Within a business of any kind, an accountant will perform a number of crucial financial functions which relate to the collection, accuracy, recording, presentation and analysis of the business. This applies whether the accountant is a fully paid employee of the business in question or simply commissioned as a third-party provider as many businesses do.
An accountant who works for a business will usually have a variety of administrative roles within the company’s overall operations as well as what may otherwise be seen as ‘accountancy duties.’ In the case of smaller businesses, an accountant’s role may involve primarily financial data collection, entry and report generation.
If an accountant is working for a mid to larger sized company, the company may want to utilise them as an adviser and a financial interpreter in additional to all their other functions. Here they will present the company’s financial data to people both internally and externally.
In most cases, an accountant will also deal with third parties, such as vendors, financial intuitions and customers, keeping the finances in check at all times. Fundamentally, if the business employing the accountant is in the business of purchasing businesses, the accountant will hold a crucial role; to scrutinise the business to be purchased prior to any decision being made.
Financial Data Management
The accounting structure of a company is a vital part of the business’ overall operations. One of the main roles undertaken by any accountant involves the collection and maintenance of financial data.
The accountant will ensure that all the financial records are maintained in line with the law and to keep the business as tax efficient as possible. For any company or organisation, it is vital that the financial information is always held in a secure system and is regularly cross-checked. This is because it is a key component used in operating and managing any business.
Some accountants may also expect to take on and be responsible for more sophisticated duties, such as developing, implementing and maintaining data bases for the finances of the entire company or organisation. They may also work on establishing monitoring control procedures.
business accountants are responsible for a lot of data
Financial Reports and Accounts
It is typical for accountants to prepare financial statements that will include both monthly and annual accounts. These reports will be based on the financial information that they will compile and analyse as the weeks go on.
Reports which are created can be used in conjunction with any ongoing support and management budgetary forecast activities. Such reports are likely to be utilised by the financial director or officer for further development, improved implementation and operation of a company’s financial software system. An accountant will also likely be responsible for ensuring that any financial reporting deadlines are properly met, both internally and externally.
For example, quarterly, semi-annual and annually based reports will all have strict deadlines and some tax implications which go alongside them. So, the accountant will also have the job of monitoring and supporting any taxation issues that may arise. They also normally coordinate the audit process by assisting with financial data preparation.
Advising and Analysing Business Data
A large part of holding the role of an accountant is performing analysis of data, accounts and numbers in the context of business. In doing so, accountants might be responsible for some analysis using any financial data that can be referred to in order to make sound business decisions, making this data and these reports crucial to any business.
These decisions can be anything from deciding what kind of supplies the business needs to order to larger things like making some changes to the team. The accountant is likely to be responsible from things minor to major on a daily basis.
When it comes to financial advising, an accountant can find they are advising on things such as revenue and expenditure trends; future expectations for revenue and on which financial commitments to prioritise or to let go. Furthermore, the business accountant may work to analyse financial data in order to resolve discrepancies and irregularities which may occur during the time they work with the company.
External Business Affiliations
It is very common that an accountant in a business role will work with other financial professionals from industries such as:
- Public
- Management
- Internal Auditing
- Governmental Accounting
The accountant in question may provide data to a public accountant who, in this case, will act as a consultant, auditor and tax service professional to complement the business account. Not-for-profit corporations, organisations and the government will use management accountants to analyse the financial information of the businesses in which they are employed. They will normally provide advice to company executive, stockholders, creditors, regulatory agencies and tax personnel.
It is also the case that accountants may work with government officials to help them examine financial records of the private business for whom that accountant is employed by to check it is in compliance with tax and governmental regulations.