Expertise, Responsibility and Team Development: An Interview with Larysa Sterniuk

Professional growth in outsourced accounting takes years of hands-on practice, but it rests on much deeper things — responsibility, systems thinking and the ability to see the real business consequences behind the numbers. That is what lets a specialist move from simply completing technical tasks to being a partner to the client and a mainstay of the team.

In this interview, Larysa Sterniuk, an expert with many years at UHY Prostir, talks about her professional journey, the evolution of the accountant’s role, managing a team and the inner qualities without which genuine growth in the profession is impossible.

How did your path in accounting begin, and how did you join UHY Prostir?

I chose my professional direction straight after school, when I entered university to study Accounting and Audit. The decision was partly a conscious choice and partly my family’s influence — my mother worked as an accountant too. At the same time, economics and finance had always felt close to me, and the degree gave a broad base of knowledge, from bookkeeping to understanding business processes as a whole.

During my studies I worked in different fields — experience that taught me independence. After my fourth year I decided to find a job in my own field. That is when I saw a vacancy for an assistant accountant at UHY Prostir, went through several selection stages and joined the team. At first it was part-time, since I was still finishing my master’s degree, but the job gradually became my main focus. I have been with the company since September 2011 — this year marks 15 years of my professional journey with UHY Prostir.

Today you work as a project manager. How did this stage of your career take shape?

My move into the project manager role happened gradually. Before that I worked as an accountant and then chief accountant on client projects, deeply involved in everything from day-to-day operations to reporting and client communication. Over time the company grew, the team expanded, and it became clear the work needed a different structure.

The decision was made to introduce project management: distribute clients across teams and appoint coordinators responsible for the processes. I was offered the chance to take on this role, and I agreed. It was a new stage that demanded a different focus — not just deep accounting knowledge but the ability to organize the team’s work, balance the workload, keep deadlines and quality on track and stay in constant contact with clients.

What is the difference between accounting as a technical function and an accounting system that becomes a management tool for business decisions?

Put simply, “doing the books” means recording business events: collecting documents, posting transactions, preparing reports. That work is essential, but it only reflects what has already happened.

A system that works for the business starts much earlier — at the decision-making stage. The point is not just to record a transaction but to analyze its impact: on taxes, on profitability, on risk, on the longer term. Choosing an accounting policy, inventory write-off methods or a depreciation approach, for example, is not a formality. These decisions determine what the financial result will look like and what consequences may surface later.

A system also means well-organized document flow, properly structured income and expenses and sound analytics. When the accounting is built systematically, a manager sees more than figures — they understand where the figures come from and what can be influenced. Then the accountant is no longer someone who executes technical tasks but a partner who helps make well-grounded decisions.

Which aspects of accounting do businesses underestimate most often — until they face real risks or financial consequences?

Most often, businesses underestimate how much a well-chosen accounting policy matters. It looks like a technical decision with no strategic weight. In reality, inventory methods, the approach to depreciation or the structure of the analytics feed directly into the financial result and the tax burden. If these decisions ignore the specifics of the business, they later become difficult and painful to unwind.

Another underrated area is documentation. While everything runs smoothly, it can seem enough that a transaction actually happened. But when the tax authorities or independent auditors come to check, properly prepared documents become the deciding factor. Every item of income and every expense must be substantiated. A missing contract, acceptance certificate or internal order can translate into tax risks and penalties.

Businesses also sometimes fail to analyze transactions before carrying them out. Some transactions bring extra tax consequences or affect the company’s status — around VAT, for instance, or work with non-residents. If those risks are not weighed in advance, the consequences can surface much later, when changing anything is far harder.

Do you notice a difference in what Ukrainian and international clients expect from accounting support? How does it show?

Yes, the difference is noticeable, and it comes above all from the context in which they do business. Ukrainian companies that have been in business for years usually know the local requirements well — the specifics of tax legislation, the level of bureaucracy, the documentation rules. So their expectations are mostly about speed, accuracy and stable processes.

International clients entering the Ukrainian market want something different. For them it is important not only that the books are kept correctly but that the accountant has deep expertise in local legislation. They expect proactive behavior: explain the documentation requirements, warn about tax risks, point out the finer points of dealing with state authorities. In effect it is an advisory role — the specialist does not merely record transactions but helps the business adapt to the Ukrainian regulatory environment.

That is why, with international companies, expertise and initiative carry far more weight. It is not enough to do the job — the client needs to feel confident that their operations meet every local requirement and the risks are contained.

