A company secretary (CS) is a governance professional, who advises the boards of companies on strategy formulation, compliances, and governance matters. Company secretary jobs offer an opportunity to deal with issues relating to mergers and acquisitions, cross-border takeovers, joint ventures, intellectual property rights, taxation, competition law, forex management, foreign trade policy, foreign investment and matters relating to capital markets, securities laws and arbitration.
A company secretary jobs usually ask for an educational background in commerce and knowledge, training and exposure related to all aspects of CS. Company secretary jobs involve providing a full range of services to companies of all sizes, cooperatives, other corporate bodies, firms, etc., both as part of the management team as well as an independent practitioner.
A company secretary jobs usually offer an average annual salary of 5.6 lacks. With a little more experience, one can start earning upwards of Rs 7 lakh to Rs 9.7 lakh a year. Company secretaries with four to five years of experience make Rs 10 lakh onwards a year in large corporate houses and multinational companies. Compensation also depends on one’s performance and varies from one sector to the other.
Skills/Traits required to be a company secretary
Company secretary jobs usually demand expertise. However, some relevant skills which every organization focuses on are:
- IT skills to manage the business dynamics and interface with regulators (like e-filings)
- Drafting abilities to draft legal agreements such as international contracts/prospectus/collaboration agreements/shareholders agreements etc
- Communication skills (oral/written)
- People skills such as image building, positive attitude, ability to overcome emotional triggers, ‘can do’ attitude
Eligibility for company secretary jobs
There is three professional stage examination of a company secretaryship course, i.e. 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 examination recognized by the central government as equivalent, are eligible to join the CS foundation programme. All graduates and postgraduates (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 executive/professional programme, one needs to complete 15 months of training in a company or under a practicing CS.
Additionally, one has to undergo 15 days of training with the Registrar of Companies, stock exchanges and specified regulators and 15 days compulsory Management Skills Orientation Programme (MSOP). After the professional course and training, one become eligible to be an associate member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India, (ICSI). One can be in employment or start his/her practice .
Pros and cons of company secretary jobs
- You get a chance to rub shoulders with the company’s top management
- You get exposure to various external agencies and regulators
- You get a broader view of taxation, finance, and general management
- Salaries can be fantastic, provided you do an excellent job for your company
- It can be a very demanding job, with grueling hours
Almost any organization, the affairs of which are conducted by boards, councils, associations, authorities, federations, or commissions, appoints a qualified company secretary.