Young Difference Makers S2 E7 - Climbing Beyond the Ladder: Mishka Hajee's Quest for Community Progress

Have you ever met someone whose career trajectory embodies both resilience and a dedication to positive societal impact? Meet Mishka Hajee, a South African Chartered Accountant whose story isn't just about climbing the professional ladder; it's a narrative woven with integrity, strategic innovation, and a deep commitment to uplifting her community. 

From childhood dreams guided by community influence and mentorship, to the rigorous academic and professional journey of earning a CA(SA) designation, Mishka's tale is inspirational. Her rise through the ranks isn't merely a personal achievement—it's a reflection of the accountant's evolving role, from interpreting data to shaping strategic decisions, all while holding the torch of accountability and ethical governance high.

As we unpack Mishka's international career journey, which spans across South Africa, the UK, and Ireland, it's clear the CA qualification is more than a title; it's a passport to global opportunities and a platform for driving change. 

Listen to how her mother's social work inspired Mishka to channel her expertise into the sustainability of NGOs and NPOs, making a tangible difference in communities. She also offers insight into overcoming obstacles with the support of mentors and the power of networking, proving that resilience and a clear vision are indispensable companions on the path to achieving one's goals. 

This episode is a must-listen for anyone intrigued by the transformative influence of a career grounded in purpose and the pursuit of excellence.

Transcript

Mishka Hajee: 0:00

Being a chartered accountant, having that CA SA behind my name, has really opened a lot of doors. It's been less a case of me having to look for opportunities and more the opportunities finding CAs the minute they qualify. And I know lots of accountants, lots of chartered accountants, that have the same story. Chartered accountants that have the same story. Hi, my name is Mishka. I'm a chartered accountant from South Africa. I'm registered with the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants and I currently live and work in Dublin, Ireland.

Mishka Hajee: 0:46

I decided to become a chartered accountant Apparently. One of my oldest friends told me when we first met, apparently when we were five years old. Apparently I said to her when we first met in preschool that I introduced myself and said I wanted to become a chartered accountant. I seriously doubt a five-year-old would have known what a chartered accountant was, but I probably heard it from a parent or from someone in the community. But I do believe that the community and the people that I've been mentored by was really what led me to becoming a chartered accountant. Also, just given my background, I was also looking for a career path that provided both financial stability and also the opportunity to explore different avenues within the sphere of commerce and becoming a chartered accountant made sense in that regard.

Mishka Hajee: 1:56

Yes, becoming a chartered accountant definitely involves understanding numbers. I think that's what it is. It's understanding the story that numbers tell you. It's understanding financial data, and so when you qualify as a chartered accountant, you're given the necessary knowledge base and skill set to understand what is what currently is, and your skill set then allows you to make decisions based on the data that's provided. So I mean to be honest, the last time I number crunched, so to say, was probably in university. You know, we've got technology now we use a lot of Excel, for example, in the workspace. So it's less about number crunching and more about understanding what numbers tell us to allow us to make decisions and be impactful.

Mishka Hajee: 2:38

So I think, first and foremost in fact, I think this is what really got me excited about qualifying as a chartered accountant is integrity is a very big part of being a chartered accountant. Chartered accountants are seen as trusted professionals in the world, across the workspace. Most of our professional bodies all have a code of conduct, and so the values, particularly on integrity and accountability, have been very important, are important to me as a person, and so that aligns really the qualification aligns really well with my personal values and being, you know, a trusted leader in the community and in the commerce space. So a lot of the community-based work that I've ever been involved with or am currently involved with a lot of it, has to do, first of all, with my mom. So my mom is a social worker and I was raised by a single mother, and so when you're raised with someone in that field, you kind of grow up with community work and civil engagement, and so because of that, I've been able to now, I think, take what I've learned as a child growing up and as a teenager, having gone from doing hands-on work in the community to now being able to take my knowledge and skills that I've learned, that I have now as a chartered accountant, and use it more, I suppose, in terms of maybe running organizations, understanding how governance plays a role in in NGOs and NPOs, understanding how sustainability now plays a role in keeping NGOs and NPOs running, because you know, we see it in the world that NGOs at the moment are facing the crisis of sustainability, and I've seen it particularly in South Africa. And so, with the knowledge I've obtained as a CA and what I've seen with the NGOs that I've worked with, I'm now looking towards trying to find better ways of making NGOs more sustainable.

Mishka Hajee: 5:01

In my own experience, I've only been a chartered accountant for about four or five years now. We're fully qualified and I've had the opportunity and the privilege of being able to work not just in South Africa but in the UK, in London and in Dublin as well, and that is really just because being a chartered accountant, having that CASA behind my name, has really opened a lot of doors. It's been less a case of me having to look for opportunities and more the opportunities finding CAs the minute they qualify, and I know lots of accountants, lots of chartered accountants, that have the same story. In terms of NGOs. I've been fortunate enough now that I've been based in Dublin for just over four years now. I've had the opportunity to work with NGOs and NPOs in the Republic of Ireland, one being the business in the community where I am an EPIC mentor. This program, essentially, has been set up to help asylum seekers in the Republic of Ireland look for work, and so I've been able to take my own experiences as a migrant from South Africa and Ireland and use those skills that I have and the experiences that I have to help asylum seekers and refugees in Ireland. I'm also responsible for sustainability at the Muslim Sisters of Air organisation based in Dublin, and so you know I wouldn't be in this position had I not qualified as a chartered accountant and had the opportunity to move to Ireland.

Mishka Hajee: 6:36

In terms of challenges, you know, looking at it from different angles. Number one you know I was raised by a single mother and so we faced many financial barriers when I was growing up and in order to overcome that I was again very fortunate and I guess, again the CA profession was, I guess, always my calling. There were a number of CAs in the community in which I was raised who kind of, I guess, in some way, kind of took a liking to me and effectively started mentoring me at a very young age, and so because of that I've been able to leverage off the CA community in South Africa. They actually, you know, privately funded my university studies and you know, without them I wouldn't be here. And so I guess, firstly, networking and again a skill that's very important for chartered accountants, and, you know, also remembering the community you came from, that really helped me to overcome that particular challenge, but also, I think, and perhaps overcome that particular challenge.

Mishka Hajee: 7:42

But also, I think, and perhaps once we qualify, we tend to forget about it, but the journey to becoming a chartered accountant is not the easiest. You know this qualification, you really do earn it. And so you know university had its challenges. You know the board exams are quite challenging as well and, speaking to other trainees or other people who had similar challenges to the ones I had whether it was, you know, related to academics or just, you know, stress management, resilience within ourselves, and that's incredibly important but I think leaning off from the community and the networks that you build on your journey towards becoming a CA really played an important role for me. Believe, believe in yourself and in in your destiny is incredibly important, no matter what what you think. The path you think you might want to lead to get to your end goal may not necessarily be the path that you take, but your end goal. As long as you keep your end goal in mind, that's the most important thing.