Is the job of a staff accountant at a corporation difficult?
Hi, I am starting my new job as a staff accountant soon and am having some pre-employment anxiety because I'm not too sure what to expect. I just graduated so this will be my first real job related to accounting. Is accounting in the real world anything like the useless examples and exercises that they make us do during university? Would you say it is more difficult or easier due to everything being computerized? Also, I was wondering if there will be a lot of heavy excel use and if so what type of functions should I familiarize myself with? Any other advice or tips will be greatly appreciated as well! Thanks for answering!
Accountant or Assistant Controller? Which position holds more responsiblities?
Well... that's kind of hard to answer, since it sounds like you're asking for a specific company, in which those would be specific positions. In the general accounting field, an "accountant" is supposed to be a CPA, but many people call themselves accountants who are, essentially, only bookkeepers. If there is a position somewhere called "accountant" you're probably looking at bookkeeping of some kind. The controller of a company essentially runs all of the financial aspects of the company (not obtaining money, but managing the assets of the company). An assistant would probably be more of a management position of a sort than a technical position like "accountant". The controller must make decisions and put plans into action. But in order to figure out exactly what each position entails, you'd have to get a description. Those sound like pretty arbitrary titles, so it's difficult to say with any certainty what you'd be doing. Good luck! :0)
What's the hardest part about being an accountant?
A big part of the answer would depend upon where you plan to work because the demands placed upon public accountants are much different from those working in private companies. Public accounting work is very seasonal with very long hours during the peak audit and tax periods. Expect to work 65 to 70 hours per week on average during those weeks. In some firms, the hours are longer. And the work is difficult and may require CPA certification to perform certain functions. Getting the CPA certificate now requires a masters degree, most likely an expensive CPA review program, the CPA exam that has the lowest first time taker pass rate of most, if not all, professional examinations, and a certain length of work experience under the supervision of a CPA. The sacrifices in public accounting are somewhat mitigated by the terrific work experience you receive if you are working for the right firm.Accountants working for private companies face a different array of challenges. Their work may be seasonal but to a lesser degree. A big stressor for accountants working for private companies include the month end and year end closes. These periods can be horrific and it is not uncommon for days worth of work to come completely unraveled because late adjustments or other changes are made. I spent most of my career in public but several of my associates working for private companies talk about work days ending at 1:00 a.m. in the morning.Depending upon the job, accounting requires intelligence, flexibility, the ability to work under very intense pressure, very high attention to detail, good communication skills, and the ability to interact well with others, often under tough conditions. But the skills learned can be practiced in virtually all industries and that in itself provides a certain amount of job security in all economies.I hope that helps…
Is accounting a hard job?
There are a wide range of accounting jobs. Some of them are intellectually very taxing such as juggling international tax law and cost accounting for transfer pricing specialists. Some accounting jobs have inhuman "work-life balance", such as external audit in places with brutally enforced deadlines and a booming economy - meaning your employer (allegedly) cannot quickly recruit competent colleagues. On the other hand, some accounting jobs are relatively easy. Some accountants in small firms only ever deal with individuals and small businesses. They never need to see international issues, consolidations with multiple functional currencies and acquisitions/disposals of businesses, full IFRS/GAAP financial reporting, foreign compliance issues, corporate tax complications, special integrity measures or complications of activity based costing. BUT: All accounting jobs I have heard of share the real fun - juggling human issues and human needs with inhuman legalities. For example, accountants are often lied to by important people. Good accountants can keep a straight face, exude calming vibes, take notes and asking probing questions that enable subjects to correct stories without accusing them of lying - until such an accusation is triangulated. Good accountants remain calm when legal issues obliterate clients' dreams. Some accountants find this stuff harder than legal number stuff.
When is busy season for accountants?
For all CPA firms, the work tends to be bunched into two separate periods. From Feb. 15 to April 15, and from about August 1 to October 15. This is because the tax returns for calendar year corporations(primarily S-corporations) are initially due March 15, but can be extended six months to September 15. Also, the tax returns for individuals and calendar year partnerships are initially due April 15, but can be extended to October 15. With most companies, it is very difficult to meet the March 15 date, and since individual returns can't be completed until S-corp returns are filed, individual returns must also be extended. Also, many audit clients of the large CPA firms have June 30 year ends, so that the audit work occurs between Aug. 1 and Sept. 15. Although most employees of large firms are on the audit staff, they are put to work on tax returns between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15.
How difficult is it to work in the Big 4 vs the industry?
A2A - this will depend very much on your mindset.Expect to bill in excess of 2,300 or 2,400 hours a year.That equates to 10–12 hour work days as a staff accountant.Expect to see about 10-20% of your peer group leave the firm each year.Expect to learn a lot.Do not expect to have much of a social life.Expect to pass the CPA exam within 2 years as a requirement to continue working.30 years later I am glad that I went the big 12 (not 4 as it is now) route and I am glad that I got out of the rat race.