By LawZ Bureau
Ashok Jain completed the course in Company secretaryship in the year 1987 and he also did his LLB. After qualifying, he opted not to go in for solo practice and joined Ernest and Young in the year 1983 as Audit Manager. He continued with E&Y till the year 1995. In 1995, he joined KLG Systel Ltd. as Company Secretary and Financial Controller. He continued with KLG Systel for about 9 years.
In 2004, he joined the Kool Group of companies and was looking after its brewery division. In the year 2010, he joined Mann Aluminium in the capacity of Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary. Presently he is working with the Prime Group as Head Legal and Finance and also Company Secretary.
Here are his word:
Working in the corporate sector has different work pressures. However I do not for a moment mean that there are no pressures on a solo company secretary practitioner. While working for a corporate house, I have experienced that there are high pressures as you are required to solve the issues of almost all the departments of the company.
We need to coordinate with all the departments of the company as well as external agencies to ensure smooth operations of the company. There are various secretarial, financial and legal compliances which are to be met on regular basis for which a lot of coordination and alertness is needed. There are so many amendments, notifications and circulars issued by the customs, excise and Ministry of Corporate Affairs which are required to be followed and complied on regular basis. All these are to be checked and followed-up regularly to avoid non-compliances of statutory obligations.
We need to attend various conferences, seminars and workshops organised by the Chambers of Commerce, FICCI, Institute of Company Secretaries and other organisations in order to keep pace with the changing practice and procedures in the profession. All this coupled with daily execution of the secretarial and financial duties of the corporate adds on to further pressure.
My personal opinion is that working in a corporate is better than establishing and setting an individual practice. While working in a corporate you are exposed to a variety of work which is difficult to get or execute when in solo practice. The working conditions in corporates are better than any other place. There are more challenges and scope to learn and execute than in solo practice.
My advice to young professionals and company secretaries would be that always keep yourself updated with law and latest procedures. Work with sincerity and keep intact your integrity. Always have the willingness and determination to learn new things and explore new horizons. Do not be afraid of any challenges and always try to learn something from the various assignments which you encounter in your daily execution.