Luka Oblak
From Number Cruncher to Financial Intelligence Architect
Eight years at the same accounting firm near Prešeren Square. University of Ljubljana degree, steady work, predictable days. Morning kava, ledgers, tax returns, financial statements. Weekends cycling through the Julian Alps. Comfortable.
Early 2024, they installed new AI software. Bank reconciliations I'd spent hours on? Done in minutes. Tax calculations? Automated. A younger colleague made a joke about AI doing our jobs. I didn't find it funny.
JobRipper assessment during lunch break one Tuesday. HIGH risk for data entry and bookkeeping, LOW risk for advisory work. Made sense. Problem was, my firm didn't need advisors. They needed people to process the work the AI couldn't handle yet. That pool was shrinking.
Tried repositioning internally. Asked about advisory roles, client-facing work. My boss said maybe in a year or two, but right now they needed me doing what I was doing. Started taking courses anyway—financial analytics, Xero AI features, DATEV tools. Figured I'd need them eventually.
Month 6, they laid off two accountants. "Restructuring." Writing was on the wall. Started applying to other firms, targeting advisory positions. Got rejected four times. Not enough client-facing experience. Catch-22: couldn't get advisory experience because I was stuck in transaction processing.
Fifth application worked. Smaller firm in Ljubljana, growing their advisory services. Took a pay cut to switch—15% less than my old job. But the role was different. Client strategy, EU regulatory work, business planning. Less AI automation, more human judgment.
Been there three months now. Work's harder than my old job. Longer hours, steeper learning curve. Clients expect expertise I'm still building. Made a mistake on an EU tax filing last month, had to fix it fast. My boss wasn't thrilled.
Haven't cycled to Lake Bled in weeks. Too busy. The career change wasn't smooth, wasn't pretty, wasn't some triumphant transformation. More like scrambling to stay relevant. JobRipper told me what direction to go. Getting there? That part was messy.