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Accounting is far from being a standard job. The CPA’s career can follow many paths. Discover Kamille Lambert’s path.
Kamille, how would you describe your role as a financial strategy and performance consultant?
For me, being a consultant is a bit like managing ten accounting departments at once. My level of involvement varies from one project to another and my schedule is constantly changing. When I get up in the morning, I don’t always know what I’m going to be doing during the day.
When a client loses a resource, is at an impasse or needs a boost, my team is called in to help. Whether remotely or in their offices, I offer tailored support to help make them autonomous. This can range from product costing to a complete review of administrative processes.
What do your everyday tasks look like?
The only constant in my job is that I always have an opportunity to help someone. I think curiosity and adaptability are the two of the most important qualities for a consultant. When I start a new assignment, I look at the inner workings of the company, analyze its shortcomings and formulate an action plan.
This involves assimilating all the necessary information about the client’s business sector and how it manages its operations. My role also requires a great deal of flexibility: not all organizations use the same accounting software and don’t have the same reality. Blindly applying best business practices doesn’t work.
Emotional intelligence, leadership and communication are therefore an integral part of my job. I have to define the solutions that best fit the specific context and then find the optimal way to present these changes to employees.
What do you like best about this job?
The educational component: I have always aspired to become an expert in a field and share my knowledge to help others progress. As a consultant, I learn every day, but I also teach. I train my clients, it’s truly rewarding.
The leaders with whom I interact are people who value my expertise and want to grow. For them, it’s not an expense, it’s an investment in their team’s financial education.
I also have the opportunity to share my daily life with a host of interesting people, both in our offices and at my clients’. It makes all the difference. Since my first university internship, two things were clear to me: I wanted to work in this field and I wanted to do so under the Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton banner.