ICAS ICAS logo

Quicklinks

  1. About Us

    Find out about who we are and what we do here at ICAS.

  2. Find a CA

    Search our directory of individual CAs and Member organisations by name, location and professional criteria.

  3. CA Magazine

    View the latest issues of the dedicated magazine for ICAS Chartered Accountants.

  4. Contact Us

    Get in touch with ICAS by phone, email or post, with dedicated contacts for Members, Students and firms.

Login
  • Annual renewal
  • About us
  • Contact us
  • Find a CA
  1. About us
    1. Governance
  2. Members
    1. Become a member
    2. Newly qualified
    3. Manage my membership
    4. Benefits of membership
    5. Careers support
    6. Mentoring
    7. CA Wellbeing
    8. More for Members
    9. Area networks
    10. International communities
    11. Get involved
    12. Top Young CAs
    13. Career breaks
    14. ICAS podcast
    15. Newly admitted members 2022
    16. Newly admitted members 2023
  3. CA Students
    1. Student information
    2. Student resources
    3. Learning requirements
    4. Learning updates
    5. Learning blog
    6. Totum Pro | Student discount card
    7. CA Student wellbeing
  4. Become a CA
    1. How to become a CA
    2. Routes to becoming a CA
    3. CA Stories
    4. Find a training agreement
    5. Why become a CA
    6. Qualification information
    7. University exemptions
  5. Employers
    1. Become an Authorised Training Office
    2. Resources for Authorised Training Offices
    3. Professional entry
    4. Apprenticeships
  6. Find a CA
  7. ICAS events
    1. CA Summit
  8. CA magazine
  9. Insight
    1. Finance + Trust
    2. Finance + Technology
    3. Finance + EDI
    4. Finance + Mental Fitness
    5. Finance + Leadership
    6. Finance + Sustainability
  10. Professional resources
    1. Anti-money laundering
    2. Audit and assurance
    3. Brexit
    4. Charities
    5. Coronavirus
    6. Corporate and financial reporting
    7. Business and governance
    8. Ethics
    9. Insolvency
    10. ICAS Research
    11. Pensions
    12. Practice
    13. Public sector
    14. Sustainability
    15. Tax
  11. CPD - professional development
    1. CPD courses and qualifications
    2. CPD news and updates
    3. CPD support and advice
  12. Regulation
    1. Complaints and sanctions
    2. Regulatory authorisations
    3. Guidance and help sheets
    4. Regulatory monitoring
  13. CA jobs
    1. CA jobs partner: Rutherford Cross
    2. Resources for your job search
    3. Advertise with CA jobs
    4. Hays | A Trusted ICAS CA Jobs Partner
    5. Azets | What's your ambition?
  14. Work at ICAS
    1. Business centres
    2. Meet our team
    3. Benefits
    4. Vacancies
    5. Imagine your career at ICAS
  15. Contact us
    1. Technical and regulation queries
    2. ICAS logo request

Lynne Walker CA on transitioning from audit to Head of Business Advisory at Johnston Carmichael

Edinburgh skyline EW
  • LinkedIn (opens new window)
  • Twitter (opens new window)
By The CA Magazine

8 May 2018

Main points:

  • Lynne Walker CA is Head of Business Advisory with Johnston Carmichael.
  • Her role involves a focus on advisory services, strategy and ensuring that the firm supports and develops its people.
  • Lynne advises: “It’s not a competition… there are so many roles and routes out there for everybody.”

Lynne Walker CA tells us her career story, from auditing in the Highlands to supporting businesses as they grow in an ever-changing environment.

How did you get into the profession?

For me, it was an easy choice. I knew I wanted to be an accountant and I enjoyed working with numbers, so I took business-related subjects at school and went on to study it at university. Coming into the final year of my MA, I was starting to think what I would do next and the CA qualification stood out.

Where has your career taken you since then?

Beyond what I could have expected. My career started in audit, training with Deloitte in Aberdeen before moving back to my roots in the Highlands where I joined Johnston Carmichael.

It had a growing office, which enabled me to really thrive in a new role. Through the support and encouragement of colleagues, I progressed to Audit Director. In more recent years, my role developed and I became more involved in our Business Advisory business line. I was formally appointed as Head of Business Advisory for the firm last year.

Is it a big difference going from your role in audit to business advisory?

Absolutely. Within audit, I was concentrating more on the local teams and was very much focused on my client portfolio. This new role is concentrating on the firm and our strategy and, with more than 150 people in the business line, ensuring we continue to support and develop our people.

Crucially, we need to keep up with changes in accounting standards and legislation, and ensure we remain relevant in a profession that will be affected by automation and digitisation.

Has networking been important to your career?

I identified early on that if you want to increase your profile, the best way to do it is through networking and attending events.

I never used to enjoy networking, but the best way to overcome this is to do it - ask someone to mentor you in this area to help build your confidence. My advice is to get involved as early as you can in your career to build that network, making it easier for the future.

What are the characteristics of a good leader?

A good leader is passionate about the firm or company they work for and has a desire to continually improve on where they are now. They will care about their colleagues, inspire those around them and encourage input. You have to know as a leader when it’s your turn to make that decision, be able to stand by it and influence others to come along with you.

What advice would you give to newly qualified CAs?

Remember it’s not a competition. There doesn’t need to be a set time-frame to achieve things, so don’t compare yourself to others. We’ve all got our strengths and we should play to those.

There are so many roles and routes out there for everybody. There will be different opportunities and it’s about identifying where your strengths lie and pursuing the right direction for you. I have never been someone that can give you a five-year plan, even now, because I have always found opportunities present themselves if you work hard and are willing to challenge your abilities.


This Q&A is based on Lynne’s interview as part of the ICAS Gold Dust Career Insights series.

ICAS Gold Dust Career Insights Series: on-demand videos

"This series gives you the opportunity to hear from interviewed members, on their gold-dust moments, which influenced their career journey…

2022-01-xero 2022-01-xero
ICAS logo

Footer links

  • Contact us
  • Terms and conditions
  • Modern slavery statement
  • Privacy notice
  • CA magazine

Connect with ICAS

  • Facebook (opens new window) Facebook Icon
  • Twitter (opens new window) Twitter Icon
  • LinkedIn (opens new window) LinkedIn Icon
  • Instagram (opens new window) Instagram Icon

ICAS is a member of the following bodies

  • Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies (opens new window) Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies logo
  • Chartered Accountants Worldwide (opens new window) Chartered Accountants Worldwide logo
  • Global Accounting Alliance (opens new window) Global Accounting Alliance
  • International Federation of Accountants (opens new window) IFAC
  • Access Accountancy (opens new window) Access Acountancy

Charities

  • ICAS Foundation (opens new window) ICAS Foundation
  • SCABA (opens new window) scaba

Accreditations

  • ISO 9001 - RGB (opens new window)
© ICAS 2022

The mark and designation “CA” is a registered trade mark of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS), and is available for use in the UK and EU only to members of ICAS. If you are not a member of ICAS, you should not use the “CA” mark and designation in the UK or EU in relation to accountancy, tax or insolvency services. The mark and designation “Chartered Accountant” is a registered trade mark of ICAS, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales and Chartered Accountants Ireland. If you are not a member of one of these organisations, you should not use the “Chartered Accountant” mark and designation in the UK or EU in relation to these services. Further restrictions on the use of these marks also apply where you are a member.

ICAS logo

Our cookie policy

ICAS.com uses cookies which are essential for our website to work. We would also like to use analytical cookies to help us improve our website and your user experience. Any data collected is anonymised. Please have a look at the further information in our cookie policy and confirm if you are happy for us to use analytical cookies: