Nidhi Nagori: Senior Internal Auditor

In conversation with Nidhi Nagori, Senior Internal Auditor at Lincoln Electric. She started her career at K.S Aiyar & Co. and then worked at KPMG and D.E Shaw India Pvt Ltd. Before becoming a Senior Auditor. We would like to understand the role of a Senior Auditor from her and How to become one.

 

1. Describe your work and work profile in a very simple manner?

   

I am a chartered accountant and have recently got my US CPA. I am currently working in Lincoln Electric, which is a US Manufacturing company. I work for their internal audit and compliance team where I look into the internal audit, compliance, SOX audits, etc. I have to make sure that all our different locations are legally compliant to the US laws. My role basically involves going to different countries where my employer has its location. I make sure everything is appropriate in terms of numbers and legal compliance.

 

2. Can you share your Daily Routine with us?

My daily routine includes :

• • On weekdays I wake up at 5.30am and make breakfast. After getting ready I drive down to my office, which is an hour’s drive each way.
• • I start working from 7.45am up until 5-5.30pm.
• • If I plan on meeting people, I usually do that during lunch or dinner time.
• • After reaching home, I cook dinner and go to the gym.
• • In the evenings, I like to sit with my husband and watch the news, satires or simply read books together.

 

3. What skills should a candidate possess if he wants to take up a profession similar to yours?

There are no specific skills that a person requires to be in a place where I am in. However, you need to be willing to learn and be hungry for knowledge. I am from India, so when I moved to the US, I had no idea about SOX or the US laws in general. There was no practical experience to my theoretical knowledge, so I had to be hungry for knowledge and give my best in every task I undertook. Also, it’s not easy when you’re travelling to a new country every month, especially if you’re a petite girl like me. Since I’m a vegetarian, there are times when I’ve not found proper food on my trips and fallen sick. I gave my CPA exams while working, which meant that I had to study on airport, planes, trains, mobile apps and even in random countries. Therefore, never giving up and pushing yourself one step further has played a major role in my career growth.

 

4. What are the Pros & Cons of your profession?

There are both Pros and Cons to my profession. Coming to the Pros, you get global experience since you keep traveling, learning and working with local countries which is equivalent to living and working in that country. Since we get the weekends off, we are free to explore the cuisine, people and landscapes of a new country. Travel is extremely educational and can teach you real-life skills. So the exposure and experience you get is definitely a plus point. There are also a lot of cons as well, for instance, you’re mostly away from your family when you’re traveling. I’m married to a cardiologist who is also very busy, so we don’t get a lot of time together, but we need to do what’s best for our career. Secondly, you have to be okay with jet-lags, even if you’re jet-lagged on Sunday, you should be willing to go to work the next day and give your best. Thirdly, finding food especially if you’re a vegetarian is another con associated with this profession. Also, working out when you’re on a tight schedule and having that level of commitment is difficult at times. Lastly, studying while traveling is also very challenging and requires a sheer amount of dedication.

 

5. What is the best way to bag a job similar to yours?

I am an immigrant, I was born and raised in India. So when I moved to the US, I did a lot of research and I went to people and asked them questions. I made sure my research was thorough and well structured. Even though I was an outsider, I made sure that this never interfered with my work profile. I also read upon immigration laws, visa laws and my status in the country. I understood finance and immigration, therefore doing research has been very useful for me. So, if you want to get into this line, I would suggest you read about your role, the country you want to move to and the immigration scene there. When you network with people, make sure your questions are very crisp and thorough.

 

6. What advice would you give to the freshers who are willing to venture into this line?

This line is not something that you can get into without having any prior experience, but what you can do is make sure that, through your articleship or your work experience, you can learn about your industry and profile very well. If you want a job where you can travel the world, start traveling before you get this type of job because it is not possible to bag a job like this if you haven’t travelled much. Start saving for travel and put your effort into this line. It’s also crucial to start learning about this industry, reading about SOX, corporate compliance and how these things work. Try to look for such openings and see if you can connect with people already in such departments. See what the organizations are specifically looking for because when you go for interviews for such positions, you need to perfectly fit into the job profile, only then you can get a job that pays you well and lets you travel the world at the same time.

 

Final Notes

“The views & opinions expressed in the article are that of the author. The blog contains the opinions of the author and doesn’t reflect the opinions of any organizations with which the author may be associated. The graphics are for illustrations purpose only we do not mean to plagiarize anybody else’s content”