Keys to Promotion

Here’s what it takes to get a jumpstart on your first BKD promotion:

Pass the CPA exam – If you’re in the audit or tax track, you need to become a CPA. We’ll help by providing Becker's review course, as well as paid time off for exam sittings.

Know your stuff – We expect you to know the basics of accounting and tax—or your particular consulting specialty—when we hire you. Beyond that, we will teach you the BKD audit and tax approaches, our quality controls, our policies and procedures. As you complete engagements, your in-charge accountant or supervisor will evaluate your work. At least twice a year, we’ll discuss your career path, past performance, future goals and special interests.

Use your coach – The coach assigned to you is your objective advocate. Talk to your coach about your work-related problems or concerns. Your coach provides ongoing performance and career feedback, helps resolve problems and issues that may arise and answers a variety of work-related questions.

Specialize – The days of the generalist are gone. Today, you need to be a tax or audit advisor, a consultant with a service or industry niche. Your early assignments will expose you to a mix of engagements and introduce you to your office’s niches. Or you may be steered into an emerging niche where you will have opportunities to develop a new practice.

Master marketing – Public accounting is as much about communication as about numbers. Beyond the mastery of technical skills and knowledge, you will need to learn how to identify and satisfy client needs. That’s marketing.

We recognize marketing approaches vary with the individual and contributions to marketing can be made in different ways.

At first you will focus on improving your technical skills and providing excellent client service as directed by your supervisors. But as you progress, you will take a more active role in marketing BKD’s solutions, including attending trade shows, writing articles, representing BKD in organizations, giving speeches and calling on prospects. Before you know it, you will “be a solution” for your clients.

Become a client solution – From day one, you’ll learn our mission is to be a solution for our clients. This kind of commitment from partners and staff translates into satisfied clients who buy our services, pay our bills and refer us to others. Our clients’ size is conducive to early interaction with management. That means by the end of your first year you will likely have enough understanding of how a client operates to in-charge a project. You will begin to proactively look for solutions that will help that client reduce risk, operate more efficiently and save money.

Network – BKD is a large firm. Whether you join a large or small BKD office, you’re part of a network of 1,900 people with common values and mission. We share training, clients, marketing and other resources and build teams among our practice units to cross sell services. You and your clients will benefit as you become aware of the unique resources found in each BKD office.

Become a team player – A team of people can deliver so much more than individuals working alone. That’s why a service team representing a mix of skills and expertise supports every BKD client. The result is an enhanced set of resources channeled by our partners to deliver results. As you encounter client issues and problems, utilize your service team to help find solutions.