What does an account leader do?
Account leaders are assigned to work on specific client accounts and assist these clients with their needs. They should treat their clients as partners. This would help them forge a better working relationship with clients. Account leaders should have high business acumen and a strong grasp of the current industry landscape. They should be familiar with the company's products and services and which product or service best fits the clients' needs. Account leaders should also know how to retain clients and maintain the client base. They may do this by regularly checking up on clients, making clients feel valued, and mitigating any challenges that may arise.
Account leader responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real account leader resumes:
- Develop and manage CRM databases for major retailers.
- Lead the design and development team for Claro Colombia, the largest telecommunication company in LatAm.
- Develop RFP responses and consistently demonstrate flawless execution to achieve continual growth in each account.
- Utilize PeopleSoft ERP financials, purchasing, inventory, and human resources modules.
- Supervise team of 3 and serve as group liaison for all Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) documentation to external and internal auditors.
- Analyze financial statements and prepare financial reports and reconcile bank statements and payroll accounts.
- Support international accounting close process, reviewing monthly management reporting and quarterly GAAP financial packages from international subsidiaries.
- Preform all balance sheet account reconciliation analyses in addition to recently transitioning all account reconciliations to a fully integrate reconciliation software.
- Experience on the DDE for Medicare.
- Support and audit ERP implementation process.
- Train new employees on CRM tool salesforce.com.
- Transfer corporate accounting and treasury functions and train new staff.
- Lead the coordination of the monthly global treasury workstation close.
- Provide support to outside CPA firm for completion of tax returns.
- Work closely with outside CPA to compile information for annual tax reporting.
Account leader skills and personality traits
We calculated that 14% of Account Leaders are proficient in Account Management, Customer Service, and Business Development. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Detail oriented, and Math skills.
We break down the percentage of Account Leaders that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Account Management, 14%
Executed on account management strategies designed to facilitate the implementation of business solutions within an enterprise account base.
- Customer Service, 13%
Managed an on-time performance of 90% and improved customer satisfaction resulting in an improved customer service rating from customer executives.
- Business Development, 6%
Assisted Business Development organization with additional tasks/initiatives, and other duties as assigned or required.
- Project Management, 6%
Enforced SOX controls related to capital project management, account reconciliations, and inter-application balancing.
- Reconciliations, 4%
Performed complex general accounting functions, including preparation of journal entries, account analysis and balance sheet reconciliations for several hotels.
- Digital Marketing, 4%
Led local media management and strategy for Broadcast, OOH and digital marketing programs.
Most account leaders use their skills in "account management," "customer service," and "business development" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential account leader responsibilities here:
Detail oriented. Another essential skill to perform account leader duties is detail oriented. Account leaders responsibilities require that "accountants and auditors must pay attention to detail when compiling and examining documents." Account leaders also use detail oriented in their role according to a real resume snippet: "sustained attention to detail and positive results while preserving resources prepares financial reports and statements. "
Math skills. This is an important skill for account leaders to perform their duties. For an example of how account leader responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "accountants and auditors must be able to analyze, compare, and interpret facts and figures." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an account leader: "reviewed account reconciliations and published month-end statistics for capital spending and fixed assets. ".
Organizational skills. For certain account leader responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "organizational skills." The day-to-day duties of an account leader rely on this skill, as "strong organizational skills are important for accountants and auditors, who often work with a range of financial documents for a variety of clients." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what account leaders do: "consolidated and analyzed financial data, taking into account organizational goals and financial standing. "
Communication skills. A commonly-found skill in account leader job descriptions, "communication skills" is essential to what account leaders do. Account leader responsibilities rely on this skill because "accountants and auditors must be able to listen to and discuss facts and concerns from clients, managers, and other stakeholders." You can also see how account leader duties rely on communication skills in this resume example: "answer inbound calls on a multi-line telecommunication system. "
The three companies that hire the most account leaders are:
- Humana50 account leaders jobs
- Accenture29 account leaders jobs
- AT&T24 account leaders jobs
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Compare different account leaders
Account leader vs. General ledger accountant
A general ledger accountant is in charge of ensuring the accuracy of a company's overall accounting processes and information. It is their responsibility to communicate with different departments and officials to gather necessary data, conduct extensive audits, prepare documentation and reports, maintain financial data on the company ledger, and interpret financial information. Furthermore, like a general ledger accountant, it is essential to monitor the progress of accounting processes, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an account leader are more likely to require skills like "account management," "customer service," "client facing," and "business development." On the other hand, a job as a general ledger accountant requires skills like "asset system," "erp," "pivot tables," and "income statement." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
General ledger accountants tend to make the most money working in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $68,134. In contrast, account leaders make the biggest average salary, $124,638, in the professional industry.On average, general ledger accountants reach similar levels of education than account leaders. General ledger accountants are 0.4% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Account leader vs. Senior staff accountant
A senior staff accountant is responsible for managing the accounting operations of the company's accounting department, reconciling accounts, and finalizing financial reports to discuss with the management. Senior staff accountants resolve account discrepancies, analyze the company's financial status, and verify financial transactions. They must have excellent analytical skills and extensive knowledge of the accounting principles to perform accounting duties that would minimize the financial risk of the company. A senior staff accountant provides strategic recommendations to prevent overspending and increase efficiency across all departments to drive more revenues and profits.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that account leader responsibilities requires skills like "account management," "customer service," "client facing," and "business development." But a senior staff accountant might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "payroll processing," "excellent organizational," "income statement," and "erp."
Senior staff accountants may earn a lower salary than account leaders, but senior staff accountants earn the most pay in the professional industry with an average salary of $67,353. On the other hand, account leaders receive higher pay in the professional industry, where they earn an average salary of $124,638.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Senior staff accountants tend to reach similar levels of education than account leaders. In fact, they're 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for account leaders in the next 3-5 years?
Thomas King
Department Chair, Director, Master of Accountancy Program, Professor, Accountancy, Case Western Reserve University
Account leader vs. Senior cost accountant
A senior cost accountant is an individual who maintains detailed costs in a company's system and provides cost analysis that supports operations and sales. Senior cost accountants are required to review inventory and deal with manufacturing personnel to control and analyze standard costs. They must record cost information to be used in controlling expenditures as well as recommend cost efficiencies in new product layouts. Senior cost accountants must also provide reports that specify and compare factors affecting prices and profitability of products or services to the management.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from account leader resumes include skills like "account management," "customer service," "client facing," and "business development," whereas a senior cost accountant is more likely to list skills in "sr," "ppv," "inventory valuation," and "calculation. "
Senior cost accountants make a very good living in the health care industry with an average annual salary of $74,446. On the other hand, account leaders are paid the highest salary in the professional industry, with average annual pay of $124,638.Most senior cost accountants achieve a similar degree level compared to account leaders. For example, they're 2.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Account leader vs. Senior accountant analyst
As a senior accountant analyst, your main role is to provide professional guidance to a company. You need to have excellent preparation skills to create financial reports that clearly state the expenses and forecast the company's financial future. You should always aim for accuracy and compliance. Moreover, as a senior accountant analyst, you are supposed to give general operational assistance to the company's management.
Types of account leader
Updated January 8, 2025
