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Career Pathway

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  • Young professional
  • Developing
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  • Home/
  • Career Pathway/
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  • Professional & commercial skills
T3: Technical skills
L3: Leadership skills

PC3 This code refers to content for Level 3 Expert (FCA) in professional & commercial skills ? Professional & commercial skills

What do they look like?

Now you can strategically engage external stakeholders to achieve yours and your organisation's goals. Managing your own career and personal wellbeing are vital too as you progress.

Professional skills include commercial awareness, self-management, and a recognition of the culture of the organisation and broader business, economic and political contexts.

Development activities
Career development support
Courses & publication
Future of the profession

Professional Values - What are the landmarks?

  • Have a strong sense of integrity, impartiality, intellectual honesty, objectivity, respect and confidentiality and encourage these values in others and within the profession
  • Demonstrate commitment to quality, continuous improvement and accountability for your decisions and actions
  • Takes ownership of compliance, ethical and other issues in order to protect the organisation's  reputation and professional standards
  • Display a commitment to the public interest and acting for the public good
  • Exercise professional scepticism and judgement

Influencing - What are the landmarks?

  • Handle strategic communication issues effectively in potentially challenging or sensitive situations
  • Purposely plan written and verbal communication to suit the format, audience and context to positively influence
  • Deal with difficult on-the-spot questions from internal and external stakeholders
  • Anticipate reactions of others to keep momentum and support for an initiative
  • Explore creative solutions with others to overcome challenges

Commercial focus - What are the landmarks?

  • Assess group performance against goals and identify areas for improvement and change
  • Align people, processes and structures with strategic direction and the needs of the organisation
  • Translate potential business opportunities into concrete actions that benefit the organisation
  • Build existing and new relationships with internal and external stakeholders

Stakeholder engagement - What are the landmarks?

  • Determine strategic direction and long-term opportunities to best meet evolving stakeholder needs
  • Know when it is appropriate to push others to consider difficult issues and act accordingly to support them
  • Act as a trusted adviser, providing independent opinions and solutions to complex problems

Resilience - What are the landmarks?

  • Can adapt positively to challenging circumstances and bounce back having learned from the situation, to "dust yourself off". Encourage and support others to do likewise
  • Put things in perspective and don't take criticism personally
  • Demonstrate stamina and determination when dealing with obstacles

Team management - What are the landmarks?

  • Manage team assignments within and outside of your own area of responsibility and promotes working across teams
  • Promote group morale and productivity by being clear about expectations
  • See potential conflict and take action at the appropriate level

Negotiating skills - What are the landmarks?

  • Constructively work towards a win-win solution during negotiations
  • Explore creative solutions with others to overcome antagonism and to develop partnerships
  • Demonstrate more than one preferred negotiating style

Organisational knowledge - What are the landmarks?

  • Understand the nature and limits of organisations and uses that knowledge to influence and manage
  • Use knowledge of corporate politics to handle complex situations effectively and with discretion

Developing Talent - What are the landmarks?

  • Delegate authority and responsibility and encourage others to take the lead and to learn new skills
  • Promote sharing expertise and support learning across the organisation

Stress Management - What are the landmarks?

  • Able to recognise the symptoms, triggers and impacts of stress and then implement techniques to deal with this and the demands of your role. Recognise the symptoms in others and encourage and actively support them to take the appropriate actions.

Project Management - What are the landmarks?

  • Initiate and manage finance and cross-functional projects and bring them to a successful conclusion
  • Become a mentor to more junior team members

Resource management - What are the landmarks?

  • Set and refine priorities and reorganise staff teams and workloads to meet internal and external demands

Career Management - What are the landmarks?

  • Invest time in considering and planning for the next stage of your career. Seek guidance if necessary.

Agile thinking - What are the landmarks?

  • Think creatively in response to challenges from internal and external factors
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Development activities

How can you get there?

Here are our suggestions for boosting your skills in the three main areas at this stage of your career.
Don't forget, many of these are FREE!

