[karatechop]

I need help in understanding more about the travel requirements. Currently the job requires almost 80% of travel, which is fine. I am in the process of getting through interviews with one of the Big 4 for IT Risk and security position. I just wanted to know a few things. In your past experience as a consultant, or if you know of a consultant:

1) How much daily travel is involved?

2) Do you mostly travel out of state?

3) Do you get to fly back every weekend?

4) And let’s say you’re a resident of california, and you are assigned a project in arizona for the week, do you get to fly back anywhere on your way back for the weekend? or only to california?

Thank you everyone. I just need help with determining all this.

[Tripp11]

This is with a non-B4, but Top 10 CPA firm:

1) How much daily travel is involved?

I traveled 80% of the time, and most, if not all, of it was overnight travel.

2) Do you mostly travel out of state?

I would estimate I was 30% in state and 70% out of state when traveling.

3) Do you get to fly back every weekend?

We had the option to fly back every weekend (flying out early evening Friday and back out early evening Sunday) or we could stay at our location – our Firm considered the flight cost to offset the cost of lodging/food while staying – so it was our choice, for the most part. Unless, our team was pressed to meet a deadline, and then we were required to stay onsite for the weekend, and work thru the weekend if need be.

4) And let's say you're a resident of california, and you are assigned a project in arizona for the week, do you get to fly back anywhere on your way back for the weekend? or only to california?

We only had the option to fly back to our home location, and we could not fly to another destination.

Hope this helps.

AUD - 93
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[MydnightDarkfyre]

Completely and utterly depends on the client. I am IT Risk and Assurance. I have been on one client, in town, since last August. I am finally traveling for the next 3 weeks to Indy (and this is because I asked to travel and get some new client exposure).

I know that wasn't the answer you were looking for, but in Big 4 it's a total crapshoot. Does your home office have a lot of in-town clients? Or would they be servicing another major hub? (for example, if your home office was in Wisconsin, I could totally see them sending you to Chicago for weeks on end).

Oh, and my Big 4 allows for ‘alternate weekend travel'. Instead of flying home for the weekend, I could choose to fly somewhere else if the cost was the same to fly home.

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AUD: 80 (Becker) 10/01/2014
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GA Licensed CPA 8/7/2015

CISA: 564 (PASSED) 6/11/2016 - Certification pending

[karatechop]

Thank you. This is great information!

I am quite comfortable in my state, but my wife recently found her dream job in some other state that we have to consider. So I do not know how to process this. The state she is moving to doesn't have much going on, let alone any Big 4 offices. So as I am going through the interview process, I have to decide how to balance all this. If consulting allows me to take a trip to her new home state every weekend, I would consider this offer opportunity..But if the client is in my current hometown, then I would not really have a choice but to stick around here even on the weekends making it hard for me to travel and see her because of the distance.

[Anonymous]

If you are young and single, definitely become a consultant.

1. strong pay

2. a lot of rewards points thru constant travel

3. not a lot of actual hours spent working (this is the big hidden secret w consulting. More time is spent traveling and discussing how busy one is than actual grinding)

[Susan Walker]

At my Big4 –

1 – Consultants typically travel every week – Monday – Thursday. Try to be home on Fridays – as everyone said above it totally depends on your client.

2 – Depends on your client, but general answer for my Firm would be yes – mostly out state.

3 – Depends on deadlines and suchs, but typically yes – home on the weekends.

4- Depends on the expense budget of the engagement, but typically they do not care (obviously can't fly somewhere extravagant), but my Firm usually will pay for a ticket wherever as long as the cost is about equal to your flight home.

FAR: 69 (10/2012), 70 (4/2015), July 2015
BEC: May 2015
REG: August 2015
AUD: November 2015

[karatechop]

This makes sense. Yeah its not that much more expensive for me to go to her new soon to be home state. About the same. Now I am hoping that the projects they would want to put me on are out of state projects..this will allow me to fly back to her every weekend. Do you think it is possible for me to ask them that and be placed on projects out of state constantly? I wish there was a Big 4 in her new soon to be home state. This situation doesn't seem to be easy 🙁

[Susan Walker]

You could ask – I know that my firm tries to accommodate personal wants, but really at the end of the day it is going to depend on skillsets and client needs, ya know? It might be worth mentioning if you really think it is something that could prohibit you from accepting the offer. Realistically, if they say no and you aren't going to accept what foul has it caused to ask – my opinion.

FAR: 69 (10/2012), 70 (4/2015), July 2015
BEC: May 2015
REG: August 2015
AUD: November 2015

[Last Chance CPA]

I have worked for a Big 4 in IT Advisory where travel is pretty much the norm.

1) How much daily travel is involved?

Be prepare to live out of a suitcase M-T. Hopefully, you get placed on this side of the country. I have done San Diego to Maryland in the past and it was not fun.

