It's hard to believe that 3 months has past already and I will be completely finished my Co-Op in 3 days. I am very glad I had this experience in Calgary as I have learned a lot about the industry and about the tax side of accounting. I have found (especially among the managers) that the key to my future success and the success of current managers is organization. With the vast amount of clients PwC does business with, a lack of organization would prove devestating to service quality as well as internal morale. When there is a lack of organization in an industry (which I have noticed at other places I have work) staff get frustrated, apathetic and even aggressive regarding the work environment they are a part of. I will absolutely remember this going forward in whatever aspect of accounting I decide to become a part of (tax, audit, articling).
I think I have a good understanding of what the tax season entails in terms of commitment of time. Working 11-12 hour days is definitely a norm during the busy season, as well as coming in one if not both days on the weekend. I am surprisingly (to myself) ok with working these kinds of hours as when I'm working for tax the days I work don't feel like they are 11-12 hours. However watching the managers dedication to getting the job done is inspiring. A lot the time I have seen upper management delegate work to people so they can take time off and have a less stressful schedule. Not the case here at PwC. The senior managers of the firm are the first to show up and the last to leave. This type of dedication and hard work shows what is truly required not just early on in one's career but many years into it as well.
Finally the last thing I have taken away from this co-op is the importance of being part of a team. With the amount of work that has been done in this office over the past three months I have noticed that a good team environment is crucial. Being able to ask another co-worker questions or being able to bring any questions/comments/concerns to a team leader/manager is what builds a strong team environment and makes sure that the job gets done properly.
In closing I've found that this co-op has been a great experience for me and has really opened my eyes in terms of what I can expect in my future career as an accounting major.
Friday, April 27, 2012
Monday, February 27, 2012
Calgary Co-Op: First Month In
Almost a year ago when I was taking introduction to tax at Lethbridge College I never would have thought that I would be sitting on the 30th floor of the Suncor building in Calgary, Alberta doing taxes for PwC.
I have heard from a lot of students who are now working in the accounting industry that the education received during post secondary education is completely different from what is applied in the real world. For example, the main thing that I received from my tax course at the college that prepared me for this work term was knowledge of the names of the forms required to file tax returns (T4, T3, T5, etc). I am learning here (and this has been confirmed by other associates in the industry) that most work being done is on computer programs in an effort for the industry to go "paperless" and to make filing and record keeping more efficient.
As a result the education that I gained as a result of the tax program and the work I did at Lethbridge College didn't really apply because I was taught how to do tax returns on paper and by hand, but there was no instruction regarding"E-Filing", the mainstream method of filing returns.
In closing this Co-Op thus far has shown me the efficiency that is required for PwC to take on the amount of clients that it does. I'm sure I will have much more to report in my next blog post as I will be deep in the heart of tax season with barely a free moment to spare, but until then I'll be keeping my nose to the grindstone in an effort to absorb as much information as I can for both the tax season ahead and the education/career to follow it!
Allen Bellamy
I have heard from a lot of students who are now working in the accounting industry that the education received during post secondary education is completely different from what is applied in the real world. For example, the main thing that I received from my tax course at the college that prepared me for this work term was knowledge of the names of the forms required to file tax returns (T4, T3, T5, etc). I am learning here (and this has been confirmed by other associates in the industry) that most work being done is on computer programs in an effort for the industry to go "paperless" and to make filing and record keeping more efficient.
As a result the education that I gained as a result of the tax program and the work I did at Lethbridge College didn't really apply because I was taught how to do tax returns on paper and by hand, but there was no instruction regarding"E-Filing", the mainstream method of filing returns.
In closing this Co-Op thus far has shown me the efficiency that is required for PwC to take on the amount of clients that it does. I'm sure I will have much more to report in my next blog post as I will be deep in the heart of tax season with barely a free moment to spare, but until then I'll be keeping my nose to the grindstone in an effort to absorb as much information as I can for both the tax season ahead and the education/career to follow it!
Allen Bellamy
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Main Points of Blog for Co-Op
As required by the Co-Op work program here are my main points from my Work Term Plan that I hope to gain from my Co-Op with PWC.
Increased knowledge of the Canadian and U.S Tax Systems: While preparing returns and acquiring information to complete day to day returns I hope to improve my overall knowledge of the Canadian and American tax system. This includes knowing what forms and information is necessary to complete when dealing with a Canadian full year resident, non resident, emigrant and a full year U.S citizen, expatriate and non-resident. With this knowledge I hope to be able to assist both friends and family at home in making smart tax decisions and preparing proper returns. I also hope to retain this information for the future when I am pursuing my CA accounting designation.
Increased understanding about the professional accounting designations: Acquire information about what the requirements are for C.A.S.B and how I can contribute to my CA designation during my Co-Op.
Develop strong organizational habits: Even this early it is very obvious that a key to having a successful co-op term is to be very well organized. I am setting this objective for myself not only so that I may experience success in my current field but so I can apply these habits to my future work/academic life in order to achieve success.
With these 3 main components to my work term plan if I can successfully accomplish these 3 goals I will have had a fantastic Co-Op experience.
Increased knowledge of the Canadian and U.S Tax Systems: While preparing returns and acquiring information to complete day to day returns I hope to improve my overall knowledge of the Canadian and American tax system. This includes knowing what forms and information is necessary to complete when dealing with a Canadian full year resident, non resident, emigrant and a full year U.S citizen, expatriate and non-resident. With this knowledge I hope to be able to assist both friends and family at home in making smart tax decisions and preparing proper returns. I also hope to retain this information for the future when I am pursuing my CA accounting designation.
