Have you any questions in your mind after hearing about an accountant? Of course, you are interested to get knowledge about an acct. In today’s world, everyone is struggling to enhance their business in both accounting and financial terms. However, business owners could not manage all the business-related tasks alone. Since there are many other things on which he needs to keep his eyes on. In such a situation, you must hire an accountant who can look over all your business activities on your behalf. In our assumptions, you have heard about accountants. If not, there is nothing to take stress about. We are here to tell you all about “what is an accountant?”
No matter why you are here this blog will assist you better understand everything you need to understand about what’s an accountant. Along with this, we will also talk about the different types of accountants, what is the job of an accountant, & what is an accountant salary?
What is an Accountant?
Accountants are qualified financial & accounting experts who can guide you when it comes to handling your business-related activities. Not only a particular task will be managed by an accountant but also handles various tasks. In addition to this, an accountant keeps & interprets financial records. We would like to tell you that there is a huge difference in job titles of “Bookkeeper” & “Accountant”. So you don’t need to get confused in the matter of both these jobs. Another phrase that can confuse you is “CPA”. You should know that all CPAs are accountants, but not all accountants are CPAs.
There are various types of accountants that have been listed below:
- Public Accountants
- Management Accountants
- Government Accountants
All of the aforementioned accountants focus on different aspects of the profession.
What does an Accountant do?
In this modern world, accountants perform various functions related to accounting and financial tasks. They are not bounded to prepare only financial accounts. Including this, accountants are required to provide their clients, the government and society with other important services. Here, we have listed some of the other functions that are performed by an accountant. Go through all of them one by one wisely.
Management of your Accounting Books
Manage your books of accounts is the primary function of an accountant. An acct has to maintain a systematic record of all the financial transactions of the business. In order to manage your business, it is mandatory to maintain the books of accounts. It allows you to make better decisions for the business and enhance it. However, an accountant should have experience, skill, & knowledge to record such transactions.
Prepare Taxes and Tax Returns
Another function of an accountant is to prepare taxes and tax returns. As we all know, preparing taxes is important as well as a difficult task for a business owner. Accountants also help you in case of settling tax liabilities on your behalf. Along with this, they will help you in reducing your tax burden and filling tax & tax returns on time.
Financial Decisions
You can also take the help of your accountant while making financial decisions. As accountants have certified knowledge and experience in various fields. So they will be able to provide you with financial advice related to the financial activities of the business. Some of the financial advice has been written below:
- Accountants can help you to determine the coverage amount they will need as well.
- You will be able to take investment advice as well from your accountant.
- The feasibility of the expansion report can also be managed by accountants.
Manage your Accounts
As we know, a management account is more than calculating numbers. However, an accountant plays an important role in organization management. The main role of an accountant is to analyze the company finances and making decisions, making financial plans, & controlling the business. Additionally, you can also take the consultancy services from an accountant in the area of expertise.
Internal Audit
Internal auditing is also done by accountants to guarantee that all the accounting transactions have been recorded, classified, and summarized for the financial year. Along with this, it also permits to verify the instructions provided are followed or not.
Also Read: What is Accounts Receivable? – A Comprehensive Guide
Investigation and manages advisory services
An accountant also performs investigations to check out the financial position of some businesses. For this, they can also hire some external professionals. Along with this, accountants also manage advisory services like long-term plans.
In addition to this, accountants have a legal responsibility to perform their functions effectively. They are also responsible for ensuring that the financial records of their clients are compliant with the relevant law and regulations.
Now, after knowing the functions of an accountant, try to understand the qualification is required in an accountant.
Required Skills that should be in an Accountant
Listed below are several skills that all accountants require to be successful in performing their functions. According to the size of the business, an accountant is restricted to perform the job that can be managed if an accountant consists of the following skills. You should also aware of all the skills while choosing an acct for managing your business activities.
Awareness of Detail
An accountant must aware of details in order to keep the information accurate and organized. Accountants must analyze the information with the help of the financial data. Well, it can be easy to lead to mistakes. But, an acct should be aware of simple mistakes that can translate into a big issue if not caught at the right time.
Analytical Skills
Analyzing & collecting financial data is an important task for any business that helps to identify a pattern and potential issues. Applying data analytics becomes a trend for the accounting field that is supposed to grow the business in the near future. So an accountant must have analytical skills to enhance the business in the market.
Communication Skills
An accountant must have good communication skills in order to listen to collect accurate facts and figures from their clients, managers, or other stakeholders. Including so, they must also require articulating the results of the work & presenting their written reports.
Mathematical Skills
The most important skill an accountant should have good mathematical skills. As we know, while calculating the financial data, it is important to analyze, compare, and interpret data and figures. Hence, an acct must have mathematical skills. In contrast, complex mathematical skills are not required while choosing an acct for your business.
Computer Knowledge
In this field, professions must have to use advanced financial software and other tools based on your computer. Hence, your accountant must have complete knowledge of the computer to work efficiently.
Business expertise
Your accountant needs to understand all the basic functions of the business to work effectively. In order to interpret and analyze the financial data, it is important for an acct to understand all the functions of a business.
What is an Accountant Salary?
A salary of an accountant usually relies upon several factors, size of the business, education qualification, & state the accountant is residing in. In contrast, an accountant can be supposed to be paid well because the field is in demand but not more than as CPAs salary. A CPAs salary is higher than the salary of an acct.
According to a legal agency (Bureau of Labor Statistics), the median pay of an acct is $69,350/year. This amount is calculated is based on the annual wage for all workers in an accounting field.
Final Thoughts…!
I hope the aforementioned article contains all the mandatory information regarding “what is an accountant”? If you are not much interested in working with numbers, then you must hire an accountant who can manage your business activities. An acct will be able to manage all your business tasks in an efficient manner. In this way, you can save your time that can be utilized in some other business making decisions. Before hiring accountants, you must check their education and certifications.
If for any cause, you are getting issues while hiring an accountant or want to know more about what is an accountant and outsourced bookkeeping services then quickly dial our toll-free phone number. We are here to help you out when it comes to handling your business activities.
FAQ’s
A: The main task performed by an accountant is the collection of financial data, entry & report generation. Along with this, in a large enterprise, an accountant is to perform all the financial functions associated with the collection, company operations, etc.
A: You are required to hire an accountant in case of ensuring compliance. As you know, the software is unable to detect errors and ensures the filings are completed. For this, you have to hire accountants.
A: The first duty of an accountant is to check the statement accuracy, verify the records comply with laws and regulations, calculate taxes & tax returns, and manage financial records.
A: Accountants are expertise who advises you to when it comes to handling all the financial data of your business. The main work of an accountant is to understand how the business or enterprise works.
A: There are five types of accountants in the marketplace that have been mentioned below:
Payroll
Staff
Auditor
Tax
Financial
A: The main function of a financial acct is to ensure the confidential tax information has been documented properly. Additionally, they also announce financial information for stakeholders and track internal transactions.
A: Yes, an accountant must be good at math to analyze, compare, and interpret data and figures to manage the financial data of the business.
A: The median accounting salary an acct makes per hour is $32.76.
A: Well, accounting is not an easy job to perform. An acct needs to sit on their desk in percentage is 90.1%.
A: An accountant must have communication & mathematical skills, and advanced knowledge about software and computer.
