Baker Tilly Experiences?

It was a while ago but I had a Baker Tilly assessment day (and failed). It my first assessment day that I had ever been to and I find it quite difficult.

The day began with a presentation held by a partner telling us why Baker Tilly was so wonderful. You have a bit of time to ask questions; just throw in one so that you seem interested.

If I remember correctly the test we had to do was slightly different than the ones online. We were given a booklet to read through and then had to answer questions. Questions were mainly (if not all, I can't remember exactly) numeracy based and I sort of panicked when I had trouble using their calculators. So bring your own so you're comfortable with it.

Afterwards we had to do a group assessment which I thought was badly run compared to others that I had been in. There were 8 of us or so and we were given only 10-15minutes to discuss which gave us very little time to put any contribution. To be honest I was 95% sure that I had messed up the written test before hand and it was difficult to get involved.

Finally there was a lunch with a few of the trainees. There was just a table to get food from where we could walk around and talk to people.

Sorry i can't say more but I don't remember it too clearly.

Thanks Terry! That is still very useful.

Just wondering what the group assessment involved? (if you remember haha)

Hi,

I had an assessment centre on Friday and found out a couple of hours ago that I had passed. I thought it was a pretty enjoyable experience (except the numerical and verbal tests), the presentation was great and really sells the firm well as do they current graduate trainees at the end of the day. The numerical and verbal tests were alot harder than online and sometimes required information from several different articles / data. I thought id messed up the maths (usually my strong point) as I only answered 23 out of 30 and felt like id wasted time on 1 or 2 questions but as I passed I must of done OK. So dont panic if you think youve done badly theyre supposed to be harder than the online ones and relax as its the group discussion afterwards, which I really enjoyed. It was about a failing business and how to invest in some donated money (3 examples were given) and I really enjoyed discussing the issues with fellow applicants. Just make sure you speak and let others speak and that you can argue your point but also back down if you realise someone else has made a better point. And be aware of time as you all need to reach a decision by the end, if nobody mentions the time limit make sure you mention there is one and how you should use it. Hope that helps?

thanks, yup that does help! I guess i'm just worried incase i argue one point and everyone argues a different point haha

And there was no interview on the day right?

Good luck with the next round!

No there was no interview thats the next stage. As long as your point is valid and can give a reason then it doesnt matter just accept everyone else's point gracefully. Theres no wrong answer really its only bad if you dont speak or try and argue your point untill youre blue in the face. Just dont be too dominant or too reserved and youll be fine.

Good luck

thanks, I really appreciate the help :)

good luck in finding your job!

Thanks for the help guys,

I didn't get it :( I don't really know why, I thought i contributed alot to the group, asked questions in the partner presentation etc

If anyone wants the know, the group exercise hasn't changed for 3 years,

Its about a failing theatre and you have three options to try and save it, (buy shares, spend on advertising or refurbish the bar and restaurant),

Thanks anyway guys,

Hard luck. Dont worry im sure youll get something soon. I recently got rejected from grant thornton but then on the same day got a phone call to say PWC are giving me an offer so im happy about that :)

Good luck in future applications

I've rang them 3 times for feedback and emailed and left voice mail because they are "never in" and always busy!

thanks haggiz, keeping my spirit up

Did you leave messages? ...they should really be getting back to you!

Ya!

I had it last thursday, found out on friday, emailed and called on friday, said i'll call on monday, left message on monday..as all the HR people were busy..

I think i'll haress them again tomorrow

..."busy" ...tell them if they don't get back to you you'll start posting angry messages on WikiJob. ..that'll get them into action!

hi traineewannabe

I have an AC coming up soon and your posts have been very helpful. A question if I may - how many candidates were involved in your group discussion exercise?

I hope it's changed to a number lower than 8... (referring to terry1986's experience)

many thanks

mmm i think about 8 or maybe 7 as well, can't quite remember!

thanks for quick reply!

That seems to accord with what an earlier poster said, so you probably remember correctly!

Hmm, i've never been a fan of group exercises which have more than 6 people... I feel it creates a pressure to try to say as much as pos regardless of the merit of your utterance more than anything else. Everyone vying for talk time.

Guys l recently attended a KPMG assessment center and failed. And in August l am attending an AC at Baker Tilly. Any valid tips please

ur Baker Tilly A/C where is it? and for what role?

AAT Trainee and in Leeds

Hi, i've got an AC coming up in the Leeds office for the same role. When is your AC?

Is the Baker Tilly website showing vacancies for anyone?

It isn't for me. It'd be nice to get an idea of when they'll be up!

BT is now showing vacancies, but i'm struggling on their app form.

