Pros and Cons of working at big and small accounting firms?

Question

What are the pros and cons of working at a big and small accounting firm?

Answer 1

Pros of working in a big 4 a/cg firm:
Exposure & experience- they have a much bigger spread of clients in various industries. Each audit team has a diverse portfolio and in auditing several clients you may find your niche. You might find banking's the life for you, or being in an MNC, for e.g. Or working in a hospital, etc

Size of clients - Big 4s have the biggest clients. You'll get to do consolidations involving more than 100 subsidiaries. You won't get this kind of experience elsewhere.

Increased marketability - I know this sounds mercenary but if you have a few yrs' experience in a big 4 firm, you'll be snapped up very quickly by lots of companies, including clients.

Cons of working in a big 4
I can't think of any except for the infamously long hours during the peak periods. But those who survived them are proud that they did. Those who can't take it resign. It's like a rite of passage.

Pros and cons of working in a small firm
Working relationships are closer. You have more direct interraction with the partner himself. In a big 4 you can meet someone in the street and not know that he also works in the same firm as you.

Working hours are also shorter.

If you don't like challenges, you'll like the simpler clientele. But this is also a disadvantage in my view. There's only so much you can learn if you keep auditing small clients. If you never audit a listed client, you'll never know the listing requirements.

Experience is limited. If you can perform consolidation of only 1 subsidiary, it's hard to go for job interviews in a co. with multi-tier subsids. Your marketability is limited.

Lastly, of course the pay in a small firm cannot match that in a big 4.

My advice is to always join a big 4 if you can, stay there for at least 4 yrs, then decide what you want to do. You can leave or stay on if you are partner material. You can leave to join another co. or start your own small audit firm and lead a comfortable life cos having had such good experience, you'll be well placed to run your own firm.

Hope this helped.