ACCA student George Muriuki’s career in accountancy began in 2003, and has included roles in both operations, sales, and now the not-for-profit sector, demonstrating the versatility of accountancy training
This article was first published in May 2008 in Student Accountant.
‘I started as an accounts assistant at Eagles East Africa Ltd, a mobile communications company, where I had the opportunity to experience many of the roles associated with a finance department. I therefore gained most of my accounting skills in my first job, and began studying towards my ACCA Qualification. As well as gaining experience of a wide range of accounting tasks, I also helped write marketing strategies for the company and supervised stock controllers across a network of five branches. I also trained a sales team of 28 sales professionals, instructing them on the financial processes used in sales.
‘After three years, I moved on and joined EngenderHealth as their field office and finance administrator. EngenderHealth is an international not-for-profit organisation that has been working for 65 years to make reproductive health services safe, available, and sustainable for women and men worldwide. It is based in New York, and has 20 offices across Asia, Africa, and the Americas. In the Kenya office, my duties were very varied, and ranged from ensuring statutory compliance to managing the field office vehicles.
‘I also monitored internal control systems, coordinated and prepared budgets, paid suppliers and creditors, and processed monthly reports. I supervised support staff and managed both IT issues and the procurement system.
‘When the project I was working on finished, I moved on to become an accountant at PATH, the Programme for Appropriate Technology in Health, which is continuing the work of EngenderHealth. PATH aims to improve the health and well-being of people in the world’s poorest communities by sharing its expertise in sexual and reproductive health, and by transforming the quality of health care.
‘I am involved in PATH’s APHIA II Western project. This five-year project, funded by USAID, aims to build the capacity of healthcare systems, and to provide quality HIV, Aids, and reproductive health services to people in Kenya’s western province.
‘My ACCA studies were definitely an advantage for me at interview, and as a result I am now gaining valuable experience of work in the not-for-profit sector.’