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The differences between senior accountants and account leaders can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a senior accountant and an account leader. Additionally, an account leader has an average salary of $108,843, which is higher than the $71,967 average annual salary of a senior accountant.
The top three skills for a senior accountant include reconciliations, CPA and GAAP. The most important skills for an account leader are account management, customer service, and business development.
| Senior Accountant | Account Leader | |
| Yearly salary | $71,967 | $108,843 |
| Hourly rate | $34.60 | $52.33 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 76,816 | 135,207 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 78% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A senior accountant is responsible for organizing financial reports, analyzing cost estimates, reviewing budget goals regularly, and making adjustments with the company's account statements as necessary. Senior accountants' duties also include managing account reconciliations, preparing tax documents, maintaining audit records and balance sheets, generating invoices, and providing recommendations to minimize possible financial loss. A senior accountant must have excellent analytical and critical-thinking skills and extensive knowledge of accounting and financial principles.
Account leaders are assigned to work on specific client accounts and assist these clients with their needs. They should treat their clients as partners. This would help them forge a better working relationship with clients. Account leaders should have high business acumen and a strong grasp of the current industry landscape. They should be familiar with the company's products and services and which product or service best fits the clients' needs. Account leaders should also know how to retain clients and maintain the client base. They may do this by regularly checking up on clients, making clients feel valued, and mitigating any challenges that may arise.
Senior accountants and account leaders have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Accountant | Account Leader | |
| Average salary | $71,967 | $108,843 |
| Salary range | Between $55,000 And $92,000 | Between $75,000 And $157,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Point B | |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Professional |
There are a few differences between a senior accountant and an account leader in terms of educational background:
| Senior Accountant | Account Leader | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 78% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior accountants' and account leaders' demographics:
| Senior Accountant | Account Leader | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1% | Male, 48.4% Female, 51.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 14.5% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 12.2% White, 64.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |