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Are you the kind of person who asks a lot of questions, pores over crosswords and relishes unravelling a knotty financial puzzle?
Well, you probably have the makings of a forensic accountant.
Don’t worry, you don’t need to wear white overalls or get your hands dirty.
But you do have to be good at dealing with a data dump – that’s the dirty great mountain of paperwork, electronic and physical, that has to be sifted through, checked and meticulously double-checked in the course of an investigation into suspected financial wrongdoing.
You also have to be an expert at spotting what’s not there, finding what’s missing and following the trail until you’ve pinned down every last piece of the jigsaw.
At the same time it’s your people skills that will allow you to work with police, lawyers, HMRC and a host of other individuals and organisations relevant to the job.
Some of these could be international, so a love of travel and a grasp of languages can come in handy too.
Over time you’ll probably develop an intuitive grasp of any investigation.
Your instincts will tell you when something’s not right or if the truth is being hidden. But gut feelings don’t stand up in court, so you also have to be able to produce watertight and unassailable evidence.
It’s a case of ‘show me the money’ – where it came from, where it went and where it is now.
From corporate fraud to one half of a divorcing couple trying to squirrel away a share of joint assets, the perpetrators can be as varied as the work.
But do this job well and you’ll become the Sherlock Holmes of the accountancy profession, capable of spotting the tiniest of clues and understanding where each leads.
You’ll have an inquisitive and questioning mind, the sort of dogged, keen-nosed persistence that would shame a bloodhound, and an encyclopaedic grasp of fast-changing financial legislation.
A career in forensic accountancy represents a serious intellectual challenge, but that’s why it’s so satisfying. There’s little chance in this field you’ll ever become bored.
You’re more likely to become a respected expert, called up to give evidence in court or provide opinion to professionals in other fields.
And where’s the best place to begin your forensic accountancy career?
We’ll give you a clue. It’s full of the best Accountancy vacancies available today and it’s called s1jobs.