Businesses exist to make money. Even organisations that don’t exist to make money – charities and the public sector, for example – have to deal with money every day. And where there’s money there’s demand for people with financial qualifications: everything from chief financial officers at the top of the tree through to management accountants, tax regulation specialists and finance policy experts.

While many finance and accounting students automatically reach for the brochures offered by investment banks and big accountancy firms at milkround time, they’d do well to consider the opportunities available in other sectors, says Andrew Chancellor, the managing director of the recruitment firm Robert Walters. “The investment banking sector is having a bit of trouble at the moment, but in commerce and industry there is no shortage of positions for financial people,” he says.

Tax, compliance and regulatory skills are all particularly sought after by big companies, particularly those that span several countries. Also in high demand are graduates who start at a Big Four firm before moving into commerce and industry after gaining their professional qualifications. “They are in demand because they will be well-trained and will have the relevant knowledge of rules and regulations, particularly with regards to public companies.”

But big corporates with strong financial operations can also be an excellent training ground for graduates, says Kirsten MacLeod, the operations director at finance recruiter ECHM. “There are some outstanding opportunities in the commercial sector,” she says. “People who train with these big companies... continue in careers not just in the UK but globally.”

Working for a nonfinancial corporate can also offer the thrill of the real. “The reason that people join businesses that are not in the banking sector is the attraction of the tangible, be it a product or something that they can see,” MacLeod says. William Pegg, an accountant working in the gas trading team at the oil and gas company BG Group, agrees. “I know people in banking who are dealing with just numbers,” he says. “With us there is a tangible product; obviously I don’t see it but it’s nice to know that you’re accounting for something other than numbers.”

Most of Pegg’s colleagues are accountants or traders, but the nature of the company means that he is in contact with people from a wide variety of disciplines. While he enjoys this breadth, he plans to stay within the finance team. “I hope to progress from where I am now into a more senior management position within industry. I don’t see myself moving into banking.”

However, Helena Farstad, a manager at a major chemical company, enjoys working in industry but wouldn’t rule out a move into banking. The hospitality and tourism graduate recently completed her Chartered Institute of Management Accountants qualification alongside a graduate training programme that gave her experience of range of accounting roles and a six-month stint in procurement. “That was one of the best things,” she says. “Finance can be quite isolated – you have your area, your responsibility – but getting into the business and then coming back to finance it all made much more sense because you can see the two sides intertwined.”

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