List of Top 4 Careers in Accounting
Below are some of the top accounting career options that you can opt for –
Accounting Career Overview
Accounting is a field where a person is involved in handling the finances of an organization. It involves a wide range of activities like bookkeeping, financial analysis, financial reporting, auditing, statutory obligations, major financial decisions, etc. The kind of work a person does depends on the years of expertise and various degrees and certifications a person has acquired. There are plenty of career options available in accounting and qualified candidates are always in demand. Accounting is paid well, and you will need a bachelor’s degree to enter the field, however, demand increases significantly if the candidate acquires a Certified Public Accountant – CPA certification or other relevant certifications.
Career #1 – Finance & Accounts Manager
Who is a Finance & Accounts Manager?
Finance & Accounts Manager takes care of complete Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, preparation of financial statements and other statutory reports for audits –
| Finance & Accounts Manager - Job Description | |
|---|---|
| Responsibilities | Responsible for finance and accounting function for preparation of profit & loss and balance sheet. |
| Designation | Finance & Accounting Manager |
| Actual Role | Actively manage the daily operations of the payables and receivables and take calls on vendor/customer management for deals and negotiations. |
| Job Statistics | The Bureau of Labour statistics of US displays that job growth for accounting managers is 10% from 2016-26, which is faster than average |
| Top Companies | USAA, Capital One Financial, One deck Capital, JP Morgan Chase, Ernst & Young, Deloitte & Touche, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), KPMG, Bank of New York Mellon, Automatic Data Processing Inc, etc. |
| Salary | The base salary for accounting manager ranges from $91,835 to $116,722 |
| Demand & Supply | There will always be a good demand for this role as monthly books closing and reporting is widely accepted practice now |
| Education Requirement | Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA/CFA/MBA for further progression |
| Recommended Courses | Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA/CFA/ MBA for further progression |
| Positives | Extensive knowledge of the different accounting functions and exposure to statutory and internal accounting requirements |
| Negatives | In the long run, accounting function becomes a repetitive task |
Career #2 – Statutory Auditor
Who is a Statutory Auditor?
Statutory Auditor is the representative of the appointed audit firm who examines the financial statements of an organization to ensure that it is in compliance with standards set internally and by statutory authorities.
| Statutory Auditor - Job Description | |
|---|---|
| Responsibilities | Responsible for examining the prepared books of accounts to identify any malpractices, fraud or deviation from set standards |
| Designation | Auditor/ Senior Auditor/ Audit Manager |
| Actual Role | Ensure the transaction is accounted as per accounting laws by doing sample checks of journals, ledgers and any other item from Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet. Auditors also do the physical check of assets reported in the books to ensure that they actually exist |
| Job Statistics | The Bureau of Labour Statistics of US displays that job growth for auditors is 10% from 2016-26, which is faster than average |
| Top Companies | Ernst & Young, Deloitte & Touche, KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), RSM, Grant Thorton, BDO, CBIZ, BKD, and other audit firms |
| Salary | The base salary for an entry-level auditor is $ 61K which increases with years of experience and career progression |
| Demand & Supply | There will always be a good demand for this role statutory audits has become compulsory for almost all the organizations |
| Education Requirement | Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA for further progression |
| Recommended Courses | Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA for further progression |
| Positives | Extensive Knowledge of the various accounting functions and exposure to statutory and internal audit requirements |
| Negatives | It involves a lot of traveling as the auditors have to visit the client site for the understanding of financial statements and physical verification of assets |
Career #3 – Taxation Manager/Expert
Who is a Taxation Manager/Expert?
