Career Path of a Risk and Compliance Manager at Google
Aditya's career progressed from a "big four accounting recruiting path," starting with an internship and full-time role at PWC, where they transitioned from core audit to forensic consulting, managing a global anti-bribery due diligence program and gaining experience in "regulatory risk." This experience led to a role at the client company, furthering their expertise in risk and compliance management, demonstrating a career built on "building the skillset on the job and building the relationships on the job."
Risk Management, Compliance, Accounting, Big Four Accounting Firms, Career Transition
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Aditya Ravikumar
Risk & Compliance Manager
UC Irvine, 2014
UCLA Andersson, MBA (in progress)
Economics
Technology
Legal
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. Aditya's career path demonstrates the value of internships. His internship at PWC during college led to a full-time offer, securing his post-graduation employment and allowing him to focus on relevant coursework.
2. His progression from core audit to forensic consulting within PWC showcases the ability to transition between different risk-related roles and build expertise in various risk domains (financial and regulatory).
3. Aditya's move from PWC to his current role at Google highlights the importance of networking and building strong relationships with clients, which can create opportunities for career advancement and growth within the risk management field.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Please include any internships or jobs you had before your current role.
In college, I studied economics and accounting. Economics was general but helped me understand the business environment. Accounting provided a solid understanding of how businesses operate.
During that time, I decided to pursue the Big Four accounting recruiting path. This involved learning about accounting and different firms. The Big Four are well-known in the industry, so I followed that path.
I was fortunate to get an internship with PwC while in college, between my third and fourth year. The summer internship went well, and I received a full-time job offer at its end. This was great because I started my senior year knowing I had a job after graduation.
I could then enjoy my final year of college and focus on classes that would benefit my career. After college, I joined the Big Four accounting world, starting in core audit. This role involved auditing the financial statements of large public companies.
The purpose was to ensure investors were protected and that financial statements were accurate and free of material misstatements. This experience also greatly enhanced my understanding of the business environment. I was often placed in specific industries, such as large semiconductor companies.
Through the audit process, I gained insight into their business models, operations, and revenue streams. This was a valuable experience, but I transitioned within PwC to the forensic consulting practice. There, I was assigned to a large tech client in the Bay Area.
We operated a global anti-bribery due diligence program, managing its day-to-day operations. It was a sophisticated program where we collaborated with lawyers worldwide to vet potential business partners. This was all based on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
Any potential business partner interacting with the government on behalf of the company had to undergo this due diligence process. This taught me about a different type of risk, moving from financial risks in audit to regulatory risk. This is how I began building my knowledge of the risk management landscape.
I worked with that client through PwC for about two and a half years, building strong relationships. Shortly after, I joined that client directly. This marked the beginning of my deeper dive into risk management and compliance roles.
In these roles, the key components can be broken down into the proactive and reactive sides of risk management. That was essentially my career path: studying relevant subjects for my initial jobs, then building skills and relationships on the job to reach my current position.