Accounting for Billions: A Day In The Life - Teekay

September 16, 2016

“Speaking to anyone in the accounting realm in Vancouver – they know exactly what Teekay is – and maybe my stature goes up a little bit once I say I work at Teekay.”

The Vancouver office is the epicenter of the billions of dollars of finance-related work Teekay undertakes every year. In Vancouver, our Accounting team orchestrates a global team that supports four public entities listed in New York and one in Oslo.

One of the people we interviewed for an FA role, I think he was from Ireland and we asked him “Why do you want to work for Teekay?” and he said “When I was in Ireland, I asked around who I should apply for when I’m in Vancouver,” and people could give him 5 companies, and Teekay was one of them, it’s that well known.Teekay Accounting

As the biggest team in the Vancouver office, we wanted to understand better what the team does, and what it is like to work here. Anybody who works for a public company knows the quarterly financial reporting process is high octane work. So this is where we started.

“It’s very complicated…and it gets more and more complex. There’s always something new every quarter, and it always keeps you on your toes. No quarter is ever the same, every quarter is different. “Everything changes all the time, in fact that is the only constant, change. Teekay companies sell assets to each other, there is drop down accounting, there are equity issues. Those transactions are huge – they are in the billions…”Teekay Accounting

And what happens when a Teekay Accountant has a question about a billion dollar project? They ask Scott Watson. Someone told us, “You should do a video on Scott.” So we did. We have a Scott Watson. Do you?

OK, so the work is big and in the billions, and Scott is there as Helpdesk, but what about the rest of the team that delivers it? Well, let’s meet some of them.

There is a palpable sense of teamwork in the Accounting team. Nothing shows that more than mealtime. #ATeamThatEatsTogetherSucceedsTogether

“Everyone knows what people order. Everyone has a special, like Sean orders spicy tuna. So you pass around the menu and people draw on it what they want and add their initials. You don’t even look at the initials. You know – that’s Sean’s. Or you know the pasta with the shrimp from Cactus – that’s Katherine. That’s what she orders – always. They have their go-to – so it’s kinda neat that you know your co-workers that way.”Teekay Accounting

Yes it is, and now you can know them a bit better too.

Looking for your next Accounting career move? The Vancouver team is often hiring. Step right this way.

We will be adding more videos on the Accounting team soon.