What does an accountant-contractor do?
An accountant contractor directly manages a customer's business. The contractor works exclusively on the company and organizes all its financial reports. The accountant contractor controls, inspects, and encodes all the company's financial transactions, ensuring that everything is well-accounted for and adequately documenting its activities. The contractor must be licensed, have expert skills in accountancy, be well-organized, have a high level of communication skills, and work under pressure.
Accountant-contractor responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real accountant-contractor resumes:
- Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
- Assist in preparing tax returns and financial statements and record various transactions in QuickBooks
- Recommend processes and tasks to prepare SOX reviews and questions.
- Assist CPA with all require tax documents, reports and follow up.
- Assist in ACH process of setting up new vendor for direct deposit.
- Consult with CPA on behalf of business presenting all financial materials to prepare for end-of-year taxes.
- Assist with review and preparation of monthly SOX (Sarbanes-Oxley) reports, to ensure compliance.
- Process check, wire, direct deposit and ACH payments, preform cash application and bank reconciliation.
- Enter reconciliation information into QuickBooks via journal entry.
- Evaluate and implement systems to improve operational efficiency and adherence to GAAP.
- Improve personal proficiency & ability to meet critical daily deadline freeing key personnel to focus on important reconciliations.
- Collaborate with management to develop and implement accounting and operational processes and controls to allow for efficient operations and GAAP compliance.
- Perform a full spectrum of accounting functions including sub-ledger preparation, general ledger reconciliation, taxation, and auditing.
Accountant-contractor skills and personality traits
We calculated that 14% of Accountant-Contractors are proficient in Reconciliations, General Ledger Accounts, and Payroll Taxes. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Detail oriented.
We break down the percentage of Accountant-Contractors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Reconciliations, 14%
Coordinate all account reconciliations including an array of General Ledger account reconciliations, variance analysis and complete resolution of reconciling items.
- General Ledger Accounts, 9%
Budget preparation; tracked accounts receivable deposits; developed procedure manuals; reconciled various general ledger accounts.
- Payroll Taxes, 5%
Prepared bi-weekly payroll including payment of payroll taxes, quarterly/annual payroll reports, and benefits plus maintained employee files.
- Balance Sheet Accounts, 5%
Conducted analysis of Balance Sheet Accounts and Presentation resulting in more accurate and timely reporting.
- Account Reconciliations, 5%
Managed monthly journal activities and balance sheet account reconciliations, preparing financial statements and presenting quarterly consolidated package to parent company.
- Purchase Orders, 4%
Designed methodology of monitoring receivables against manual Purchase Orders on multiple invoices.
Common skills that an accountant-contractor uses to do their job include "reconciliations," "general ledger accounts," and "payroll taxes." You can find details on the most important accountant-contractor responsibilities below.
Communication skills. Another essential skill to perform accountant-contractor duties is communication skills. Accountant-contractors responsibilities require that "accountants and auditors must be able to listen to and discuss facts and concerns from clients, managers, and other stakeholders." Accountant-contractors also use communication skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "supervised 12+ employees for large telecommunications company helping researchers with questions and concerns on customer accounts. "
Detail oriented. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of accountant-contractors is detail oriented. This skill is critical to many everyday accountant-contractor duties, as "accountants and auditors must pay attention to detail when compiling and examining documents." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "detailed account reconciliations of receivables and deferred revenues. "
Math skills. A big part of what accountant-contractors do relies on "math skills." You can see how essential it is to accountant-contractor responsibilities because "accountants and auditors must be able to analyze, compare, and interpret facts and figures." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical accountant-contractor tasks: "created reports for senior management detailing metrics on statistics and vendor invoices. "
Organizational skills. A commonly-found skill in accountant-contractor job descriptions, "organizational skills" is essential to what accountant-contractors do. Accountant-contractor responsibilities rely on this skill because "strong organizational skills are important for accountants and auditors, who often work with a range of financial documents for a variety of clients." You can also see how accountant-contractor duties rely on organizational skills in this resume example: "developed and responsible for a/r and wic processes, work stream mapping, and making recommendations for organizational process improvements. "
The three companies that hire the most accountant-contractors are:
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Accountant-contractor vs. Certified public accountant
A certified public accountant (CPA) acts as an advisor to small businesses and chief financial officers to Fortune 500 companies. They typically work for both small and large public accounting firms. They offer advice on many issues, such as accounting and taxation. They aid businesses and individuals to plan and achieve their financial goals. There are several requirements to become a CPA, including having a degree in accounting, passing the CPA examination, and obtaining a CPA license to practice.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between accountant-contractors and certified public accountant. For instance, accountant-contractor responsibilities require skills such as "payroll taxes," "balance sheet accounts," "account reconciliations," and "purchase orders." Whereas a certified public accountant is skilled in "strong customer service," "customer service," "state tax returns," and "payroll tax returns." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Certified public accountants really shine in the finance industry with an average salary of $92,755. Comparatively, accountant-contractors tend to make the most money in the energy industry with an average salary of $66,522.certified public accountants tend to reach similar levels of education than accountant-contractors. In fact, certified public accountants are 1.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.7% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Accountant-contractor vs. Finance analyst/accountant
In a company setting, a finance analyst/accountant is in charge of handling and monitoring financial activities, ensuring efficiency and accuracy. Their responsibilities revolve around preparing financial reports, performing audits and risk assessments, and identifying any errors and inconsistencies, resolving them promptly and efficiently. They also conduct research and analysis to identify new business opportunities, evaluate the existing procedures to determine its strengths and weaknesses, and recommend solutions to optimize operations for financial growth. Furthermore, as a finance analyst/accountant, it is essential to uphold the company's policies and regulations, including its vision and mission.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real accountant-contractor resumes. While accountant-contractor responsibilities can utilize skills like "payroll taxes," "purchase orders," "bank reconciliations," and "credit card," finance analyst/accountants use skills like "payroll," "accruals," "strong analytical," and "income statement."
Finance analyst/accountants earn a higher average salary than accountant-contractors. But finance analyst/accountants earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $78,897. Additionally, accountant-contractors earn the highest salaries in the energy with average pay of $66,522 annually.In general, finance analyst/accountants achieve similar levels of education than accountant-contractors. They're 1.1% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.7% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for accountant-contractors in the next 3-5 years?
Terri Walsh
Professor/Program Manager, Accounting, Seminole State College of Florida
Accountant-contractor 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.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from accountant-contractor resumes include skills like "payroll taxes," "account reconciliations," "purchase orders," and "bank reconciliations," whereas a general ledger accountant is more likely to list skills in "payroll," "accruals," "strong analytical," and "asset system. "
General ledger accountants make a very good living in the technology industry with an average annual salary of $68,134. On the other hand, accountant-contractors are paid the highest salary in the energy industry, with average annual pay of $66,522.general ledger accountants typically earn similar educational levels compared to accountant-contractors. Specifically, they're 2.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Accountant-contractor 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.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between accountant-contractors and senior staff accountants, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, an accountant-contractor might have more use for skills like "payroll taxes," "purchase orders," "bank reconciliations," and "tax returns." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of senior staff accountants require skills like "accruals," "payroll processing," "close process," and "strong analytical. "
In general, senior staff accountants earn the most working in the professional industry, with an average salary of $67,353. The highest-paying industry for an accountant-contractor is the energy industry.senior staff accountants reach similar levels of education compared to accountant-contractors, in general. The difference is that they're 1.3% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.0% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of accountant-contractor
Updated January 8, 2025
