Hello CCiens,
I am back after a really long break from CAclubindia! But no worries Better to be late than never. I have been little busy in my job career as I have moved to GCC Country now.
Let me Directly come to the point, This article is very useful for those professionals who wish to make their career outside India, This will help them know the cultural differences and challenges which they should be ready to face in order to get an opportunity outside India. If you are only Chartered Account then it’s enough to get a good job opportunity but if you want to prosper with vertical speed, you will have to get multiple degrees say CIMA, ACCA or CPA along with CA. This will increase your chances to go on top of others. You know there is steep competition at every moment of your career be it starting level, managerial level or top management. You have to prove your skills as per your experience.
Your experience counts the most when it comes to applying for job in GCC. You have to substantiate your expertise according to years of experience. Experience should be relevant to your profile so don’t blindly accept anything which comes your way. Decide and zero down on few areas wherein you want to make your career e.g. Management Accountant, Financial Account or Legal & Tax expert, it purely up to you to decide which option you want to go for. Believe me all of these fields gives you equal chance to prosper so better to choose the one which you are good at or in which you are most interested.
Now I will give you few pointers which will help you understand corporate cultures in GCC:
- Delete your perception that GCC countries will make you zero in terms of knowledge because there is no taxation – let me tell you that there is no truth in this statement which I myself believed until I came here! It’s much professional in many aspects.
- Delete you perception that It’s hard to get a Job in GCC when you have only one degree or there is no job security or there is no economic stability etc. – Again it’s not true at all. GCC are more prone to crude oil prices which decides their fate however I can definitely say that you need not worry until 10 years as they have got good oil reserves which will last even more than decade
- There are lots of India companies though they pay very less and make you work like :). But that’s the way it is! If you want to fulfil something in life you have to go through tough phase and overcome it as you become experienced
- I will quickly priorities GCC in the order of preference (my personal opinion) 1) UAE 2) Qatar 3) OMAN 4) Baharain 5) Kuwait 6) Saudi Arabia 7) Egypt, Jordan etc. You can freely follow this order if you think about your career but you think about money then go to Saudi Arabia, you will be paid better but major set fall is life in KSA is very restricted so you may not feel like living
One more major doubt which people have is:
Whether we will be able to get good job in India on our return after few years in GCC?
I have not personally experienced it but my gut feel says that if you are clear on your purpose of going to GCC and then returning back to India i.e. if you can convince the interviewer about learning in GCC and how it will benefit your prospective Indian employer then your job is done. If you want any help on what to answer in Interview etc. please feel free to connect with me. I will try my best to answer you at the earliest.
CAclubindia