2) Do you mostly travel out of state?

I assume that, even in IT risk, you will be travelling out-of-state. You can request where you want to be placed. Just work with your team.

3) Do you get to fly back every weekend?

Yes. You are a travelling consultant, not a resident consultant. You fly back every Thursday. Sometimes M-Th does turn in to S-F.

4) And let's say you're a resident of California, and you are assigned a project in Arizona for the week, do you get to fly back anywhere on your way back for the weekend? Or only to California?

Normally, you are required to fly back to your home state, but people definitely game the system. Talk to other consultants/team members before asking management/HR. I have even heard of significant others being able to travel with consultants, but not sure if that will be available for you.

Which office are you working out of in California? I am in San Diego and looking for IT risk management positions in CA. I am mostly an IT/business person so thought IT risk would work perfect with a CPA…

AUD - 75
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FAR - 76
REG - 76

I want those initials next to my name!!!!

FAR - 76
AUD - 75
BEC - 75
REG - 76

Now I need some experience!!! And some networking...

[cool_kid]

While searching for a job, I've noticed quite a few positions being posted lately that are either IT audit in industry or IT Risk & Assurance at public accounting firms. I don't know much about it and just came across it recently but I was wondering if it could be a potential career path for me in the future. I just have a few questions:

1. Did you start off in audit (financial statement) and then make the move afterwards? If so, how does it compare and are you more satisfied with it?

2. What are the job/exit opportunities like? Would you say that it a growing profession?

3. CPAlcoholic mentioned not a lot of actual hours working because of traveling. How many hours do you think you spend actually working?

Thanks.

[karatechop]

I'm not currently working. I am in the process of interviews as mentioned earlier. My alternative to this would be to find an Audit job (NOT with the Big 4), which I know is available in the “new home state”. I have not had an Audit job before (lack of experience), which also concerns me a bit, but the position will be Entry level giving me ability to learn from scratch and pick up as I go forward. I feel much more comfortable with IT right now and also excited about the scope to learn more, but then the travel time as I calculated is 5-7 hours (This is for the Big 4).

I wonder if it is still better to suck it up and travel to have Big 4 on my resume as opposed to ease on the travel and work at a mid-size firm locally doing Audit?

Thank you for the advice everyone!

[Last Chance CPA]

@karatechops – The Big 4 experience is invaluable, but the travel might tire you out. I only worked at a Big 4 for 14 months, but the experience was great. If you take the local audit gig, make sure you are working for a quality company with quality people…

AUD - 75
BEC - 75
FAR - 76
REG - 76

I want those initials next to my name!!!!

FAR - 76
AUD - 75
BEC - 75
REG - 76

Now I need some experience!!! And some networking...

[karatechop]

I guess I will have to rely on the interviews to give me more information and see if they are okay with me traveling that many hours to get to the destination. Hopefully.

[karatechop]

UPDATE: So I finally got the offer from Big 4 and it is a consulting gig. But my wife will be at least 18 hours away by driving in another state. So I guess I could fly to her. This is sort of a bitter sweet news because I have always dreamed about having Big 4 on my resume and now that I have the opportunity, my wife's job is in another state, which will be a big factor in how tired I will be after a weeks long work to travel and see her. What do you guys think? Can I handle it? I was also thinking about speaking with the team and see if they can allow me to make an exception and fly out to her every weekend after traveling away from the home office for the whole week. Do you think would work? Thanks for sympathizing everyone and helping me understand this better.

[fsugirl2005]

@ karatechop

Your priority is your marriage. If you think there is a possibility this will cause some kind of strain in your marriage in the long run, I suggest you get the experience at a non-Big 4 and then maybe move to a Big4 later after you see how things go with your wife's job. But if you guys know 100% for a fact that you can handle the distance, then go for it. But if there is any doubt that things may suffer, just be patient and wait it out. It's just that one big excuse of why couples split is because “we didn't see each other that much” or “our careers kept us apart.” So just make sure home life is square before you make a career decision that can affect things in the long run.

Just a suggestion. =)

REG - 78
FAR - 79
AUD - 76
BEC - 75

I have been on this journey off and on for over 10 years. I think it's about time that I wrap this up.

AUD - 10/21/16 (75----07/2010 expired)
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BEC - 11/2016
REG - 01/2017

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[karatechop]

@fsugirl2005 That's a great advice. You are right. We both are in our late 20s and just getting married. I was just thinking to myself that after 2-3 years she can move to where my job is permanently because that is an option for her. By that time, I will have wasted no time in moving up the ranks and also start living together permanently. I believe we both have a strong connection so I don't think much will be affected by this..other than occasionally missing each other (which I would be doing mostly even as a guy). I will obviously be traveling as a consultant to different states and also trying my hardest to fly back to her every weekend almost. I don't know how tired would that make me.

[Author]

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