Increased understanding about the professional accounting designations: Acquire information about what the requirements are for C.A.S.B and how I can contribute to my CA designation during my Co-Op.
Develop strong organizational habits: Even this early it is very obvious that a key to having a successful co-op term is to be very well organized. I am setting this objective for myself not only so that I may experience success in my current field but so I can apply these habits to my future work/academic life in order to achieve success.
With these 3 main components to my work term plan if I can successfully accomplish these 3 goals I will have had a fantastic Co-Op experience.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
A Community of Learners is like...
"A community is like a ship, everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm."
-- Henrik Ibsen
I agree with Henrik Isben for a couple of reasons. First a community needs to work together in order for everything to run effectively. Meals need to be made, rooms need to be cleaned, floors need to be mopped and a ship needs to be directed. Each person in this community has different strengths and weaknesses but when we all work together and support each other and use each others strengths when we are weak and lend our strength when others are weak we will flourish and the boat will get to its destination safely.
In regards to the statement "everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm" every good team or community needs a leader to guide the rest of the team through rough waters. I'm not saying that everyone needs to lead all the time because that would turn into a quick downward spiral of confusion. However when plans and events aren't going to schedule and you need to have some organization in order to lead your team effectively you must be prepared to step up and take leadership if it falls to you.
The only part of this metaphor that I disagree with is the implied fact that all jobs on a ship are of equal importance. For example you may need a license and to have completed courses to safely steer the boat to where it is going as a captain. If you are a fire stoker down at the bottom of the boat however all you may need is a strong back. While both posistions are required for the ship to run one seems more important and can only be done by a select few as opposed to the other. So while not all jobs are equal, I believe they are all neccesary.
What I got out of this sugar test this morning was that just because you have someone else to help you out does not mean that you can fully rely on them. We sometimes use the others on our team as an excuse for not trying our best and doing all that we can do, when in reality we need to step up and give everything we can towards a group effort. If Jim wasn't pushing any harder than he was in the test before the sugar then it has something to do with the student, not the pressure. What I think is that he figured he had another student with him so he did not have to try as hard. But when people start making exceptions and not putting forth their best effort the collective whole suffers. Sounds a little like communism doesn't it?
-- Henrik Ibsen
I agree with Henrik Isben for a couple of reasons. First a community needs to work together in order for everything to run effectively. Meals need to be made, rooms need to be cleaned, floors need to be mopped and a ship needs to be directed. Each person in this community has different strengths and weaknesses but when we all work together and support each other and use each others strengths when we are weak and lend our strength when others are weak we will flourish and the boat will get to its destination safely.
In regards to the statement "everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm" every good team or community needs a leader to guide the rest of the team through rough waters. I'm not saying that everyone needs to lead all the time because that would turn into a quick downward spiral of confusion. However when plans and events aren't going to schedule and you need to have some organization in order to lead your team effectively you must be prepared to step up and take leadership if it falls to you.
The only part of this metaphor that I disagree with is the implied fact that all jobs on a ship are of equal importance. For example you may need a license and to have completed courses to safely steer the boat to where it is going as a captain. If you are a fire stoker down at the bottom of the boat however all you may need is a strong back. While both posistions are required for the ship to run one seems more important and can only be done by a select few as opposed to the other. So while not all jobs are equal, I believe they are all neccesary.
What I got out of this sugar test this morning was that just because you have someone else to help you out does not mean that you can fully rely on them. We sometimes use the others on our team as an excuse for not trying our best and doing all that we can do, when in reality we need to step up and give everything we can towards a group effort. If Jim wasn't pushing any harder than he was in the test before the sugar then it has something to do with the student, not the pressure. What I think is that he figured he had another student with him so he did not have to try as hard. But when people start making exceptions and not putting forth their best effort the collective whole suffers. Sounds a little like communism doesn't it?
Web 2.0.1
As I've had a few minutes to think about it (and hear more from Frank) some questions come into my mind. Why is the world jumping on this new phenomenon that is Web 2.0? It seems with the growing increase in communication technology (cell phones, text messaging, Facebook) that we as a society are beginning to be inhibited by our need for communication. What benefits do I gain by engaging in this new customizable form of communication? An issue that should be of greater importance is what could I lose? Could data miners really gather information from my Facebook account and use it without my knowledge? What scares me (and should scare most of us) is what are they using this information for? If they are using it for advertising and determining what the consumer wants then my fears have been greatly reduced. There is also the possibility that they could be using this information against us but how? There is always two sides to every story. Another great version of Web 2.0 is a website called Wikkipedia. This is a site that acts as an encyclopedia that documents almost anything a person can think of. Users upload information about history, people and places that in turn can also be edited by other people. When all of these people all over the world are editing this information how are we able to determine fact from fiction and truth from half-truth? It just comes down to you can't trust everything you read, and you should take everything you get off the internet with a grain of salt.
Web 2.0
The second post on my blog is about Web 2.0. You've never heard of it? I hadn't either until a few minutes ago. Web 2.0 is a interactive internet where the control is put primarily into the viewers hands. When the internet was invented it was run only by people who knew the specific code to build a website and operate it. Web 2.0 is a social utility which lets the users create, customize and fine tune their website to their own individual needs. Some examples of Web 2.0 include sites such as Facebook, Myspace and Ebay! Web 2.0 is a growing phenomenon that is becoming quite popular with young and older internet users alike. It makes internet use easier, faster, and customised for the viewers personal interests.
First Post
This is my first post on my Lethbridge College Multimedia blog. I have just figured out how to set up a blog, link my g-mail account and forward my Lethbridge College email to that g-mail account. It's fantastic!
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