Professional development insight
Diary of a student… Sukhraj Matwala MCIPPdip Payroll supervisor, Mazars
going to be easy and there were many occasions where I had to sacrifice going out with my friends as I had an essay to do. But you get plenty of time to do the essays, and if you do a little bit each day it does not prevent you from doing the things you usually enjoy doing. I would recommend not leaving essays to the last minute which I sometimes did. Did the fact that the CIPP is Chartered or recognised within the industry influence your decision to enrol with the CIPP? And were there any particular modules of interest prior to enrolling? Knowing that CIPP is Chartered and recognised within the industry played a major part in deciding to study with CIPP. A lot of my family are accountants and they are always proud to say that they are chartered accountants – well, I’m proud to say I’m a Chartered payroll professional. The first year for me was instrumental in my career as it taught me the payroll basics – such as calculating tax, National Insurance manually – that are skills I still use to this day. For someone who is thinking about studying for a CIPP qualification what would your advice be to them? Go for it. I know initially it is daunting when you think about the time-frame of how long it takes to achieve the qualification and all the work involved and those sacrifices you may have to make, but I promise you it is worth it. The feeling you get on graduation day is one of the best, ever. Having the letters ‘MCIPPdip’ after my name makes me very proud as it’s a very big achievement and something no one can take away. n
Can you give us a brief background into your life
payrolls, manage four members of staff, process payrolls, and implement new payrolls which is something new for me. With regards to my qualifications, I did GCSEs and ‘A’ levels and also have a degree in law and criminology. Why did you choose to study the Foundation Degree? I decided to study the Foundation Degree as I thought it would enhance my payroll skills and help me learn about the management side whilst working in the payroll industry. I also wanted to be one of the few people within the industry to become a payroll ‘professional’ and have the special letters after my name. How important is this degree in relation to your career? I believe the Foundation Degree has been important in relation to my career especially at my current job. My director, who has the same qualification as me, knows the hard work it takes to complete and recognises the benefit of hiring someone with the many skills obtained via the degree and which I am now putting into practice. Having the Foundation Degree is important as it could be the key reason whether you get hired or not. I believe it was, definitely, one of the reasons I got my current job. How did you cope with the work life balance and your study? Studying a part-time degree was never
I am 32 years old and living in good-old Essex. I have been working since I was seventeen. My first job was working in Sainsbury’s and then moving to Tesco whilst I was studying. I learnt so many life skills at both jobs and I am very grateful to have worked there. I am an avid Arsenal fan, and you will catch me going all around the country and Europe following them. I never once thought, when younger, that I would have a career in payroll. Can you give us an insight into your career and qualifications background? I have worked in payroll for around nine years. My first payroll job was for a charity where I used to process timesheets for carers of disabled people. I stayed there for three years before moving to a company called Trace Payroll Services, which is a payroll bureau dealing with external clients’ payroll. I started as a payroll consultant and worked my way up to be a payroll manager processing around 3,500 payslips a month and managing five people. Currently, I am working as payroll supervisor for a firm called Mazars, that is based in Tower Hill, London and which is known for tax, audit accountancy services. The payroll department is spread over four offices: Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool and London, which allows me to occasionally work in them. My role here is to review
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| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward |
Issue 37 | February 2018
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