Taxation Manager takes care of all the Tax related work in the organization. This is a very niche profile as the companies are always looking for different ways of saving Taxes. The Tax manager also ensures that VAT inputs are taken, refunds are processed and various tax filling with the government are done in a timely manner and complex regulatory requirements due to cross border functions are met.
| Taxation Manager/Expert - Job Description | |
|---|---|
| Responsibilities | Responsible for direct and indirect tax-related matters, tax filing and tax audit facilitation with auditors. |
| Designation | Taxation Manager. |
| Actual Role | In most countries, the tax is payable quarterly, and there are so many details like fixed assets, debtors list, creditors list, and other information is to be provided while filing tax returns, all these are taken care of by the tax team. |
| Job Statistics | The tax professionals are very high in demand and the average salary is $105K for a tax manager. |
| Top Companies | Ernst & Young, Deloitte & Touche, KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), RSM, Grant Thorton, BDO, CBIZ, BKD, other audit firms, and every organization needs at least a team for audit facilitation. |
| Salary | The base salary for an entry-level tax personnel is $ 71K which increases with years of experience and career progression. |
| Demand & Supply | There will always be a good demand for this role as the tax requirements are becoming complex day by day. |
| Education Requirement | Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA/CFA/MBA for further progression. |
| Recommended Courses | Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA/CFA/MBA for further progression. |
| Positives | Extensive knowledge of the various tax functions and exposure to statutory and internal tax requirements. |
| Negatives | Tax rules are subject to constant change and it becomes difficult to keep pace with changes. |
Career #4 – Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
Who is a Certified Public Accountant?
Certified Public Accountant provides accounting, taxation and other financial services to the general public. A person has to qualify for the CPA exams and then acquire a license to practice as a CPA. USA allow a CPA to provide services in any state once the person clears the CPA exam, also there are certain conditions to be met locally for practice.
| Certified Public Accountant (CPA) - Job Description | |
|---|---|
| Responsibilities | Responsible for providing accounting, taxation and various other financial services like insurance, investment, tax planning, mortgage to the general public and small businesses. |
| Designation | Certifies Public Accountant (CPA) |
| Actual Role | CPAs provide all kinds of financial services, consulting, and guidance to the general public. From tax filing to tax planning, bookkeeping, accounts preparation and audit of small businesses are some of the activities a CPA does. |
| Job Statistics | There are around 700K licenses CPAs in practice USA and they are highly in demand. |
| Top Companies | A CPA practices on their own at their place of choice. |
| Salary | CPA charges fees for their services and they make good money in practice per report of Bureau of Labour statistics of US. |
| Demand & Supply | There will always be a good demand for licensed CPAs due to increasing financial integrity imposed by governments and organizations. |
| Education Requirement | CPA – Certified Public Accountant degree. |
| Recommended Courses | CPA – Certified Public Accountant degree. |
| Positives | Over a period, a CPA becomes an expert in their field of practice and the money also starts flowing handsomely. Practicing as a CPA also gives a lot of satisfaction compared to a job as it like setting up a sole proprietorship. |
| Negatives | A licensed CPA has to keep themselves always updated with frequent changes in the accounting and taxation field. |
These are some of the major areas where the person with accounting knowledge can work. However, there are various other fields like Forensic accounting, Valuation, Arbitration, Data Science etc which are emerging and have a great scope for a person with an accounting background. With recent development globally, IFRS being implemented around the world there will be many changes the way books are prepared. Accountants will be in great demand to keep pace with changes and ensure that financial requirements are met.
Conclusion
The accounting job role is a great career field. This is not a new field and the origin can be traced back to as early as 2000 to 3300 BC and this field is still evolving. Accounting is not only about preparing financial statements and presenting it but about maintaining financial integrity and entrusting public faith in public limited companies. Incidents like Enron, Tyco, Worldcom, etc. posed a threat to accounting practices and it gave berth to SOX compliance. Accountants are viewed in very high regard as they are considered to be the watchdog of an economy and they are the people who can keep a tab on money laundering and black money. So accounting career also imposes a moral obligation for accountants towards society and country.
Recommended Articles
This has been a guide to Accounting Careers. Here we provide the list of top 4 job roles in accounting which include Finance & Accounts Manager, Statutory Auditor, Taxation Manager/Expert, and Certified Public Accountant. You may also have a look at these finance career articles below –
