Set at the Cape of Good Hope in the late eighteenth early nineteenth century, this study makes use of archival material from the Oriental and Indian Office Collection and the printed records of the Cape Colony to review the employment of John Pringle, an employee of the East India Company from his education through to his death. In addition to providing and intimate understanding of the diverse employee related activities of a single individual during this period, this study provides evidence of the profession of accountant in early trade directories. The paper also provides evidence that as an employer, the East Indian Company exercised a consumer control model of occupational control. By reviewing John Pringle’s early education and his activities, number of very early signals of movements can be identified that provide tentative evidence of progress towards occupational ascendancy occurring as early as the late eighteenth century.