Tips for Acing your job interview!

Tips for Acing Your Accountancy Practice Job Interview

Interviewing for a role in accountancy practice is a different experience to many other sectors. Firms are assessing not just your technical ability, but your client manner, your commercial awareness, and whether you'll fit into what is often a close-knit team. Here's what I've learned from placing practice accountants across the North West and Midlands since 2004.

Do your homework — properly

Looking at a firm's website the night before isn't enough. Before any interview, you should understand the firm's size and structure, who the key partners are, what sectors they specialise in, and whether they've been through any recent changes — mergers, acquisitions, or leadership moves. In the current market, with PE consolidation reshaping the North West landscape, this knowledge can make a real impression. It also helps you ask intelligent questions at the end.

Know your numbers

In practice, detail matters — and interviewers will notice if you're vague about your own experience. Be ready to talk about the size of the clients you've worked with (turnover, complexity), the volume of your portfolio, the types of work you've handled, and any particularly challenging assignments. Specific examples always land better than general statements.

Prepare for competency questions using STARR

Some practice firms use competency-based questions — "Tell me about a time when..." — and the best way to answer these is using the STARR format: Situation, Task, Action, Result, Reflection. Structure your answers clearly, keep them concise, and make sure the Result is tangible wherever possible.

Common questions to prepare for:

• Tell me about yourself — keep it professional and chronological; where you've been, where you are, and why you're looking now
• Why this firm? — this is where your research pays off; be specific about what appeals to you about them in particular
• What are your strengths and development areas? — be honest about development areas; interviewers see through vague non-answers like "I work too hard"
• How do you handle busy season / tight deadlines? — give a real example with a positive outcome
• Where do you see yourself in five years? — align this with what the firm can genuinely offer; it shows self-awareness

Talk about your clients, not just your tasks

The best candidates talk about their clients as people, not just as files. Interviewers in practice want to know that you understand the businesses behind the numbers and can build relationships. If you've had direct client contact — meetings, calls, presenting accounts — make sure you mention it.

Ask good questions

The questions you ask at the end of an interview say a lot about you. Avoid anything easily answered by a quick look at their website. Good questions for practice interviews include:

• How is the team structured, and how does work flow through it?
• What does progression typically look like from this role?
• What's the client base like — are there particular sectors or sizes that feature heavily?
• How has the firm changed in the last few years, and where is it heading?

Logistics matter too

Arrive early, dress appropriately for the firm (a Big 4 office and a small independent may have different cultures), and if it's a video interview, test your technology in advance. These things sound obvious but they still catch people out.

A final thought

The firms I work with are ultimately hiring someone they'll spend a lot of time with — in client meetings, through busy season, across a long career. Technical ability gets you through the door, but personality, enthusiasm, and genuine interest in the firm are what secure the offer. Don't be so focused on performing well that you forget to be yourself.

If you'd like help preparing for an upcoming interview, feel free to get in touch. Interview preparation is something I'm happy to help with as part of working with you.