THINGS got even better for chartered accountants (CAs). Over 300 top
corporates, including multinationals have begun focusing on campus
recruitment offering a 150% jump in starting salaries.
CAs command up to Rs 27 lakh per annum compared to the starting salary
of Rs 1.5 lakh offered just a couple of years ago. Thanks to the
economic boom and complex tax structure, the profile of a CA has
catapulted to a professional with a highlevel of managerial skill with
multidisciplinary talent. The CA‘s role now is not confined to
accounting alone. Companies are expecting them to play a crucial role
in human resource divisions, M&A activities, cross-border taxation,
transfer pricing issues, setting up infrastructure projects,
development of software etc.
The heightened economic activity has
also triggered an unprecedented demand for CAs. Consider this: There
are currently 1.4 lakh CAs against a demand for five lakhs.
To net
the best talents, the companies are taking the campus selection route.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) which is
facilitating campus recruitment now insist that the threshold limit of
pay package on offer should not be below Rs 3.5 lakh. Last year, ICICI
Bank recruited 100 CAs, RIL 98, Tata Sons 74, Ernst & Young 74, TCS
64, Jaypee Capital Services 67, BSR & Co 62, Kotak Mahindra 47,
Infosys 45 from the campuses spread across the country.
Olam
International, during the campus interview held in 2006 recruited four
CAs at a salary package of 27 lakh. Eta Ascon Group recruited four at a
package of Rs 8 lakh. UTI Bank recruited eight CAs for Rs 7.49 lakh.
ICICI Bank recruited 100 personnel at Rs 5 lakh package.
Uttam
Prakash Agarwal, chairman of the Committee for Members in Industry
(CMI), an ICAI arm for campus selection said “ There are 14 centres all
over India for campus recruitment which is held twice in a year. At
least, 70 % of the CAs will find jobs through this process itself.” He
said the first phase of the recruitment for 2007 is already on and
major companies in banking, infrastructure, I-T sectors, besides the
MNCs have already participated in the process.”
The corporate
sector felt the shortage of chartered accountants with the arrival of
the BPO boom. BPOs which need to streamline its transactions, most of
which are cross border have recruited a sizeable number of CAs. With a
booming stock market corporate activities in India too multiplied
resulting into a flurry of IPOs and M&As. The introduction of
Transfer Pricing Rules in India which necessitated filing of separate
returns and related documents on cross border transactions has also
generated am additional demand for CAs with specialisation in overseas
deals.
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