There has been much industry buzz about accountants being replaced by robots and becoming obsolete. But recent BBA (Accountancy) Class of 2017 alumna Dai Yujing has successfully carved a niche for herself and passionately champions the profession.
Having a love for math and numbers, accountancy was a natural choice for Yujing. People around her also affirmed that this was an academic pathway that guaranteed job stability. However, Yujing soon realised that her pre-university math foundation was not enough. Not discouraged by mediocre grades in freshman year, she persevered by practicing better time management and creating her own course notes to manage her studies better. This enabled her to excel in her third and fourth year.
Yujing (extreme right) with her project group mates and module instructor Dr Larry Lam
She credits the combination of hard and soft skills acquired through the Career Creation Programme and seminar-style learning for landing her a place in the coveted Johnson & Johnson Finance Leadership Development Programme (FLDP), an opportunity that came through BIZCareers.
“The workshop organised by BIZCareers trained us well for case/group interviews. I also wrote to the office for preparation tips, and received useful, applicable advice that I followed closely. Also, the extensive case analyses done in the classroom familiarised me with the case interview format, which also helped me excel.”
Most recently, in order to enhance her employability in the industry, and increase her value in her organisation, Yujing took her passion in the accounting field even further. She acquired the Certification by the Institute of Management Accountants (CMA), making her a recognised professional in the field of management accounting.
Yujing (third from right) receiving her ICMA Gold Medal at the 2019 IMA’s Annual Conference & Expo
In her management accountant role at Johnson & Johnson, Yujing has oversight on the financials of the segment she oversees and allows her to contribute directly to business outcomes.
“I really enjoy the ownership I have. I get to fully understand the business model, the market, and the macro and micro economic factors that influence my business segment. With the information, I can then propose budgets and provide explanations on variance analysis (for both sales and expenses).”
Yujing right at home in Johnson & Johnson
In response to the view that technology and artificial intelligence may replace accountants, Yujing makes the following counter-arguments:
- Accountants are the brains behind the development of all accounting software. Without their experience and understanding, the technology can have no intelligence of its own.
- New technologies can automate menial work (i.e. bean counting). This frees up bandwidth for accountants to perform more strategic functions like business analysis, predictive analysis, strategy development and decision-making. So it instead of replacing the accountant’s role, it complements, supports and enhances it.
As one who has blossomed and flourished through the rigour of the NUS accountancy programme, Yujing offers four nuggets of advice for her juniors:
- Explore an accounting career that goes beyond being an auditor. Management accounting is just one of the many career paths that is available.
- Take every project and presentation experience seriously, and learn. These play an important role to prepare you for future job interviews and work-related presentations.
- DON’T GIVE UP, even if you feel overwhelmed
- Aspire to graduate with honours! It stands you in better stead.
