Why international experience can accelerate audit careers

If you are offered the opportunity to do international work experience, take it. That is the advice of Hoang Viet Anh CPA, who recently returned to Ho Chi Minh City after working in New York for almost two years as part of Deloitte’s Global Development Program.

Stepping out of his comfort zone in one of the world’s financial capitals, Hoang gained valuable lessons that have helped shape his outlook on both the technical and human sides of the audit profession.

Hoang’s New York experience helped turbocharge a career that was already on the fast-track. He joined Deloitte as an audit associate in 2015 and quickly progressed to a senior role. An eight-month secondment to the company’s Singapore office in 2018 led to a role as audit manager and, after his experience in the US, he was promoted to audit senior manager in 2024.

“When I compare myself before and after the New York assignment, I can clearly see how much my mindset changed,” says Hoang. “What stood out most to me was the diversity of the people around me.

My team included people from Europe, Asia, South America and Africa. Before that, most of my experience had been working with Vietnamese colleagues who shared relatively similar cultural backgrounds and values.

“I was exposed to completely different perspectives, working styles and lifestyles. It taught me to look at situations from multiple dimensions instead of only one perspective.”

A young leader

That exposure to diverse thinking has helped Hoang grow into his leadership role. His portfolio of audit engagements spans industries such as manufacturing, consumer goods and media, and he oversees about 20 project teams throughout the year.

“Every project teaches you something new because every person has a different working style, different strengths and different weaknesses,” he says. Some people are very process-focused, while others care more about results and outcomes. “When I first started managing people, I learned how to adapt my communication and management style depending on who I was working with.”

Building confidence as a young leader has been a gradual process, but Hoang says the technical side of audit came naturally. He learned about the profession while studying finance at Vietnam’s Foreign Trade University. Alumni working in audit described the critical thinking required for the job, which captured Hoang’s attention.

“In university, I participated in a lot of academic competitions where we had to analyse business case studies, identify problems and come up with solutions under pressure,” he says. “I could see similarities between the way I naturally approached problems and the way audit professionals worked, so I felt confident that I could fit into the industry and perform well there.”

Early in his career, Hoang says he learned through observation, applying lessons to his own work and reflecting on what suited him and what did not.

“Over time, after handling more projects and more responsibility, the confidence naturally started to grow,” he says. “For me, the key is continuous learning. If you keep learning, gaining experience and improving, confidence follows naturally because you begin trusting your own judgement more.”

New challenges for auditors

Continuous learning is proving vital to success in a rapidly evolving industry like audit. Hoang describes the pace of technological change as “huge” and expects artificial intelligence (AI) to transform the industry.

“Companies are already using technology not only for data storage, but also to automate processes and monitor transactions at a much larger scale than ever before,” he says. “That creates new challenges for auditors, because our work depends on understanding business processes and analysing data. If companies are using advanced technology, auditors need to understand that technology, too.”

AI has already taken the reins of many routine, repetitive audit tasks, and while Hoang says it does not necessarily make audit work easier, he believes it increases the value of human judgement. “As AI and big data become more common, professional scepticism will become even more important.”

Client expectations of audit are also evolving. Hoang’s role involves navigating this shift while developing the skills of his team. It is a balance he describes as “one of the hardest parts of leadership”.

“Clients expect high-quality service and often work under tight deadlines, but at the same time we have a responsibility to develop the next generation of professionals,” he says. “We are not just delivering one project — we are building long-term team capability.”

Supportive teams are essential

Hoang seeks to align client expectations with realistic project timelines as early as possible. From there, he identifies the highest-priority tasks that are critical to project success.

“Once I understand those priorities, I assess the strengths and capabilities of each team member and match responsibilities accordingly. Where possible, I create opportunities for team members to take ownership of important tasks under my supervision and guidance.

I explain the objectives and help them understand where to start, and I maintain an open environment where people can ask questions and exchange ideas freely. “That way, I can still maintain quality and oversight while helping people develop their technical and leadership skills.”

