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Project finance analyst vs senior finance analyst

The differences between project finance analysts and senior finance analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a project finance analyst and a senior finance analyst. Additionally, a senior finance analyst has an average salary of $83,222, which is higher than the $77,005 average annual salary of a project finance analyst.

The top three skills for a project finance analyst include financial analysis, project management and financial data. The most important skills for a senior finance analyst are financial analysis, hyperion, and financial models.

Project finance analyst vs senior finance analyst overview

Project Finance AnalystSenior Finance Analyst
Yearly salary$77,005$83,222
Hourly rate$37.02$40.01
Growth rate9%9%
Number of jobs106,230117,609
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age4040
Years of experience44

What does a project finance analyst do?

A project finance analyst is responsible for analyzing the financial needs and reports of an organization's project management system. Project finance analysts review project terms and expense forecasting and identify strategies to minimize financial loss. They also resolve account discrepancies and file accurate financial statements upon the assessment of project plans, resources, and timetables. A project finance analyst must have excellent communication and analytical skills to determine potential risks and enhance the company's portfolio for business proposals.

What does a senior finance analyst do?

A Senior Financial Analyst's role is to oversee the financial aspects and manage fellow analysts in a company. Among the tasks of a Senior Financial Analyst include conducting research and analysis, providing forecast in revenue and expenditures, creating financial models that would suit the company and project more sales, and take part in the planning of finances. Moreover, being a Senior Financial Analyst means leading a team of skilled professionals in the same field of expertise.

Project finance analyst vs senior finance analyst salary

Project finance analysts and senior finance analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.

Project Finance AnalystSenior Finance Analyst
Average salary$77,005$83,222
Salary rangeBetween $54,000 And $108,000Between $62,000 And $110,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying statePennsylvaniaCalifornia
Best paying companyGoogleGoogle
Best paying industryManufacturingTechnology

Differences between project finance analyst and senior finance analyst education

There are a few differences between a project finance analyst and a senior finance analyst in terms of educational background:

Project Finance AnalystSenior Finance Analyst
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common majorBusinessAccounting
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Project finance analyst vs senior finance analyst demographics

Here are the differences between project finance analysts' and senior finance analysts' demographics:

Project Finance AnalystSenior Finance Analyst
Average age4040
Gender ratioMale, 48.8% Female, 51.2%Male, 61.7% Female, 38.3%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 14.1% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 14.1% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage7%7%

Differences between project finance analyst and senior finance analyst duties and responsibilities

Project finance analyst example responsibilities.

  • Lead a reconciliations project team responsible for the implementing new systemic reconciliations replacing manual and legacy processes.
  • Develop, maintain financial models/applications (VBA Excel/Access) to automate and streamline business processes and perform financial analysis.
  • Work with the accounting team to ensure revenue recognition rules where in compliance with GAAP and internal policy.
  • Ensure that budgets are loaded into ERP properly and tie to control totals
  • Complete coursework through PeopleSoft in order to thoroughly understand each module's processes.
  • Identify and implement optimal manner of extracting, purging and transferring data from old systems to PeopleSoft.
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Senior finance analyst example responsibilities.

  • Used SharePoint repository to manage all project documents.
  • Manage deployment of SQL databases across multiple platforms within a secure environment focusing on security and data integrity.
  • Leverage and improve key performance indicators to drive portfolio management to core business team leads and executive sponsors.
  • Develop, maintain financial models/applications (VBA Excel/Access) to automate and streamline business processes and perform financial analysis.
  • Validate data in Hyperion EssBase for implementation.
  • Perform month end accounting close activities including preparation of accruals and monthly financial analysis reports for business unit management.
  • Show more

Project finance analyst vs senior finance analyst skills

Common project finance analyst skills
  • Financial Analysis, 11%
  • Project Management, 9%
  • Financial Data, 4%
  • Strong Analytical, 4%
  • Hyperion, 3%
  • Financial Management, 3%
Common senior finance analyst skills
  • Financial Analysis, 12%
  • Hyperion, 5%
  • Financial Models, 5%
  • Strong Analytical, 4%
  • Variance Analysis, 4%
  • Ad-Hoc Analysis, 4%

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