Does anyone have any advice on answering the question:

"Baker Tilly spends over £100,000 on each student’s training. If you had £100,000 to spend, in what way would you maximise the return on your investment? (200 words)"

Any light anyone could shed on the question would be much appreciated.

Cheers,

Space

BT is now showing vacancies, but i'm struggling on their app form.

Does anyone have any advice on answering the question:

"Baker Tilly spends over £100,000 on each student’s training. If you had £100,000 to spend, in what way would you maximise the return on your investment? (200 words)"

Any light anyone could shed on the question would be much appreciated.

Cheers,

Space

Hi Space,

I'm amazed to hear they're still using the same questions! I applied to Baker Tilly in 2008 and was successful at every stage and then worked for them for about a year.

I recall that I answered this question by firstly saying it's important to spread the investment over several options (so as to minimise the potential of losing all your money should you invest in one thing, and it then goes bad). The three things I said I would invest in were:

-shares in a renewable energy company
-a low-risk savings account such as an ISA
-property

PLEASE BEAR IN MIND that we are now operating in a drastically different financial climate from the time when I applied (February 2008), so the idea of investing in property is probably not a very good idea anymore!!! (although I'm sure if you did choose property as an option and were able to explain your reasons lucidly enough, it would still pass muster). This is an important question, so take time to think about it and do other research (on Google etc). I remember that the partner actually commented on my answer in my partner interview, which is the final stage on a Baker Tilly assessment day.

Good luck with your application. Which scheme have you applied to - audit? Which office?

I have applied tot he corporate finance position in London.

Yeah I think I might give property a miss perhaps, but that was my idea go through a few saving/investment routes and just bang on about basic risk/reward etc. Get suitable advice from professionals etc.

How did u find BT?

Regards,

Space

BT was good, although the job was boring. They're obviously not Big 4, so you don't get all the perks (corporate events, big salary etc) that you get with Big 4 firms, but you're still made to feel appreciated. Audit is an absolute drain on your soul though! I think CF will be much more interesting (although obviously a lot more competitive in this climate). All the best anyway mate. If you've got any other questions about the application process, give me a PM.

Cheers mate, will most probably be in touch provided all goes well.

Still struggling on that shite question though to be honest.

Space.

Hi what-a-banker

I recently applied to BT and they got back to me straight away asking me to do online tests. I don't have a good record with doing online tests so wondered if you could give me any advice? What kind of tests are they - SHL or PSL etc? How hard are they to pass?

Regards

gradtrainee

Gradtrainee,

loads of good practise on efinancialcareers.com

also try Kent university numerical practise. But only the second test.

What did u put for the investment question mate?

Good luck,

space.

Hi Space

thanks for the advice, really hope I pass these. Never done them for BT before.

For the investment question, I agree with what-a-banker. Spread the investment out over several options. Consider making long and short term investments in commodities such as oil and gold, and invest in ISAs. Maybe you could consider investing in property in the long term, depending on location, despite the volatility of the market at the moment - particularly in London where regeneration will take place for 2012 Olympics.

Hope that helps.

gradtrainee

p.s. any other advice about online tests will be much appreciated.

HI everyone,

I've been invited to an assessment centre and I was wondering if there was anyone could tell me more about the day? Can anyone give me advice on how to tackle each task?

Thanks

gradtrainee

At mine they had a repeat of the numerical and verbal tests, a group exercise where you discussed proposals for investing a local council's money, a competency interview with an HR woman and an audit manager, a case study, and finally a partner interview. The way they did it on my day was to eliminate people who hadn't met the required standard at each stage (so some people were sent home after the tests, literally an hour in!). However I don't know if they operate this way in all offices, or if they even still use the same exercises on assessment days (bear in mind, my assessment day was 2 years ago).

It was all pretty common sense. and I'm sure if you are good with people, have been to other assessment centres (and thus know the drill) and have prepared well for any questions they ask about developments in accountancy / the economy and expectations of the job and qualification, you will be fine.

Hope that helps.

T

any news from London Corporate Finance yet?

Have a lot on at uni so has had to take a back seat for this week. Will be submitting this weekend though, did you go for it as well?

Thanks for the reply T.

I'm a bit worried about the case study and the interviews. What sort of questions did they ask you? Apparently the numerical and verbal tests are much harder than the online ones!

gradtrainee

It was a couple of years ago now gradtrainee, so hard to remember specific qstns but they were typical competency qstns centred around customer service (cos they want to be sure they can put you in front of their clients), juggling lots of activities/responsibilities (cos they want to see if you'll be able to manage the work/study balance attached to doing the ACA qualification) and problem solving. Sorry I can't be more specific. They'll also ask you some questions on the economy and developments in accountancy, so make sure you've done your homework!

what-a-banker,

where is the best source for information on the economy and developments in accountancy? what sort of things should I look out for? I'm a bit worried about the case study exercise too, could you shed some light on what you had to do (if you can remember)?

gradtrainee

When I did it, the case study outlined a fictional business run by a father and his two sons. The scenario was that they started squabbling and they all wanted different things for the business. You had to comment on how you as an employee of Baker Tilly would intervene in this matter, and also what opportunities there were for selling services other than audit to the client. It's all common sense, so nothing to worry about really.