Hoang aims to create an inclusive work environment and knows firsthand the value of a supportive team. When he began in New York in 2022, he was assigned to a project in investment management — an industry outside his experience.

“I had the chance to work in projects and provide services to one of the biggest American alternative asset managers specialising in private equity, credit and real assets with billions of dollars,” he says. “It involved the audit of financial instruments and investments in the credit and private equity sector that broadened my knowledge and experience a lot.”

During the first month, Hoang says he spent time on Google, YouTube and e-learning platforms to understand the basics of the industry. “I felt like I was back at entry level, learning everything from scratch.”

“Fortunately, I had a supportive team. They understood that I was adjusting not only to a new industry but also to a completely new country and environment. Sometimes on Fridays they would stay back after work for an extra hour or two just to help me understand key concepts and fundamentals.

“After two or three months, with their support and a lot of self-learning, I was able to adapt quite well. Challenges are often the fastest way to develop new skills and sharpen your knowledge.”

Mentoring the next generation

The support of senior colleagues has helped to shape Hoang’s audit career, and he hopes to provide similar guidance to young professionals through both structured and informal mentorship.

“When younger professionals come to me with concerns or challenges, I try to listen carefully and help them think through their options,” he says. “For example, if someone tells me they want to move into corporate finance, we will discuss the specific role or industry they are aiming for, what technical skills they need to build, what certifications might help them and what experiences they should pursue now to reach that goal later.

“I ask a lot of brainstorming questions because, ultimately, no one else can answer those career questions for them. They need to reflect and make those decisions.”

Hoang participates in a structured coaching program at Deloitte and also mentors young finance professionals outside of the firm.

“Recently, I have had several professionals contact me through LinkedIn, including Vietnamese professionals working in Europe, because they felt my international experience in places like New York and Singapore could give them a useful perspective,” he says.

“I think those cross-cultural experiences have really helped me provide broader advice,” adds Hoang. “Now, when I mentor younger professionals, I often draw on those experiences because I can compare different working cultures and professional environments. That international exposure has made my advice much more practical and meaningful.” 

Hoang also reminds his mentees to maintain work–life balance.

“Careers are long journeys, and people need to take care of their health as well as their relationships and personal wellbeing,” he says. “Especially in developing countries, many professionals spend too much time working and neglect their own health or family life.  Hard work is important, but long-term success also depends on maintaining good physical and mental health.

“After returning from New York, I became much more conscious of this. Now, I try to spend about an hour every day exercising. I think maintaining that balance is very important for long-term success and happiness.”

The future industry

While Hoang helps young finance professionals find their way in the audit industry, he also has thoughts on how to reverse the accounting and audit talent shortage.

“Younger generations are increasingly interested in technology-related careers, and many people still see accounting and audit as very traditional professions,” he says. “That is something the industry needs to address, and one of the most important things audit firms can do is fully embrace technology and integrate it into daily work.

“Firms need to invest more heavily in AI and digital tools but also provide continuous learning opportunities so young professionals can see that they are developing technology skills alongside technical audit skills.”

Highlighting the social value of auditing may also help to attract more talent, Hoang says.

“Auditors play a critical role in protecting the public interest and supporting the integrity of capital markets. As technology changes the financial world, that role will become even more important. If people better understand the value and purpose of the profession, I think more young talent will be attracted to it.”

More opportunities for flexible working and international exposure may help attract more talent to the profession, Hoang believes.

“Firms should continue expanding flexible career models, including virtual mobility. For example, someone in Vietnam can now work collaboratively on projects with teams in Singapore or Malaysia without physically relocating. That kind of cross-border experience is very attractive to younger talent.”

Hoang says international work experience “opened his eyes”. Moving alone to a new country, building a new life there and starting work in an industry with no previous experience “was challenging from every perspective — technically, culturally and personally.

But overcoming those challenges taught me that even very difficult situations can be managed if you have the right mindset and the willingness to keep learning.”

One piece of advice

“Understand what you truly want in your career and in life. Focus on where you want to be in the next five years. Once you have that picture in mind, you can start identifying the skills, certifications, experiences and connections you need to get there.”