How do you organize the team’s work when you run several projects at once, with different kinds of clients and levels of complexity?

The key principle is a clear division of responsibility. Each project has its own lead accountant — in effect, the person in charge of that client. They are deeply immersed in the client’s business, understand its processes and answer for quality and timeliness.

Where possible, an assistant joins the project to handle the operational side. That frees the accountant to spend more time on analysis, reporting and client communication, while the assistant grows professionally.

My role as project manager is to keep it all systematic. I track deadlines and process quality, help balance the workload and step in on complex or unusual questions. The important thing is not to dive into every operational detail but to keep the wider view: spot risks, coordinate resources and support the team.

How do you support the team through periods of heavy workload, or when difficult, unusual cases come up?

First and foremost, through open communication. Nothing should be left unsaid. If a hard case comes up or someone feels overloaded, we talk it through straight away — better to deal with a problem early than to fight it later in crisis mode. Complex professional questions we take apart together. And if I see that a situation needs broader expertise or carries reputational risk, I bring in management: important issues should never be carried alone.

In peak periods, sensible resource allocation helps. We can redistribute tasks within the team or borrow colleagues from other teams. This internal “outsourcing” takes off some of the pressure and lets urgent work get done without sacrificing quality.

I also want everyone to feel supported emotionally, not just professionally. Sometimes it is enough to talk, break a daunting task into manageable steps and show that it is under control. Most of the time, just knowing you are not alone in a difficult situation takes much of the stress away.

How do you recover after difficult or emotionally draining projects? What helps you regain balance?

First of all, closure. When a complex case is finished and the solution found, the sense of completion itself brings relief. And if the situation was resolved professionally, with minimal risk to the client, it brings not just calm but real satisfaction.

Change helps too — new projects, new tasks, a different kind of work. After an intense stretch, something new and interesting gives fresh momentum and brings professional curiosity back.

And rest, of course, is essential. That means active things — travel, seeing friends, new experiences — and quiet days with no plans at all: switching off from work, watching a film or simply doing nothing.

What do you consider the key factors in a team’s long-term stability?

To me, team stability is a two-way process. On one side, the manager’s attitude matters: noticing how a person is developing, recognizing growth and giving them more responsibility or new tasks at the right moment. A specialist needs to feel that their work is seen and valued and that there is somewhere to grow.

On the other side, openness within the team is crucial. If fatigue, doubts or the urge to move on appears, it needs to be talked about. Keeping quiet is often how strong professionals are lost. Where there is dialogue, a solution can be found: change the working format, widen the area of responsibility, offer a new project or a different level of tasks.

An atmosphere of trust is just as essential. When people are not afraid to ask questions, raise difficult situations and take responsibility, the team works far more effectively. And everyone needs room to grow professionally — without it there is no long-term motivation.

How do you approach tough decisions, when none of the options is perfect and you have to choose between workable ones?

In situations like that I analyze the consequences of each option, short-term and long-term. Sometimes the decision that looks easier here and now creates extra risks down the road. So it is important to weigh the pros and cons and understand which option is safest and most effective for the client.

If the question is complex or risky, I do not decide in isolation. Talking it over with a manager or colleagues helps see the situation more broadly — another perspective often reveals a nuance that was not obvious at first.

When the decision concerns the client, the possible outcomes of each scenario have to be laid out transparently. We explain the risks and how events might unfold, and the client makes the final decision with the full picture in front of them. My responsibility is to provide the expert assessment and make the choice as well-informed as possible.

What is your main measure of effectiveness at work — financial results, client feedback or something else?

For me, effectiveness cannot be reduced to a single metric. Financial results matter — they show stability and growth. But numbers alone never give the whole picture.

One key sign is that the client’s operations run steadily and smoothly. When the processes are set up properly, the reports go out on time and a tax audit brings no crises or surprises, the system is working. Often it is precisely the “quiet” work, without emergencies, that is the best proof of effectiveness.

Communication with the client is another important measure. When the cooperation is professional and calm, when a client comes back with new requests or recommends us to partners — that is trust. And trust is the product of systematic, high-quality work.

Another criterion is delivering what was planned. If the tasks are structured, the deadlines met and there is no constant firefighting, the process is organized correctly.

And perhaps one more thing that matters to me is balance. Effective work means meeting your commitments and closing your tasks while still having energy for life outside work. When professional duties do not turn into permanent exhaustion and leave room to recover, the system is working not only for the client but for the team.

What skills or approaches have contributed most to your professional growth in recent years?