In terms of information on the accountancy industry, http://www.accountancyage.com/ is an absolute goldmine. Also make sure you keep up with general business / economy news. The BBC Business News website http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/default.stm is particularly good and Robert Peston's blog is also useful http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/robertpeston/

Hope that helps.

T

Thanks what-a-banker, it gives me some idea of what to expect now. I've never done a case-study like this before and don't know how long they're going to grill me about it. I'm just worried they're going to ask me really hard questions which I don't know the answer to! I've heard people get a tough time doing the case-study, which I'm a bit worried.

Really appreciate all your hints and tips.

gradtrainee

Try not to worry too much about the case study. When I did mine they didn't actually ask me about it in person, they got me to write down all my thoughts. They use this exercise to assess whether you've got the potential to deal with a client (and their business issues) in the way they'd like you to - they won't expect you to know everything already. No problems re. the tips, best of luck for the day!

Hey everyone, after waiting very patiently I have an assessment day coming up with BT, which is roughly one month away. I know what-a-banker has given some very detailed posts (which I am very thankful for), but would anyone else like to share their recent experiences of what happens at the assessment centre?

Thanks

gradtrainee

I'm not sure if it's too late for this comment but I didn't put anything about different options etc in my application form, I talked about investing the money into training and qualifications, so that I may positively contribute to their firm and that I would reap a strong financial reward for myself in the future. My application form has passed two years so it must be good enough. Just thought you might like to think of the other approach.

Got online tests coming up, failed last year but have passed a few this year and will just give it my best shot.

They have only sent me the link for verbal reasoning, apparently they have to be done first and they are my weaker ones :-/

Hi
Just got an email for assessment centre. Email said there would be retests, a group exercise and interview. Would be my first ever assessment centre so i am little nervous. Just wanted to know is this the final stage of recruitment or is there any other stage like a final interview. And the interview in Assessment centre is it with partner or just a manager.
Regards
AD
n.b anything just to help my nerves please!

Hey
I also got invitation for AC (Gatwick office). I think that we are actually having 2 interviews: first with HR person and 2nd one with partner. But I think that in order to be interviewed the 2nd time you need to be successful at the first interview, group exercise and psychometric tests. Apparently, the second interview is the last stage of their recruitment process.
When and where is your AC???

mine is on 10thjune in edinburgh!
thanks!the funny thing is i emailed them to find out abt the stuff tats going to take place and they said its going to be unfair to others if they tell me anything!!my friend applied to PWC and they literally told him everything they are going to ask in interview!!wt questions and wt they are looking in answer!!!i was like tats so unfair!
when is urs!!and how are u preparing for it!!i am a bit scared coz this is my first ever AC!!

They told us at our Assessment Day that they are purposely vague because they actually want to get to know you (which PWC arent really interested in). They are a very friendly firm and they need to know you fit in. Just prepare as you would for an interview, but I think what happens depends on the office itself and just how the day plays out. Don't stress out about it, just be yourself. Good luck...

Thanks batman. I didnt look on it dat way. Yeah if ppl dont know wt they r going to be asked they wud end up telling the truth, instead of some made up answers and then ur personality really stands out. Actualyy this was tge reason fr me aplying to BT. The value ppl more and u go along as a family.
Thanks. Is the test in the AC more difficult than the online ones.

Not harder, its just different, you have a booklet and the questions need you to find the info as opposed to having it just presented to you bit by bit. I think the tests are largely for continuity with your originals anyway. I really like Baker Tilly I was told my application has moved to my 2nd choice office and I have passed all assessments, just waiting to hear on meeting the partners and hopefully getting an offer. They are really nicce people at Baker Tilly, very personable and down to earth, I am really hoping I do get the offer... :)

Not harder, its just different, you have a booklet and the questions need you to find the info as opposed to having it just presented to you bit by bit. I think the tests are largely for continuity with your originals anyway. I really like Baker Tilly I was told my application has moved to my 2nd choice office and I have passed all assessments, just waiting to hear on meeting the partners and hopefully getting an offer. They are really nicce people at Baker Tilly, very personable and down to earth, I am really hoping I do get the offer... :)

My AC is on 10th JUne too, but in Gatwick office. Batman 2303, do you know where I can find similar tests to those I will be requierd to do during the AC? I'm a bit stressed now...I was preparing for the same type of tests as the online ones....