“Your Career Advisor” is responding this week to:

• Is it advisable to pursue a career in the HR field?
• I recently became Oracle certified, what should I do next?
• Now  that I have graduated, should I go for a CMA?
• As a secretary, what salary should I expect!

All reasonable questions related to careers, skill development or employment related issues – sent to advisor@skill-link.com - would be addressed in this section every week.

Q1: Is it advisable to pursue a career in the HR field?

I am a graduate of Helwan University's Faculty of Commerce and Business Administration in 2000. Soon after graduation I joined an international company where I am still employed as an executive secretary. My current salary is around LE 900 per month, in addition to transportation.

I received a "reception" training course in a five stars hotel; where I worked during one of my summer vacations. During the university holidays I was also involved in organizing exhibitions , conferences and telemarketing.

I enrolled in an internal auditor course and I am now a certified internal auditor. I have also received training in Microsoft Office and attended French language courses.

I 'm interested in the field of human resources, because I think it requires analytical and creative skills in coordination training courses , keeping employees motivated , selecting the right person for the right job etc… Also I know that it requires maintaining records , updating job descriptions etc...

Do you think it's a promising career, where I can fulfill my ambitions while enjoying organizational and financial growth?.

What is your advice ?

D. A. (Egypt)

Replying:

Dear Miss. A.

If one is successful in a career (hard working, smart, constantly learning and applying new skills, getting along with others…) then he or she will do well, regardless of what field they have chosen.

If you manage to get into the HR field, and do reasonably well, you will probably have more job / compensation advancement opportunities compare to remaining a secretary or office manager. The working hours may be longer and you may face more job pressures though.

Now the challenge is to get into the HR track with a good company; it would be useful to obtain some certifications and read a bit about various aspects of the HR function (motivation, compensation, interviewing & recruitment, labor law etc…). The acquired skills, though theoretical at this stage, will make you more familiar with the issues involved and would help you through interviews, specially when you are lacking HR hands-on experience.

During the last two years, skill-link.com's Interest Zone has carried a number of interviews in its "Close Up On Professions" section with HR Managers and Directors working in various sectors. You may wish to read those interviews, they are still available online.

The American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) and the American University in Cairo (AUC) regularly offer courses preparing for HR certifications. Click here for more information on the one offered by the AUC.

We hope the above was of some use to you.
Good Luck

Q2: I recently became Oracle certified, what should I do next?

I graduated two years ago from Helwan University's Faculty of Commerce (English section). I have been working for a little less than a year in the customer service area of a large Egyptian company (name withheld) in the data and internet industry. My current salary averages LE 800 per month, and I am responsible for receiving clients complaints, preparing reports and following up on clients problems.

I am also an Oracle Certified Application developer from Oracle University

The problem is that in my current position (customer service) I am loosing what I learnt (ORACLE) and I do not know what to do with my career prospects.

Please in need your advice.

M. K. (Egypt)

Replying:

Dear Mr. K.

It seems you are fond of application development and databases, thus you went for the Oracle certification. While you are currently employed in a company that has a good name recognition and is in a rapidly growing sector in Egypt and around the world; being in customer service will not take you very far on the application development (or database) front.

What to do ? It is obvious you should be pursuing another job, if you really are after a position in application development, technical support etc… It is important that you do not feel obliged to do that just because you enrolled in Oracle courses and obtained a certification. That on its own is not a good reason.

At least you are employed, so there is no immediate pressure to get a job (compared to someone out of work). Try and identify the companies / organizations that use Oracle, they should be more interested in you. Most likely any offer you will receive, should match if not exceed your current salary.

We hope the above was of some use.

Good Luck.

Q3: Now that I have graduated, should I go for a CMA?

I am a 22 year old graduate of Cairo University's Faculty of Commerce (English section), during my summer vacations I was an intern in HSBC and Credit Agricole Indosuez Bank.

Since I was in a French school, I am fluent in the language.

Now that I have completed my university studies, should I register in a CMA (Certified Management Accountant) preparation program ? Will the be of benefit to me in finding a job ?

S. G. (Giza).

Replying:

Dear Miss. G.

You never told us what is it you think you would like to work in ? accounting & finance or sales or human resources or tourism … ?? As you know each of those areas mandate a different set of skills and knowledge…

The CMA as we are both aware is for graduates who seek to advance in an accounting related career. So assuming this is a field you do not object to be working in, and to answer your question, it will not hurt you to be CMA certified, since it will force you to read and study more in your available time. However, in our opinion it will not be very beneficial to you at this stage, it is more useful to those with two to three years of practical accounting or finance experience.

What could be more beneficial to you would be more generic skill related studies; such as advanced business writing skills, effective communication, IT skills (eg. Access & Visual Basic) etc…

If your French is really good, you may want to focus on French companies working in Egypt (NSGB, Schneider, Lafarge, Accor etc…) or those extensively dealing with French speaking countries.

Good Luck.

Q4: As a secretary, what salary should I expect!

I am a 27 year old graduate of Alexandria University’s Faculty of Arts, I have always been living in Alexandria. After graduation I worked in a shipping company for four years in customer services and administrative tasks. I then took a year off around the time I was due to deliver my daughter. Now that she is close to one year old, I am considering going back to work. My employers are offering me the position of secretary to the General Manager, as my previous position is taken. I do not mind the job, however what do you think I should expect with regards to salary ?

M. A. (Alexandria).

Replying:

Dear Ms. A.

Since you are returning back to the same employer, it is most likely that you will resume from where you left (ie. the last salary). This is not very scientific, but a lot of people may take it for granted. You did not provide us with information on your last salary before you take your unpaid maternity leave, thus we cannot judge its adequacy.

skill-link.com constantly monitors salary levels for a variety of functions and industries. The following are some averages for secretaries in Egypt. You should note however that the figures are highly dominated by secretaries working in the Greater Cairo area. Alexandria is known to have slightly lower salaries for the same jobs; so you should factor that in.

Average of secretaries / office managers monthly salaries (from all sectors) in Egyptian Pounds; broken down by years of experience brackets:

Average monthly salaries for secretaries with 3 to 5 years of experience (which is a category you most likely belong to despite the fact that you did not work as a secretary before) are presented below, comparing a number of sectors (or groups of sectors):

Good Luck

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Note from the editor: 
Employer names and inquiry sender names were withheld for confidentiality