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What does an accounting auditor do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
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Accounting auditor responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real accounting auditor resumes:

  • Lead the conversion to new trading software that enhance cash management and treasury reporting.
  • Leverage understanding of GAAP and SOX.
  • Register CPA in Hawaii and California.
  • Ensure compliance with GAAP and current regulations.
  • Audit and create work papers for final CPA review and tax preparation.
  • Ensure SOX compliance for public companies by conducting comprehensive internal control audits.
  • Record documentation of employee information, such as exemptions, resignations, and transfers, to sustain and renew payroll records.
  • Perform workers compensation payroll and general liability sales audits via telephone.
  • Update weekly transactions and monthly bank reconciliations on Peachtree for multiple businesses to assist in preparation of accurate financial statements.
  • Organize significant taxation documents for high income personnel.
  • Draft reports and prepare filings for suite of taxation advisory services including compliance and litigation services.
  • Update weekly transactions and monthly bank reconciliations on Peachtree for multiple businesses to assist in preparation of accurate financial statements.

Accounting auditor skills and personality traits

We calculated that 19% of Accounting Auditors are proficient in Audit Reports, CPA, and Financial Statements. They’re also known for soft skills such as Computer skills, Integrity, and Detail oriented.

We break down the percentage of Accounting Auditors that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Audit Reports, 19%

    Prepare audit reports & financial statements on Allstate Insurance rental properties.

  • CPA, 17%

    Participated in designing and implementing computerized accounting system; assisted CPA with monthly financial reporting.

  • Financial Statements, 13%

    Worked both independently and on teams producing audited financial statements and working papers.

  • Payroll, 5%

    Participate in the overall administration of Payroll Accounting functions.

  • Internal Controls, 5%

    Worked closely with other departments particularly security to implement, maintain, and assure internal controls were followed.

  • GAAP, 5%

    Review and assistance in the preparation of financial information reporting in Spanish GAAP, US GAAP and IFRS.

Common skills that an accounting auditor uses to do their job include "audit reports," "cpa," and "financial statements." You can find details on the most important accounting auditor responsibilities below.

Computer skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an accounting auditor to have is computer skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks need to be comfortable using computer spreadsheets and bookkeeping software." Accounting auditors often use computer skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "read, used and is familiar with computer systems manuals and procedures, maintains and updated procedural manuals as needed. "

Integrity. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling accounting auditor duties is integrity. The role rewards competence in this skill because "bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks have control of an organization’s financial documentation, which they must use properly and keep confidential." According to an accounting auditor resume, here's how accounting auditors can utilize integrity in their job responsibilities: "calculate asset based fees for institutional, guaranteed products, defined contribution, real estate, prutrust, and toli clients. "

Detail oriented. accounting auditors are also known for detail oriented, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to accounting auditor responsibilities, because "bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks are responsible for producing accurate financial records." An accounting auditor resume example shows how detail oriented is used in the workplace: "assisted lead auditor including field work and detail audit procedures. "

Math skills. A big part of what accounting auditors do relies on "math skills." You can see how essential it is to accounting auditor responsibilities because "bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks deal with numbers daily and should be comfortable with basic arithmetic." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical accounting auditor tasks: "supervised accounting functions and preparation of reports and statistics detailing financial results. "

See the full list of accounting auditor skills

The three companies that hire the most accounting auditors are:

Choose from 10+ customizable accounting auditor resume templates

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Accounting Auditor Resume
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Accounting Auditor Resume
Accounting Auditor Resume
Accounting Auditor Resume
Accounting Auditor Resume
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Accounting Auditor Resume
Accounting Auditor Resume
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Accounting Auditor Resume

Compare different accounting auditors

Accounting auditor vs. Manager/finance accounting

A manager of finance accounting's role is to oversee the financial activities in a company or organization. Their responsibilities revolve around coordinating with other departments to gather financial data, analyze the revenues and expenditures, and develop written reports and presentations. A manager of finance accounting must also maintain accurate financial records, identify any errors or inconsistencies, and perform support tasks for staff when necessary. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the team, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

