Senior Accountant job description
A Senior Accountant is a mid-level professional who oversees the company’s accounting department. They take ownership for every aspect that goes into producing an organization's report, from cost-productivity and margins all the way down to expenditures.
This Senior Accountant job description template is optimized for posting on online job boards or careers pages. It’s easy to customize with accounting duties, whether you’re hiring a financial, fund, tax or payroll accountant.
Senior Accountant responsibilities include:
- Verifying, allocating, posting and reconciling accounts payable and receivable
- Producing error-free accounting reports and present their results
- Analyzing financial information and summarizing financial status
Job brief
We are looking for an experienced Senior Accountant to oversee general accounting operations by controlling and verifying our financial transactions.
Senior Accountant responsibilities include reconciling account balances and bank statements, maintaining general ledger and preparing month-end close procedures. A successful Senior Accountant combines excellent analytical skills with a thorough knowledge of accounting principles to analyze financial reports and forecasts. The ideal candidate has also experience collaborating and/or managing a team of Accountants and Junior Accountants.
Senior Accountant duties also include ensuring accuracy and effectiveness in all of our accounting tasks.
Responsibilities
- Verify, allocate, post and reconcile accounts payable and receivable
- Produce error-free accounting reports and present their results
- Analyze financial information and summarize financial status
- Spot errors and suggest ways to improve efficiency and spending
- Provide technical support and advice on Management Accountant
- Review and recommend modifications to accounting systems and procedures
- Manage accounting assistants and bookkeepers
- Participate in financial standards setting and in forecast process
- Provide input into department’s goal setting process
- Prepare financial statements and produce budget according to schedule
- Assist with tax audits and tax returns
- Direct internal and external audits to ensure compliance
- Plan, assign and review staff’s work
- Support month-end and year-end close process
- Develop and document business processes and accounting policies to maintain and strengthen internal controls
- Ensure compliance with GAAP principles
- Liaise with our Financial Manager and Accounting Manager to improve financial procedures
Requirements and skills
- Proven experience as a Financial Controller, Accounting Supervisor, chief or senior accountant
- Thorough knowledge of basic accounting procedures
- In-depth understanding of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)
- Awareness of business trends
- Familiarity with financial accounting statements
- Experience with general ledger functions and the month-end/year-end close process
- Hands-on experience with accounting software packages, like FreshBooks and QuickBooks
- Advanced MS Excel skills including Vlookups and pivot tables
- Accuracy and attention to detail
- Aptitude for numbers and quantitative skills
- BS degree in Accounting, Finance or relevant
- Relevant certification (e.g. CMA or CPA) will be preferred
Frequently asked questions
What does a Senior Accountant do?
A Senior Accountant analyzes various transactions and prepares monthly, quarterly or annual financial statements. They also run reports throughout the year that help them keep up with all aspects they’re responsible for on an ongoing basis.
What are the duties and responsibilities of a Senior Accountant?
The responsibilities of a Senior Accountant can include reconciling sub-ledger to general ledger account balances, preparing financial statements and assessing internal controls, including risk assessments. They perform monthly balance sheet income statement changes in financial position/budget variance analysis, assist with the design of budgets for review by management, maintain fixed assets and schedules as well as supervise accounting staff.
What makes a good Senior Accountant?
A good Senior Accountant should have sound analytical skills and advanced Excel abilities as well as knowledge in accounting procedures, including preparing month-end reports or financial forecasts for clients, among other things. A bachelor's degree is required, but a master’s degree or extensive experience in the accounting field is preferred for a Senior position.
Who does a Senior Accountant work with?
The Senior Accountant reports to the Controller and typically manages a team of junior accountants in the department.
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