Becoming a successful company secretary (CS) requires more than just academic qualifications. The job calls for specialized knowledge, practical experience, and specific personal traits. Company secretaries are crucial in ensuring businesses comply with the law and maintain ethical and transparent standards, as corporate governance and regulatory frameworks arise. Success in this dynamic industry involves various factors, which are explored in this article.
In any company the role of Company Secretary (CS) is significant. A Company Secretary apart from financial perks handles the legal aspects of tax returns and ensures compliance. ICSI regulates the profession and demands professional training, providing a certificate post finishing the three-level CS curriculum.
CS Profile And Job Responsibilities:
Over the long duration, he has participated in different forms of work, including getting reports checked by public financial institutions or banks, dealing with clientele and identifying the potential market, making project reports, and applying for loans from financial institutions before depleting the money to the shareholders of the concerned company.
Company secretaries are responsible for governance-related tasks in a company and also sign documents that are directly sent to regulator organizations, including the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, and stock exchanges.
Further, preparing the agenda, following up orders for the meetings, conducting board meetings, generating notices to the board of directors and taking care of legal compliances of an organization are other job responsibilities under CS professionals. In addition, they deal with situations such as conflicts of interest, they also conduct business advice to maintain the business going flawlessly, develop corporate strategy, show ways to prepare financial reports, and help in plan making.
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The Career Path of an ICSI Company Secretary
- A member of the company’s legal department and compliance officer.
- Expert in corporate law, securities law & capital markets, and corporate governance.
- Adviser to the board of directors on corporate governance best practices.
- Maintains all regulatory compliances for the company.
- Planning and strategic management for corporations.
Important Basics Of Company Secretary Profession:
1. Organisational Skills:
The CS must be aware of the context of the organization and understand the business. It is the responsibility of CS to translate governance theory to relevant processes, policies, and frameworks of the organization. They are required to implement all the processes in a manner to makes it easy for an organization to understand.
2. Pro-Governance Experts:
CS is the important person who takes care of issues related to the corporate governance professional and knows the solutions related to governance issues. So, it is relevant for them to work in company secretarial practice and governance as an employee. They know both the current developments affecting governance and corporate governance and to be successful professionals, development is a key ingredient.
3. Keen Eyes:
A CS needs to be keen on making sure that every detail is covered on the board, and that planning, execution, and requirements for policies and procedures are well-maintained. It is also important for CS to understand the goals and plans of the organizations.
Read Also: Company Secretary (CS) Profession – Your Road to Success
4. Expert In Planning:
Planning is pivotal when it comes to internal and external compliance obligations and scheduling for committee and board meetings. A good CS plans everything and has an eye on everything to be completed on time.
5. Good Communication Skills:
Frequently, CS has to deal with senior external stakeholders, board members or directors, CEOs and senior executives. They have emotional intelligence, tact, diplomacy, discretion and good negotiation skills to communicate in oral and written form as well.
Read Also: Complete Guide to Becoming a Company Secretary Career Path
6. Nice Judgement Skills:
In situations of conflict, CS must be firm and make a sound decision. At the time of communicating with seniors of the company, the company secretary needs to be judgmental.
Demand For Company Secretary:
Today, CS is one of the most sought-after professions and in demand as well. There are nearly 7,000 company secretaries in the country. As per the Companies Act 2013, every listed company is required to hire a CS as a full-time employer. In India, out of 10 lakh companies approximately a lakh is a private limited and 7,000 of them are listed as well in the stock market. Approximately 1,000 of them are large firms and need to hire certain CS professionals.
In the company secretary course, 90% of the CS syllabus contains corporate laws. These laws are part of the LLB course as well. An LLB course in the CS course works as an additive. A CS must know the laws of the country, have an interest in case studies and have an analytical mind.
