What does a corporate accountant do?
A corporate accountant is an individual who prepares financial statements and maintains financial records of an organization to ensure that they comply with laws, regulations, and the organization's policies. Corporate accountants are required to analyze financial statements to help executives make financial decisions for the organization. They must collect ledgers and financial reports from divisional offices and prepare corporate financial statements for executives. Corporate accountants must also prepare budgets to allocate funds for spending for each department.
Corporate accountant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real corporate accountant resumes:
- Lead successful implementation of PeopleSoft fix asset software module.
- Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
- Perform month-end closing responsibilities, month-end accruals, expense allocations across business units and legal entities, and account reconciliations.
- Perform general accounting assignments including accruals, profit and loss reports and reconciliations.
- Prepare monthly journal entries and variance reconciliations primarily relating to compensation, operational accruals, investments, and partnerships.
- Perform detailed and extensive schedules and analysis for annual audits by an outside CPA firm as required by law.
- Work with the internal audit manager to identify and correct SOX deficiencies and ensure divisions are compliant to company policies.
- Include consolidation of all companies and completion of all tax forms so that the CPA's only have to sign it.
- Assist in establishing and administering corporate procedures and controls for SOX and provide SOX training to new control owners and performers.
- Reconcile corporate concentration account, consolidate accounts payable and payroll accounts.
- Prepare payroll adjusting entries and associate adjusting invoices to tcb-manage properties.
- Perform technical analysis to ensure financial integrity and compliance with generally accept accounting principles (GAAP).
- Gain substantial accounting skills including financial statement analysis, budgeting, Japanese GAAP, corporate law and securities regulation.
- Calculate monthly commission payments for internal and external salesmen and identify trends in salesman commission compensation, adjusting accruals accordingly.
- Involve in testing and implementation next-generation innovative technologies (including new ERP systems) to foster an environment of continuous improvement.
Corporate accountant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 14% of Corporate Accountants are proficient in Reconciliations, GAAP, and Account Reconciliations. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Detail oriented.
We break down the percentage of Corporate Accountants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Reconciliations, 14%
Performed month-end closing responsibilities, month-end accruals, expense allocations across business units and legal entities, and account reconciliations.
- GAAP, 6%
Gained substantial accounting skills including financial statement analysis, budgeting, Japanese GAAP, corporate law and securities regulation.
- Account Reconciliations, 6%
Prepare monthly balance sheet account reconciliations within the monthly closing cycle, providing excellent details and addressing any necessary corrections promptly.
- CPA, 5%
Included consolidation of all companies and completion of all tax forms so that the CPA's only had to sign it.
- General Ledger Accounts, 5%
Provided information to management and staff regarding accounting practices, financial procedures, and reconciled general ledger accounts.
- External Auditors, 4%
Coordinated the quarterly assembly of audit related documentation for external auditors, resulting in unqualified opinion.
"reconciliations," "gaap," and "account reconciliations" are among the most common skills that corporate accountants use at work. You can find even more corporate accountant responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling corporate accountant duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "accountants and auditors must be able to listen to and discuss facts and concerns from clients, managers, and other stakeholders." According to a corporate accountant resume, here's how corporate accountants can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "allocated benefits, telecommunications, and other corporate-level costs to each business area within company using erp system. "
Detail oriented. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of corporate accountants is detail oriented. This skill is critical to many everyday corporate accountant 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: "provided detailed general ledger analyses to support the transition to sage 100 erp and to optimize ongoing accounting operations. "
Math skills. A big part of what corporate accountants do relies on "math skills." You can see how essential it is to corporate accountant 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 corporate accountant tasks: "prepare and post adp payroll journal entries and monthly accruals, prepared and managed participant's 401k contributions and year-end statistics. "
Organizational skills. A commonly-found skill in corporate accountant job descriptions, "organizational skills" is essential to what corporate accountants do. Corporate accountant 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 corporate accountant duties rely on organizational skills in this resume example: "prepared monthly journals, trial balances, financial analysis, cash management and budgeting for a multi organizational center. "
The three companies that hire the most corporate accountants are:
- Robert Half17 corporate accountants jobs
- Northpoint7 corporate accountants jobs
- Six Flags4 corporate accountants jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable corporate accountant resume templates
Build a professional corporate accountant resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your corporate accountant resume.
Compare different corporate accountants
Corporate accountant vs. Account auditor
The account auditor is the person tasked to conduct audits in sales accounts handled by the company. As with an auditor, this person checks all financial statements, investigates each entry, making sure everything is accounted for correctly. The auditor checks all receivables, attachments, and liquidation to ensure the financial report is accurate, which is vital for strategies that affect company expenses, calculate revenue, gains, and losses, and use those information to file taxes.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between corporate accountants and account auditor. For instance, corporate accountant responsibilities require skills such as "gaap," "close process," "accruals," and "strong analytical." Whereas a account auditor is skilled in "audit reports," "audit procedures," "payroll," and "audit findings." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Account auditors really shine in the professional industry with an average salary of $84,961. Comparatively, corporate accountants tend to make the most money in the finance industry with an average salary of $71,156.account auditors tend to reach similar levels of education than corporate accountants. In fact, account auditors are 2.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Corporate accountant vs. Accountant internship
An accounting intern is responsible for assisting an organization's accounting department, observing practical applications and processes, and performing accounting duties under the supervision of tenured accounting staff. Accounting interns support the accounting operations by preparing and organizing financial reports, helping with accounts reconciliation, researching financial and stock market trends, utilizing various accounting software, and managing feedback from their mentors. An accounting intern must be detail-oriented and a fast-learner, immediately adjusting to the company's culture and actively cooperating with the team to ensure a smooth flow of operations.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that corporate accountant responsibilities requires skills like "reconciliations," "external auditors," "close process," and "internal controls." But an accountant internship might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "r," "account management," "powerpoint," and "renewable energy."
On average, accountant interns earn a lower salary than corporate accountants. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, accountant interns earn the most pay in the media industry with an average salary of $36,253. Whereas corporate accountants have higher pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $71,156.In general, accountant interns achieve similar levels of education than corporate accountants. They're 3.9% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for corporate accountants in the next 3-5 years?
Terri Walsh
Professor/Program Manager, Accounting, Seminole State College of Florida
Corporate accountant vs. Account analyst
Account analysts are responsible for analyzing account statements and financial transactions of an organization, resolving billing discrepancies, and managing account receivables. They assess the company's financial stability and identify opportunities to improve data analysis techniques by adhering to accounting principles and the company's operational protocols. Account analysts prepare financial reports, evaluate accounts payable, assist in tax audits, and release invoices. They should have excellent analytical and communication skills, especially on posting accurate account reports on the database.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, corporate accountants are more likely to have skills like "cpa," "close process," "accruals," and "real estate." But a account analyst is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "patients," "powerpoint," and "balance sheet."
Account analysts make a very good living in the finance industry with an average annual salary of $71,221. On the other hand, corporate accountants are paid the highest salary in the finance industry, with average annual pay of $71,156.Most account analysts achieve a similar degree level compared to corporate accountants. For example, they're 3.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Corporate accountant 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.
Types of corporate accountant
Updated January 8, 2025
