Why this Indian CA in Sydney believes in upskilling & how CPA Australia played a role in defining his career

• Hi, I am Subbu Subramanian, born and raised in Kolkata India, and currently based in Sydney. I am a CA (India), CPA Australia, MBA – IIM.
• Growing up, numbers have always been my strong suit. When it was time to decide on my career path, the decision to pursue Chartered Accountancy was a no-brainer.
• Over the years, I have continuously upskilled myself and in 2007, just before the recession, I moved to Australia for better opportunities.
• Today, I work in one of Australia’s largest insurance companies and CPA Australia has played a key role in defining my career path.

‘Insuring’ my Insurance journey

I qualified as a CA in India in late 2001, just after the 9/11 attacks, which meant I entered the job market at one of the most unfavorable times!

When I just started out, I wanted to pursue banking. However, I landed a job as a regional accountant with Allianz Insurance. So, my entry into the insurance industry was not by design, but by accident. My job was challenging yet rewarding.

Our CEO used to look at my role as the CFO of the region. It took me a few months to understand the operations, but after that, there was no looking back. Within a year, I realized the importance of protecting various facets of life in an uncertain world. I fell in love with insurance and the rest is history.