoted to Director and Partner level. But the most important thing to note is that if the firm incurs any significant losses the Partnership is expected to bail out the firm using their own funds.Equity Partner earnings differ greatly depending on the billings of the team and so it is vital for them to have large corporate clients and to keep them happy. A Partner will do a lot of entertaining of Clients at C Level after work and at weekends to help keep them happy and as clients. They will also work long hours but not as many as the lower levels in the firm.

Hopefully, some of these ‘eye openers’ will be illuminating.  It is vital to enter any role after graduation with your eyes open and I know that at lot of the above is a mystery to most going through the milk-round, particularly those who have no family or friends in one of these firms to talk to.

Please let me know if you have any questions by emailing me 
Here is more information on my Big 4 Graduate Interview Coaching.