MAMTA BINANI tells you how to get into the profession of company secretary, an evergreen role in the dynamic economic and business scenario today
The Indian economy seems to be on the right track with the last recorded GDP growth of 7.6 per cent. The Government’s initiatives like ‘Start-up India Stand-up India’ and efforts towards improving ease of doing business have improved business sentiment with more and more people joining the entrepreneurial bandwagon. This scenario has given rise to new companies, ventures and start-ups, thereby opening a whole lot of job opportunities for youngsters. While it is an exciting time to dabble in new careers, there are very few career options which are evergreen and continue to command respect in current setup.
The company secretaries (CS) course is one in that list. A qualified company secretary can find good positions in private as well as public sectors. They can also look for openings in stock exchanges, ministries, company law boards and various Government departments. larger the company entail better emoluments.
The CSs have the added advantage of setting up their own consultancy business after obtaining a certificate of practice. Companies with a paid-up share capital between Rs10 lakh and Rs5 crore are required to employ the services of practicing company secretaries for issuing corporate compliance certificates. Company secretaries gain immense knowledge of a wide variety of subjects. They can also take up position of a lecturer or a visiting faculty in colleges.
A company secretary course is a three-stage professional examination course — foundation, executive and professional. Students who have passed senior secondary (10+2 or equivalent) examination of a Board/university constituted by an India law or any exam recognised by the Centre as equivalent are eligible to join the CS foundation programme. All graduates and post graduates (excluding fine arts) need not go through the foundation programme and can directly seek registration to the executive programme stage of the CS course. After clearing the professional programme, one needs to complete 15 months of training in a company or under a practising CS. One has to undergo 15 days training with the Registrar of Companies, stock exchanges and specified regulators and 15 days compulsory Management Skills Orientation Programme. After the professional course and training, one becomes eligible to be an associate member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI).
A company secretary’s service is important for an organisation’s management. They cover a wide variety of functions and act as a vital link between the company, the board of directors, shareholders, governmental and regulatory authorities. A company secretary is a compliance officer of the company as well as corporate planner and strategic manager.
A company secretary also looks after finance, accounts, legal, personnel and administrative functions. They are required to handle matters related to Central/State sales tax, excise laws, labour laws and corporate law. He ensures that board procedures are followed and regularly reviewed. He provides guidance to the chairman and the directors on their responsibilities under various laws.
These days a company secretary commands high position in the value chain and acts as conscience seeker of the company. The scope is increasing every year due to factors like expansion of corporate sector within and beyond the borders, emergence of new corporate entities like limited liability Partnerships (llP) and OCP’s, e-Governance, new Companies Bill and focus on corporate governance and CSR. The increased emphasis on corporate governance has further compelled the boards of the companies to develop systematic and procedural aspects to ensure statutory compliance and at the same time establish extended governance practices, thereby creating a demand for company secretaries.
The recent upheavals in the corporate world has created a greater demand for displaying corporate credibility and transparency by organisations in managing their internal affairs. There is also a need to retain the confidence of various stakeholders. Since, the top management is busy managing the general working of an organisation this new challenge can only be shouldered to highly qualified and competent professionals like the company secretary. Earlier, the traditional role of a company secretary was limited to providing support to the board of directors and managing administrative affairs of an organisation. The horizon of their roles and responsibilities has expanded. Apart from their traditional tasks, company secretaries now have to take care of corporate governance and legal matters. A company secretary now not only holds a high position in the management hierarchy but is also highly accountable both within and outside the organisation and ensures smooth functioning of the company. Challenges for a company secretary are: Corporate mishaps and frauds, technological changes and reduced dependence on professionals. Corporate frauds debilitate the growth of any profession. It also decreases the trust. As technology is transforming the corporate industry today, corporate secretaries must cope with the change in technological environment to make a mark in the corporate industry.
(The writer is president, Institute of Company Secretaries of India)