What does a tax associate do?

An accountant is an individual whose primary task is to prepare, keep, examine, and interpret financial records. Most accountants are in charge of a wide scope of finance-related tasks, either for private individuals or for large-scale businesses and organizations they are employed with. They make sure that financial statements and records are accurate and comply with laws and regulations. They also compute for taxes, prepare tax returns, and ensure being paid properly and on time. As they keep track and record the flow of money, they can offer guidance on how to reduce costs, enhance revenue, and help in profit maximization.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, tax associate responsibilities require skills like "strong customer service," "strong computer," "tax planning," and "tax research." Meanwhile a typical accountant has skills in areas such as "reconciliations," "general ledger accounts," "account reconciliations," and "payroll tax returns." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

An auditor is responsible for reviewing financial statements and making sure that the reports align with the accounting principles and legislative standards. Some of the important duties of an auditor are verifying the company's account statements, ensuring that the business is free from fraud and other unusual activities, providing recommendations to boost operations' performance, and creating financial reports for the board. An auditor should have excellent analytical and decision-making skills to spot inaccuracies of financial statements and resolve financial issues immediately.

Each career also uses different skills, according to real tax associate resumes. While tax associate responsibilities can utilize skills like "strong customer service," "strong computer," "tax planning," and "tax research," auditors use skills like "audit reports," "customer service," "audit findings," and "audit procedures."

An audit intern is responsible for assisting the finance department in processing financial reports, analyzing account statements, releasing invoices, and conducting tax audits. Audit interns shadow tenured staff on the operation procedures to familiarize themselves with work processes. They are also tasked to do administrative and clerical duties under the supervision of a direct supervisor, such as writing reports, ensuring the accuracy of financial statements, responding to clients' inquiries and concerns, and escalating high-level complaints to the supervisor for immediate resolution.

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, tax associates are more likely to have skills like "strong customer service," "strong computer," "tax planning," and "tax research." But a audit internship is more likely to have skills like "audit procedures," "risk assessments," "audit intern," and "first hand."

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.

Even though a few skill sets overlap between tax associates and corporate accountants, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a tax associate might have more use for skills like "strong customer service," "strong computer," "tax planning," and "tax research." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of corporate accountants require skills like "reconciliations," "account reconciliations," "general ledger accounts," and "external auditors. "