My Father Mario is a fellow FCPA and growing up I spent many weekends and summers working in my dad’s practice FM Cosgrave & Associates. I always enjoyed the work and accountancy seemed to come naturally to me. It was always my plan to pursue my designation once I completed my university degree in Corporate Finance. I enrolled at Griffith College and studied while I worked, the flexibility the CPA program offers made working and studying very manageable.

As I mentioned, my dad has been a CPA for over 35 years, and I have seen first hand the value the CPA designation can yield both personally and professionally. Out of curiosity I researched the other accountancy bodies, but CPA was a better fit for me with how the exams and learning program are structured.

I started with Farrelly Dawe White and Duignan Carthy O’Neill in Dublin and upon receiving my CPA qualification I moved to Deloitte. After a few years in the Dublin office, I had the opportunity to move to Bermuda where I worked and lived for 3½ years. I moved from Bermuda to Vancouver in Canada, and I have been here ever since.

I am currently the Managing partner for MNP’s advisory practice across British Columbia. MNP is Canada’s 5th largest CPA firm with over 9,000 team members and 120 offices across the country. Day to day I practice in Enterprise Risk Services, but I also oversee our teams that work in Corporate Finance, Due Diligence, Forensics, Valuations, Corporate Insolvency, Consumer Insolvency, Consulting and Process Improvement.

Adventure. I’ve seen so much of the world and experienced so many things thanks to my CPA qualification. The opportunity to live and work in Bermuda was amazing and something which likely would not have been available to me had I not obtained my CPA qualification. The CPA qualification is also widely recognised and when I moved to Canada I was admitted as a member of CPA Canada through the mutual recognition agreement that is in place between both institutes.

When I started my career, I always wanted to be a partner so reaching that milestone has been one of my biggest achievements but looking back, achieving my CPA qualification was the first important step in achieving my goals so I think its fair to say obtaining my qualification has to be my biggest career achievement.

My family. My parents instilled a strong work ethic in myself and my siblings and watching how hard my family members work continues to inspire me to work hard. Business leaders I admire are Warren Buffett and Jimmy Pattison, seeing their passion for work even as they enter the twilight of their years is amazing. I am fortunate that I really enjoy my job and it doesn’t feel like work, hopefully that will result in a very long and fulfilling career.

Go for it and give it your all. It’s a great qualification, a great career and the opportunities are endless. Also, once you qualify, consider using your designation to travel the world.

I have three young children, Sophie (6), Grayson (2) and Niall (1). They keep my wife Maura and I very busy but spending time with them gives me an opportunity to unwind from work. I am also a big sports fan and enjoy watching Soccer, Rugby, Golf, Boxing and American Football.

I enjoy meeting people who are eternal optimists. It’s always refreshing when you meet people who can see the good in anything and it’s a good reminder to take notice of the smaller things. Sometimes we need to remember that we work to live and not live to work.