  • Continue to refer to and use the Career Pathway to keep you on track and focussed on your goals
  • Use the Chartered Accountants Ireland career service to access a career coach/mentor
  • Mentor junior staff members
  • Develop and follow a career/personal development plan
  • Review your performance appraisal feedback
  • Keep a reflective learning journal
  • Keep attending relevant CPD Courses
  • Read Chartered Accountants Ireland Publications including Accountancy Ireland
  • Refer to Harvard Business Review/Forbes articles
  • Volunteer for cross-functional projects
  • Volunteer for social committees and events
  • Coach or help out with community or sports teams
  • Watch TedTalks
  • Develop your LinkedIn Profile
  • Join industry/professional groups
  • Speak/present at events
  • Exercise/yoga/mindfulness
  • Join a board
  • Develop your emotional intelligence
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Career development support

As a member at any stage in your career from newly qualified to post-retirement, our career service is here to support you. In full confidence, we'll coach you, help with your CV, give interview preparation tips, set up mentoring, help you find a role, or to find the best staff. Call us anytime you need us on +353 1 637 7331 or email us at careers@charteredaccountants.ie. We want to hear from you.

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Courses & publication

Recommended specialist qualifications

Title
Diploma in Corporate Finance Read more
Diploma in Excellence in Financial Reporting Read more
Executive Diploma in Leadership Read more
Diploma in Strategic Finance and Business Partnering Read more
Diploma in Taxation Read more
Certificate in Cyber Security and Data Incident Management Read more
Diploma in Risk Management, Internal Audit and Compliance Read more
Chartered Tax Consultant Read more
Diploma in Forensic Accounting and Investigation Read more
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Recommended CPD courses

TitleStart datePriceCPD hours 
CPD Blitz 2025 (ROI) Online17 Dec 2025 10Read more
CPD Blitz 2025 (NI) Online11 Dec 2025 10Read more
CPD Blitz 2025 - (Dublin) In Person04 Dec 2025 10Read more
CPD Blitz 2025 (NI) In Person27 Nov 2025 10Read more
CPD Blitz 2025 - (Cork) In Person26 Nov 2025 10Read more
Risk, Governance and Leadership Conference 2025 (ROI/NI)05 Nov 2025 4Read more
Mercia Masterclass: Preparing for a Monitoring Visit (ROI/NI)27 May 2025 4Read more

Recommended CPD courses

TitleStart datePriceCPD hours 
CPD Blitz 2025 (ROI) Online17 Dec 2025 10Read more
CPD Blitz 2025 (NI) Online11 Dec 2025 10Read more
CPD Blitz 2025 - (Dublin) In Person04 Dec 2025 10Read more
CPD Blitz 2025 (NI) In Person27 Nov 2025 10Read more
CPD Blitz 2025 - (Cork) In Person26 Nov 2025 10Read more
Risk, Governance and Leadership Conference 2025 (ROI/NI)05 Nov 2025 4Read more
Mercia Masterclass: Preparing for a Monitoring Visit (ROI/NI)27 May 2025 4Read more
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Recomended CPD online courses

TitleStart datePriceCPD hours 
Spring 2025 Company Secretarial Update (ROI) On Demand20 Mar 2025 4Read more
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Recommended publications

 TitlePrice 
A Practical Guide for Company Directors€40.00Read more
A Practical Guide to Corporate Governance€35.00Read more
A Practical Guide to Value-added Tax€40.00Read more
A Professional's Guide to Understanding Stress and Depression€5.00Read more
Capital Investment: A Guide to Making Better Decisions€40.00Read more
Charity Accounting and Reporting at a Time of Change€28.00Read more
Client Science: The Five Cs Marketing Plan for Professionals€30.00Read more
Digital Marketing€16.99Read more
Family Business: A Survival Guide€19.99Read more
Leading with Integrity: A Practical Guide to Business Ethics€30.00Read more
Managing Professionals and Other Smart People€34.99Read more
Meaningful Performance Reviews€16.99Read more
Strategic Cost Reduction (2nd Edition)€26.99Read more
The Essential Manager: 30 Core Elements of Leadership€17.99Read more
The Governance of Credit Unions in Ireland€45.00Read more
Your Brand: Advance your Career by Building a Personal Brand€17.99Read more
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Future of the profession

IFAC

Title Source
Future-Fit Accountants: Roles for the Next Decade See PDF
Source
A Vision for the CFO & Finance Function See PDF
Source
Evaluating the Finance Function See PDF
Source

CPA

Title Source

What’s next for the profession? Listen to the forecast initiative podcast series

See page
Source

SAICA

Title Source

Leadership in a time of crisis series: Fact-based view of why the world is getting better

 See page
Source
Back to Top

Professional & commercial news

...
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Level 2: Developing [3-10 years PQE]
Level 4: Leader [C Suite CEO/CFO]

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