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Director of accounting & finance skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

5 min read

Quoted experts

Carol Sullivan,

Thomas King

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical director of accounting & finance skills. We ranked the top skills for directors of accounting & finance based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 7.0% of director of accounting & finance resumes contained cpa as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a director of accounting & finance needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 director of accounting & finance skills for your resume and career

1. CPA

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use cpa:

Established Foundation as a Public Foundation 501(C)3 with assistance of CPA firm.
Resigned when asked to violate CPA professional code of ethics.

2. GAAP

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use gaap:

Incorporated international results, determined IFRS versus GAAP differences and identified necessary adjustments.
Converted Statutory basis accounting to GAAP accounting, meeting corporate strategic plan objective.

3. Internal Controls

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use internal controls:

Developed financial tools, internal controls and systems to provide critical financial and operational information to the chief operations officer.
Provide oversight evaluating accounting methods, processes, internal controls, systems and interpreting financial statements and accounting data.

4. Financial Data

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use financial data:

Presented, analyzed and interpreted relevant financial data to the Executive and Senior Management.
Provide financial data and information to managers in support of effective budget management.

5. Balance Sheet

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use balance sheet:

Review monthly balance sheet account reconciliations to ensure any unusual balances or transactions are identified, investigated, and remedied.
Supported agencies to minimize audit risk by managing balance sheet activity and substantiation.

6. Financial Reports

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use financial reports:

Prepared financial statements and other financial reports [annual budgets-sales analysis-operating, general and administrative expenses analysis-credit financing facilities analysis].
Analyzed financial activities and generated comprehensive financial management reports, donor fund financial reports, and proposal budget and narrative forms.

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7. External Auditors

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use external auditors:

Maintained Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) controls for financial reporting and collaborated with internal/external auditors on documentation and testing programs.
Participate in financial reviews and interpret financial results for executive team and serve as contact for internal/external auditors.

8. Oversight

Having oversight of someone means to monitor a process or a situation. If someone has oversight of something, they are responsible for the completion of the project. Oversight is usually given to experts as they monitor their juniors or newbies as they go through a project.

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use oversight:

Provided Key Performance Indicator scorecards, trending, and oversight of financial statement presentation.
Provide ongoing oversight to all accounting functions related to YBP by managing and directing the daily activities of the Accounting Manager.

9. Direct Reports

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use direct reports:

Managed forty-eight direct/indirect reports in four regional accounting offices.
Led 6 direct reports and over 60 employees with a focus on mentoring, training & developing careers goals.

10. Reconciliations

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use reconciliations:

Received and documented daily and weekly performance reviews of individual stores and logged information into Excel, ensuring timely bank reconciliations.
Managed financial accounting and reporting for all client entities, including consolidations and inter-company reconciliations, with recommendations for process improvements.

11. Cash Flow

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use cash flow:

Developed a comprehensive proposal to transition individual residential units from rent stabilization to decontrolled apartments, significantly increasing cash flow.
Developed improved metrics, reporting and forecasting to maximize profitability and cash flow.

12. Financial Analysis

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use financial analysis:

Performed due diligence and financial analysis on possible acquisitions and then integrated acquisitions into the Cornerstone family.
Provided financial analysis and recommendations to senior management supporting strategic product development and investment decisions.

13. General Ledger

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use general ledger:

Managed all general accounting functions which included general ledger maintenance, accounts payable, accounts receivable and account reconciliation.
Reduced manual process by developing customized general ledger reports, simplified closing schedules by consolidating schedules and eliminating redundancy.

14. Financial Results

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use financial results:

Analyze financial results versus forecast and budget; investigate significant variances, develop corrective actions and communicate findings to department leaders.
Prepared executive Flux Analysis and Commentary to assist executive management team in interpreting financial results and making business decisions.

15. Treasury

Here's how directors of accounting & finance use treasury:

Ensured Sarbanes-Oxley compliance through deployment of compliant business controls and procedures for accounting and treasury.
Enforced effective treasury management procedures, including timely receivable collections.

