Salary Check Demand or Myth ! ?

Things always are 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 high-level of managerial skill with multi-disciplinary talent.

Role of CA’s

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, and cross-border taxation; transfer pricing issues, setting up infrastructure projects, development of software

The Campus Way:

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.  At least, 70 % of the CAs are placed through this process itself. The corporate sector felt the shortage of Chartered Accountants with the arrival of the BPO boom.

 Do you Know ?

50% jump in the campus placements in ICAI in the salary range of Rs. 5,00,000 - 7, 49,000/- this year compared to last year for the fresh CA’s.

The Laurel Trend :

Today’s trend goes in the dominance of the CA’s who are offered expertise pay. They are often called the perfectionists. And their pay package is something that cannot be nut shelled.

Salary Range :

The fresh CA professionals are well versed with respect to the corporate atmosphere and the companies are willing to pay a package ranging from 9 lakhs per annum to about 27 lakhs per annum. (This figure may vary with the MNC’s). The fresh CA professionals share the major portion of the cake in terms of salary. The IT professionals fall into the pit of a sector where the growth is not predictable.

Will this Trend Continue to prevail for the CA’s ?

The answer to this question is very simple. The normal prevailing equation for CA professionals is that

Consider this: There are currently 1.4 lakh CAs against a demand for five lakhs.

And the vice versa for the IT professionals. A Chartered Accountant is quoted to be the most best paid person anywhere in this world. The heightened economic activity has also triggered an unprecedented demand for CAs.

Eternal Demand of CAs :

Demand for Chartered Accountants in India is going up. There are now more opportunities for CAs in India than qualified professionals available. According to one estimate India would need 50,000 CAs a year by the end of 2010. At present about 9,000-10,000 CAs pass out from India every year.

The booming stock market corporate activities in India too multiplied resulting into a flurry of IPO’s 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 specialization in overseas deals.

Data culled in from the below websites:

www.icai.org

www.google.com