Reporting specialist vs senior staff accountant

The differences between reporting specialists and senior staff accountants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a reporting specialist and a senior staff accountant. Additionally, a senior staff accountant has an average salary of $65,019, which is higher than the $56,129 average annual salary of a reporting specialist.

The top three skills for a reporting specialist include customer service, data analysis and powerpoint. The most important skills for a senior staff accountant are reconciliations, account reconciliations, and CPA.

Reporting specialist vs senior staff accountant overview

	Reporting Specialist	Senior Staff Accountant
Yearly salary	$56,129	$65,019
Hourly rate	$26.99	$31.26
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	50,543	112,760
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

What does a reporting specialist do?

A reporting specialist, also known as a marketing analyst, is an individual who is responsible for examining the current trends and marketing conditions for an organization. Reporting specialists are required to gather information about their potential customers, business competitors, and economic conditions. They examine databases and new reports as well as initiate questionnaires and opinion polls with the help of survey researchers. Reporting specialists must also present the information they gather to the management of the organization.

What does a senior staff accountant do?

A senior staff accountant is responsible for managing the accounting operations of the company's accounting department, reconciling accounts, and finalizing financial reports to discuss with the management. Senior staff accountants resolve account discrepancies, analyze the company's financial status, and verify financial transactions. They must have excellent analytical skills and extensive knowledge of the accounting principles to perform accounting duties that would minimize the financial risk of the company. A senior staff accountant provides strategic recommendations to prevent overspending and increase efficiency across all departments to drive more revenues and profits.

Reporting specialist vs senior staff accountant salary

Reporting specialists and senior staff accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Reporting Specialist	Senior Staff Accountant
Average salary	$56,129	$65,019
Salary range	Between $39,000 And $80,000	Between $48,000 And $86,000
Highest paying City	San Jose, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	California	New York
Best paying company	Citi	Calumet Specialty Products Partners
Best paying industry	Finance	Professional

Differences between reporting specialist and senior staff accountant education

There are a few differences between a reporting specialist and a senior staff accountant in terms of educational background:

	Reporting Specialist	Senior Staff Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Most common major	Business	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Reporting specialist vs senior staff accountant demographics

Here are the differences between reporting specialists' and senior staff accountants' demographics:

	Reporting Specialist	Senior Staff Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 42.1% Female, 57.9%	Male, 42.6% Female, 57.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 12.1% White, 63.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 12.1% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between reporting specialist and senior staff accountant duties and responsibilities

Reporting specialist example responsibilities.

Manage risks and ensure compliance with SOX controls relate to selection and contracting of suppliers.
Manage coordination, implementation and installation of next generation telemarketing system, an nt-base, client server environment.
Create VBA macros to streamline existing reporting processes.
Assist with developing and updating VBA code as necessary.
Analyze operating reports with Cognos, VendorScape and DRI.
Promote current HIPAA compliance beyond the minimum legally mandate.

Senior staff accountant example responsibilities.

Manage month end close process including journal entries, departmental analysis and preparation of consolidate financial statements and account reconciliations.
Involve in revenue recognition research (ASC 985-605 vs. ASC 605-25).
Aid managers in performing AP duties, generate financial reports for CPA, and reconcile bank accounts for corporate office.
Prepare balance sheet reconciliations and general ledger analysis in accordance with GAAP.
Advance SaaS deal and rev accounting.
Cultivate productive, trustful relationship with external CPA firm, critical to producing successful audits and year-end reporting.

Reporting specialist vs senior staff accountant skills

Common reporting specialist skills

Customer Service, 10%
Data Analysis, 8%
PowerPoint, 6%
BI, 5%
QA, 5%
SME, 4%

Common senior staff accountant skills

Reconciliations, 13%
Account Reconciliations, 7%
CPA, 7%
GAAP, 5%
General Ledger Accounts, 5%
Balance Sheet Accounts, 4%

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Reporting Specialist vs Senior Staff Accountant

Updated January 8, 2025

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