Accounting director vs chief finance officer

The differences between accounting directors and chief finance officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-8 years to become an accounting director, becoming a chief finance officer takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, a chief finance officer has an average salary of $143,947, which is higher than the $132,126 average annual salary of an accounting director.

The top three skills for an accounting director include CPA, GAAP and internal controls. The most important skills for a chief finance officer are payroll, CPA, and oversight.

Accounting director vs chief finance officer overview

	Accounting Director	Chief Finance Officer
Yearly salary	$132,126	$143,947
Hourly rate	$63.52	$69.21
Growth rate	17%	6%
Number of jobs	56,323	145,184
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age	46	52
Years of experience	8	-

What does an accounting director do?

An Accounting Director supervises the general accounting and financial reporting functions, as well as financial services within a company or organization. They also ensure that all transactions and financial policies for their organization meet federal regulations and standards.

What does a chief finance officer do?

A chief financial officer is responsible for managing and reviewing the financial status of a company. Chief financial officers' duties include ensuring the accuracy of financial reports, monitoring the company's expenses and budget goals, providing recommendations to prevent financial loss and increase revenues, processing the company's tax obligations, and resolving financial disputes. A chief financial officer must have an impeccable knowledge of the financial industry, updated with the current market trend, and strong leadership and decision-making skills to support the organization's financial department.

Accounting director vs chief finance officer salary

Accounting directors and chief finance officers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Accounting Director	Chief Finance Officer
Average salary	$132,126	$143,947
Salary range	Between $89,000 And $193,000	Between $80,000 And $257,000
Highest paying City	Cambridge, MA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	California
Best paying company	Yuma Regional Medical Center	Baker McKenzie
Best paying industry	Technology	Construction

Differences between accounting director and chief finance officer education

There are a few differences between an accounting director and a chief finance officer in terms of educational background:

	Accounting Director	Chief Finance Officer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Accounting director vs chief finance officer demographics

Here are the differences between accounting directors' and chief finance officers' demographics:

	Accounting Director	Chief Finance Officer
Average age	46	52
Gender ratio	Male, 52.0% Female, 48.0%	Male, 71.9% Female, 28.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 8.6% White, 64.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 7.7% White, 76.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	11%	12%

Differences between accounting director and chief finance officer duties and responsibilities

Accounting director example responsibilities.

Manage and coordinate ACH preparation, positive pay and execution activities.
Manage and review annual preparation of work papers for CPA firm to coordinate federal returns and state franchise returns.
Manage daily receipts, payment reversals, adjustments, ACH and wire payments, and other accounts receivable activity.
Lead finance team in major ERP implementation project in the areas of inventory, accounts payable, and general ledger.
Lead the effort to establish accounting policy, streamline operating procedures and implement Sarbanes-Oxley compliance processes.
Manage foundation accounting and establish internal accounting controls and accounting procedures to ensure contributions are accounted for in accordance with GAAP.

Chief finance officer example responsibilities.

Lead management team in developing and executing a combination of pricing and cost savings strategies that improve EBITDA more than threefold.
Lead the consolidation of financial and operational systems for non-acute services including rehabilitation and psychiatry services.
Lead system conversion to Hyperion planning budgeting/forecasting software, responsible for training, developing and implementation.
Manage all firm banking relationships, treasury functions and retain signatory authority for all partnership and corporate accounts.
Lead implementation of new worldwide consolidation system, Hyperion, significantly reducing closing time and improving controls over the consolidation process.
Prepare annual general ledger reconciliations and consolidate financial reports for CPA tax preparation.

Accounting director vs chief finance officer skills

Common accounting director skills

CPA, 10%
GAAP, 9%
Internal Controls, 7%
Reconciliations, 5%
External Auditors, 5%
Payroll, 5%

Common chief finance officer skills

Payroll, 7%
CPA, 6%
Oversight, 5%
Financial Reports, 4%
Human Resources, 4%
Internal Controls, 4%

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Accounting Director vs Chief Finance Officer

Updated January 8, 2025

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