First of all, critical thinking and the habit of questioning things. I always treat transactions with a degree of skepticism: if something looks unclear or unusual, I do not leave it as is — I analyze it, read the legislation and work out the possible consequences. It matters to me to get to the bottom of things and be confident in the decision.

Second, digging deep into new processes and projects. When a new type of client or a new line of work appears, I first try to understand as much as I can: what the activity is, what the requirements are, where the risks lie. That lets me do more than “keep the books” — it lets me understand the business more broadly.

It also helped that I was never afraid to take on new projects and processes. Whenever a chance came up to try something new, I said yes and figured it out as I went. That approach keeps you growing.

Communication is crucial too, with clients and inside the team alike. A professional, open dialogue helps you understand needs better, resolve questions faster and build trust.

And, of course, genuine interest in the profession itself. I truly enjoy working with numbers, economics and reporting. Without that inner interest, long-term growth would be impossible.

Which skills are critical for specialists who want to grow from accountant into project manager?

First, responsibility — and the willingness to take it. The point is not to pass difficult situations on to someone else but to propose solutions, agree an action plan and drive it through. A project manager cannot simply say “I don’t know” — they have to organize the process and deliver a result.

The second critical skill is communication: with the team, with clients, with management. That means setting tasks properly, giving constructive feedback and not being afraid of phone calls or hard emails. Without confident communication there is no moving into a management role.

Third, professional expertise and experience. A project manager has to understand business processes, legislation and financial logic, and see the links between accounting, taxes, HR and even legal questions. This is no longer about posting documents — it is about a broader view.

Organizing work matters too: structuring processes, distributing tasks, keeping deadlines under control, seeing risks ahead of time. And you absolutely need to enjoy working with people — the role is largely about interaction, supporting the team and managing the client’s expectations.

What signs tell you a specialist is ready to grow, even before they say it out loud?

It shows first in consistent quality and independence. When a specialist delivers on time without constant supervision, and their work can be accepted without rework, trust naturally grows. If the reports are prepared correctly and the details thought through in advance, the person is already working a level above their role.

The second sign is the shift from execution to analysis. The specialist no longer just posts transactions by the instructions but understands their meaning and consequences: they can flag a tax risk, suggest an alternative approach, ask the right clarifying question. That is systems thinking taking shape.

The third sign is responsibility. When an error happens, the person does not try to hide it or pass the blame — they raise it openly and join the search for a solution. That is professional maturity.

Communication matters as well. When a specialist talks to a client with confidence, can defend their position and puts their answers clearly, they are ready for a broader role.

And one more sign is initiative from within. If a person is drawn to new tasks, asks for harder cases or wants to widen their responsibility, they are ready to move forward — even without a formal request for promotion.

What most often holds back professional growth, even when the technical expertise is already strong?

Even a strong technical base is no guarantee of growth. What holds people back is usually not knowledge but personal readiness to move forward.

One of the most common barriers is lack of confidence and fear of responsibility. If a specialist avoids difficult decisions, is reluctant to step beyond familiar tasks or hands client communication over to the manager, their role stays purely technical. Growth always means a wider zone of responsibility, and you have to be ready for it inside.

Another factor is the absence of open dialogue. Sometimes a person is ready for new challenges — or, quite the opposite, feels tired or unsure — but says nothing. Without that conversation it is hard for a manager to see in time that something needs to change, and both professional and career development slow down.

Inner motivation counts too. You can do your tasks well, but without an appetite for a broader role, harder cases or new responsibility, forward movement dwindles to a minimum.

How do you see the accountant’s role transforming today, and what will it become in the coming years?

The role is changing already. The profession used to be seen as largely technical — handling documents, recording transactions, preparing reports. Today that is no longer enough. Automation, digital tools and artificial intelligence are gradually taking over the routine.

In this environment the accountant increasingly becomes a consultant and analyst. It is not enough to record a transaction correctly — you need to understand its impact on the business: the tax implications, the financial result, the potential risks. Systems thinking and acting ahead of events matter more and more: walking the client through the possible scenarios before a problem appears.

The bar for digital competence keeps rising as well. A modern accountant has to be at home in accounting software, understand the logic of automated systems, know how to organize document flow and work with new tools.

In the coming years this trend will only strengthen. The technical side will become even more automated, and the accountant’s role will shift for good toward analysis, expertise and partnership with the business. It is a profession that demands a wider view, deeper responsibility and strategic thinking.

Interviewed by Kateryna Bohdan

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