The annual salary of managers/finance accounting is $6,506 higher than the average salary of accounting auditors.Even though accounting auditors and managers/finance accounting are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require cpa, financial statements, and internal controls in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between accounting auditors and manager/finance accounting. For instance, accounting auditor responsibilities require skills such as "audit reports," "payroll," "journal entries," and "audit procedures." Whereas a manager/finance accounting is skilled in "customer service," "due diligence," "external auditors," and "hr." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Managers/finance accounting really shine in the government industry with an average salary of $92,198. Comparatively, accounting auditors tend to make the most money in the retail industry with an average salary of $101,688.On average, managers/finance accounting reach higher levels of education than accounting auditors. Managers/finance accounting are 11.1% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Accounting auditor vs. Senior accountant

A senior accountant is responsible for organizing financial reports, analyzing cost estimates, reviewing budget goals regularly, and making adjustments with the company's account statements as necessary. Senior accountants' duties also include managing account reconciliations, preparing tax documents, maintaining audit records and balance sheets, generating invoices, and providing recommendations to minimize possible financial loss. A senior accountant must have excellent analytical and critical-thinking skills and extensive knowledge of accounting and financial principles.

Senior accountant positions earn lower pay than accounting auditor roles. They earn a $12,842 lower salary than accounting auditors per year.A few skills overlap for accounting auditors and senior accountants. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "cpa," "financial statements," and "payroll. "

Each career also uses different skills, according to real accounting auditor resumes. While accounting auditor responsibilities can utilize skills like "audit reports," "journal entries," "audit procedures," and "balance sheet," senior accountants use skills like "external auditors," "strong analytical," "accruals," and "general ledger accounts."

Senior accountants may earn a lower salary than accounting auditors, but senior accountants earn the most pay in the finance industry with an average salary of $74,982. On the other hand, accounting auditors receive higher pay in the retail industry, where they earn an average salary of $101,688.senior accountants earn higher levels of education than accounting auditors in general. They're 6.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Accounting auditor vs. Auditor

An auditor is responsible for reviewing financial statements and making sure that the reports align with the accounting principles and legislative standards. Some of the important duties of an auditor are verifying the company's account statements, ensuring that the business is free from fraud and other unusual activities, providing recommendations to boost operations' performance, and creating financial reports for the board. An auditor should have excellent analytical and decision-making skills to spot inaccuracies of financial statements and resolve financial issues immediately.

An average auditor eans a lower salary compared to the average salary of accounting auditors. The difference in salaries amounts to auditors earning a $29,956 lower average salary than accounting auditors.Using the responsibilities included on accounting auditors and auditors resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "audit reports," "cpa," and "financial statements.rdquo;

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, accounting auditors are more likely to have skills like "internal controls," "gaap," "reconciliations," and "daily sales." But a auditor is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "advanced computer," "internal audit," and "corrective action."

Auditors earn the best pay in the professional industry, where they command an average salary of $75,596. Accounting auditors earn the highest pay from the retail industry, with an average salary of $101,688.Most auditors achieve a similar degree level compared to accounting auditors. For example, they're 1.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Accounting auditor vs. Senior auditor

Senior auditors have a vital role to play in the financial auditing process. They hold more responsibilities compared to staff auditors and report to an auditing manager directly. They have varied duties and responsibilities, including assigning tasks to staff auditors, overseeing compliant and precise auditing processes, and performing control and risk assessments. Senior auditors also are responsible for presenting audit findings, coordinating periodical audits, and submitting reports to the manager. If you are looking to apply for this role, you need to have a bachelor's degree in accounting or finance, strong analytical and mathematical skills, and proficiency in MS Office.

Senior auditors typically earn lower pay than accounting auditors. On average, senior auditors earn a $10,427 lower salary per year.While their salaries may vary, accounting auditors and senior auditors both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "audit reports," "cpa," and "payroll. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between accounting auditors and senior auditors, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, an accounting auditor might have more use for skills like "financial statements," "internal controls," "gaap," and "reconciliations." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of senior auditors require skills like "internal audit," "risk assessments," "excellent interpersonal," and "audit issues. "

Senior auditors enjoy the best pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $84,217. For comparison, accounting auditors earn the highest salary in the retail industry.senior auditors reach higher levels of education compared to accounting auditors, in general. The difference is that they're 7.7% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of accounting auditor

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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