Forging financial futures
26 January 2024
Forging financial futures
Jimmy Mok of Manulife explains how qualifying as a CPA has helped him build a new career as a financial planner
Affection for accounting
For Jimmy Mok, a love of accounting has led to a career in a completely different field, albeit one that allows him to use many of his CPA skills. A financial planner for financial services giant Manulife today, he first became enamoured of accounting at school, and then went on to study for a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accountancy from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, graduating in 2014. He then began his career as a CPA.
“I would say I love accounting,” he says. “For me, the numbers on a financial statement tell a story about a company. I loved studying accountancy in university and for the QP, and learning how to read those numbers in that way.”
So keen was he to get on with studying for the QP, in fact, that Mok started during the summer right after graduating from university, eventually qualifying in 2018. He says that the programme’s widespread recognition in Hong Kong, and the high esteem in which it is held by employers and clients, made it a natural choice for him.
“QP is very comprehensive compared to other courses. It was quite different from what I’d learned in university. The course syllabus is also very practical for our work.”
Mok started his career in 2014, working as an auditor for global professional services firm Mazars on clients from a range of industries, both listed and private. “I decided to go to a CPA firm for my first job because I wanted to know how to apply my accountancy knowledge in the real world,” he says.
The most interesting project he worked on, he adds, was the IPO of a company in the oil trading business. “Normally, with annual audit, you just deal with the client, but with that project, I dealt with stakeholders with diverse backgrounds, including lawyers and internal auditors.”
Mr. Jimmy Mok,
Financial Planner for financial services giant Manulife
A New Path
After leaving Mazars, Mok made the most dramatic change in his career path to date, opting not to move to another CPA firm or even to an accounting position in the field, but to Manulife. In his new role as a financial planner, he offers a range of services to both individual and corporate clients, from insurance to medical coverage to retirement planning.
“Most of my friends entered the commercial world when they got their CPA qualification. For myself, once I finished the QP, I asked myself: what’s next? The lifestyle of an internal auditor is something I don’t prefer — you’re usually just working with a computer, and that doesn’t fit my preferred working style. So I spent a year finding out more about the life of a financial planner. One of the main reasons was that I wanted to interact with people more,” Mok explained.
Having qualified and worked for a CPA firm, he adds, was a big help when it came to adjusting to the demands of his new job. “The experience of working as an auditor made it easier for me to prepare materials for my meetings with clients. I had to handle their financial information, and it wasn’t a problem for me to do so.
“Indeed, in the financial planning world, a CPA qualification can be very important. When both corporate and individual clients find out that I am a CPA, they are more willing to talk to me about financial planning.”
Mok is also in the process of studying for Certified Financial Planner certification, which he hopes to complete by the end of 2024.
In other respects, though, he still had a lot to learn when he started in his new role. “I still remember that during my first year as a financial planner, I was quite nervous about having face-to-face meetings with clients. I was more used to working in front of a computer.
“The job is rewarding because I can help my clients.They trust me and listen to the advice that I give them. When I can sort out a problem for them, it makes me very happy.”
Outside the office, Mok is a keen lover of sailing, which he first learned in secondary school. For the past few years, he has been involved in the HKICPA team; and for five years he has taken part in the Around the Island Race, an annual event that takes competitors on a challenging 26 nautical mile (48km) course around Hong Kong Island.
Mok also works in schools as an HKICPA ambassador, helping to spread basic financial knowledge to children and youth at both primary and secondary level. “Many people helped me and gave me support when I was in university, so I’d like to take the opportunity to give back to society,” he says.
Having qualified and worked for a CPA firm, he adds, was a big help when it came to adjusting to the demands of his new job. “The experience of working as an auditor made it easier for me to prepare materials for my meetings with clients. I had to handle their financial information, and it wasn’t a problem for me to do so.
“Indeed, in the financial planning world, a CPA qualification can be very important. When both corporate and individual clients find out that I am a CPA, they are more willing to talk to me about financial planning.”
Mok is also in the process of studying for Certified Financial Planner certification, which he hopes to complete by the end of 2024.
In other respects, though, he still had a lot to learn when he started in his new role. “I still remember that during my first year as a financial planner, I was quite nervous about having face-to-face meetings with clients. I was more used to working in front of a computer.
“The job is rewarding because I can help my clients.They trust me and listen to the advice that I give them. When I can sort out a problem for them, it makes me very happy.”
Outside the office, Mok is a keen lover of sailing, which he first learned in secondary school. For the past few years, he has been involved in the HKICPA team; and for five years he has taken part in the Around the Island Race, an annual event that takes competitors on a challenging 26 nautical mile (48km) course around Hong Kong Island.
Mok also works in schools as an HKICPA ambassador, helping to spread basic financial knowledge to children and youth at both primary and secondary level. “Many people helped me and gave me support when I was in university, so I’d like to take the opportunity to give back to society,” he says.
Interview and reporting by Richard Lord