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What skills help Directors Of Accounting & Finance find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on director of accounting & finance resumes?

Carol Sullivan

Associate Professor, The University of Texas Permian Basin

Microsoft Office is most important in my professional opinion, but also Accounting software like QuickBooks is important. Computer literacy is really important, especially if employees continue to work remotely.

What soft skills should all Directors of accounting & finance possess?

Thomas King

Department Chair, Director, Master of Accountancy Program, Professor, Accountancy, Case Western Reserve University

The ability to develop working relationships with a wide range of colleagues who have diverse skills.

What hard/technical skills are most important for Directors of accounting & finance?

Thomas King

Department Chair, Director, Master of Accountancy Program, Professor, Accountancy, Case Western Reserve University

The ability to extract information from unfamiliar data sets and then explain conclusions reached in a clear, persuasive manner.

What director of accounting & finance skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Gary P Braun

Professor, California State University - Chico

Technology, technology, technology - there are different forms of this, but the intersection of data analysis and technology seems like the place that has the most bang for the buck. Perhaps I am overstating it here, but in my 35-plus years in the accounting world, there has been a continuous march toward the use of computer technology tools. My advice would be to either do a graduate program that has a focus on technology or to pick up certifications in specific tools. Another option would be to find free resources on these topics (MOOCs, for example). Also, for students wanting to be certified, I would say another great use of time is to get the hours needed to sit for the exam and to take the exam ASAP.

What type of skills will young Directors of accounting & finance need?

Dr. Lilac Nachum Ph.D.

Professor, International Business, Baruch College, City University New York

In light of the changes described in #1, the most apparent skills would be those related to digital employment. These will relate to both new opportunities, created digitally, as well as the transformation of brick and mortar jobs online. The former requires skills such as online management of supply chains, digital marketing, online sale, and the likes. These new jobs might require in addition to digital skills also heavy doses of creativity and entrepreneurship as new products and industries are being created and developed. In relation to the latter, the jobs themselves might be well established and familiar for some graduates but their delivery would be transformed in significant ways and require advanced digital skills related to the implementation of these activities.

What technical skills for a director of accounting & finance stand out to employers?

Dr. JP Krahel Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Accounting, Accounting Department Chair, Loyola University Maryland

First, Excel. It's the most basic, essential tool for the accounting professional. If you can come in on Day 1 knowing essential keyboard shortcuts, proper formula and reference use, and how to format a spreadsheet properly, you'll have an immediate advantage over your peers.

Second, believe it or not, is writing. People think that accounting is all about numbers, but really, it's less about the math (which Excel does for you) and more about being able to explain the deeper meaning behind the results. Can you explain complex depreciation methods to an audit client? Give bad news to a tax client in an understandable way? These are big deals.

Third is data analytics. Given the immense volume of data now available to firms, someone who can extract, clean, and present that data using modern software tools will have an edge. It's really another form of communication, and one that early-career accounting professionals would do well to familiarize themselves with before entering the workforce.

Do you want to know more?

List of director of accounting & finance skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a director of accounting & finance resume and required skills for a director of accounting & finance to have include:

CPA
GAAP
Internal Controls
Financial Data
Balance Sheet
Financial Reports
External Auditors
Oversight
Direct Reports
Reconciliations
Cash Flow
Financial Analysis
General Ledger
Financial Results
Treasury
Payroll Processing
SOX

Cash Management
Financial Management
Asset Management
Close Process
Human Resources
ERP
Due Diligence
Hyperion
Financial Performance
Journal Entries
Revenue Recognition
Financial Operations
Process Improvement
Sarbanes-Oxley
Fixed Assets
IFRS
Risk Management

Shared Services
Real Estate
Executive Management
Financial Systems
Internal Audit
Financial Policies
Variance Analysis
Tax Returns
Business Processes
Business Development
Financial Models
Budget Process
A/P
Financial Statements
Marriott

Updated January 8, 2025

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.

Updated January 8, 2025

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