I come from a general accounting/audit background. It all started with big 4 accounting down in the Orlando, Florida office of Deloitte. Being a smaller office, with a relatively diverse client base, I got to see a fair amount in my 2-and-a-half years there. We had clients in industries ranging from timeshare and healthcare to insurance and publishing. I was involved in all of it, if only in some little way. My biggest interest though, had always been in the banking/financial services sector, and I also wanted to end up in New York City. I set off on my way up the East Coast, with the next stop being Washington, DC.

As an audit senior in DC, I worked on the Fannie Mae “Restatement” for about 5 months. That ended up being some good financial services exposure and a chance to see some derivatives and securitized products in action. My time in DC was limited because NYC was calling.

From DC I transferred to the NYC Deloitte office. In no time at all I had my hands dirty, auditing flat out at BlackRock, the global investment manager. This was a great engagement; challenging work, high profile within the firm, and a great team. I think this would have been my home for a while, if I hadn’t met Darren, Dave, and the rest of the folks at Makosi

It wasn’t a very tough decision at all to cross over to the consulting side. Makosi had some great relationships in the Wall St sector and at the time they were busy building various teams, one of them being within the Credit Derivatives Operations Dept at one of their clients, and this is where I began my banking career. The time was instrumental for my own personal development since it allowed me to expand on my accounting/auditing skill set and added the key banking operations experience to my resume. In addition I was directly exposed to products that were the prime driver of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. This in itself was a steep learning experience and exposure, something I soon shall not forget.

The initial exposure within the banking realm assisted me greatly on my subsequent assignments within a Derivatives Confirmations Department at another of Makosi’s clients and now and now as a controller within product control/finance.

My time at Makosi has always been interesting and challenging. Each role with Makosi has allowed me to broaden my experience, expand and strengthen my resume and has always kept me on my toes. I look forward to a long future with these guys.

Keep following us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook and be sure to tell your colleagues-who ever said there is no such thing as a free lunch?!

Makosi facilitated every step of the process from visas and flights to accommodation in Manhattan. Makosi continues to provide opportunities and events such as sailing trips along the Hudson River in summer to Ice Hockey games at Madison Square Garden in winter that gives all their staff an experience of the very best New York City has to offer.

The work experience has been diverse, stimulating and rewarding. Through Makosi, I had the opportunity to apply my CA qualification and gain first hand experience in hedge fund accounting and auditing at one of Makosi’s major Audit clients who are one of the premier certified public accounting and advisory firms in the USA. Following my desire to expand my knowledge base, and establish myself in one of the most exciting cities in the world, Makosi actively sought out a challenging and fulfilling opportunity at one of their clients, one of the world’s largest Investment Banks, where I joined the team of professionals who perform specialized projects around system development and control related activities present in the trading environment.

The opportunity to explore the US and a unique mixture of culture, develop, while building my career has been incredible and I am so privileged to be able to work with a company that values people and professionalism to the extent that Makosi does, and this is evidenced in every aspect of their business.