Staff Accountant Resume Examples & Templates
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Staff accountants’ primary responsibilities include bookkeeping, maintaining general ledgers and bank statements, reconciling accounts, managing reimbursements, looking into grant applications, creating periodic reports, tracking policies and procedures and analyzing budgets. This is usually a mid-level position, reporting to the accounting manager or chief financial officer.
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Staff accountant example (text version)
Name: IVAN GILBERT
Address: City, State, Zip Code
Phone: 000-000-0000
E-Mail: email@email.com
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
Dynamic and detail-driven accounting professional experienced in examining and analyzing accounting records, financial statements and financial reports to assess accuracy and compliance with generally accepted accounting principles and standards. Proven ability to analyze accounting processes, identify deficiencies, formulate and implement corrective action plans to achieve compliance and mitigate risk. Personable in managing client relationships and assisting clients to resolve problems and find solutions.
WORK HISTORY
- Identified and investigated variances to financial plans and forecasts.
- Reduced liabilities by accurately managing tax statements, mailings, journal entries, payments and transfers.
- Performed advanced reviews of business operational trends and expected obligations to prepare accurate forecasts.
- Investigated and resolved variances in digital and physical records to promote record integrity.
- Helped clients navigate interactions with tax authorities and legal concerns related to financial matters.
- Reconciled month end totals to ensure timely and accurate reporting of financial information.
- Applied mathematical abilities on daily basis to calculate and check figures in all areas of accounting systems.
- Prepared monthly closings by creating journal entries and reconciling accounts.
- Applied proper codes to invoices, files and receipts to keep records organized and easily searchable.
SKILLS
- Closing processes
- Monthly Account / Bank Reconciliation
- Forecasting & Budgeting
- Audit coordination
- Internal / External Audits
- Financial Reporting
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Staff Accountant Resume FAQ
1. What are the skills you should emphasize for this specific job?
| Technical skills to feature: | Soft skills you can feature include: |
| Ledger account reconciliations | Effective communication |
| Data verification | Team coordination |
| A thorough understanding of tax laws, track policies and procedures | Attention to detail |
| Financial reporting | Organizational skills |
| Asset management | Ability to maintain confidentiality |
| Accounting analysis | Efficiency |
| Proficiency in accounting software | Ability to work independently as well as collaborate |
| Technical skills to feature: |
| Ledger account reconciliations |
| Data verification |
| A thorough understanding of tax laws, track policies and procedures |
| Financial reporting |
| Asset management |
| Accounting analysis |
| Proficiency in accounting software |
| Soft skills you can feature include: |
| Effective communication |
| Team coordination |
| Attention to detail |
| Organizational skills |
| Ability to maintain confidentiality |
| Efficiency |
| Ability to work independently as well as collaborate |
2. What are some examples of training and certifications that fit this specific resume?
In addition to a degree in accounting, business accounting or finance, look to gain an advanced degree in accounting, as well as licensing as a Certified Public Accountant license. Other accounting certifications could include:
- Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
- Certified Financial Analyst (CFA)
- Certified Management Accountant (CMA)
- Enrolled Agent (EA)
- Certified Internal Auditor (CIA)
- Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA)
- Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA)
Also mention any training or certifications you have for accounting software such as Freshbooks or Xero.
3. How should you format your resume?
Choose a format based on your work experience, and how well your experience and skills fit the open position. If you have extensive work experience, go with the chronological format, which focuses on work history. A combination format gives equal attention to skills and work experience, and is good for candidates who can feature transferable skills from limited work experience, or from different career fields. If you’re a first-time job seeker, use the functional format. This layout’s expanded skills section allows you to make your case that you already have all the qualifications needed to succeed.
4. How should you craft your resume if you’re looking to take the next step forward in your career?
To climb the corporate ladder, look to add these items to your resume:
- Projects where you took on managerial responsibility
- Increase your proficiency with the latest accounting software
- Acquire accounting certifications in your area of specialty (e.g., Chartered Financial Analyst)
- Become a member of an industry organization, such as the American Accounting Organization, and attend workshops, webinars and networking events of the industry to stay up to date and connected
Do’s and Don’ts for Your Resume
- Do remember to include both hard and soft skills A staff accountant needs to handle plenty of technical duties, including working with specialized software, maintaining payroll records and financial statements, and managing reimbursements and preparing financial reports. But employers are also looking for soft skills that prove you have the right attitude and mindset for the job, such as excellent communication skills, critical thinking, ability to multitask, adherence to accuracy, efficiency and confidentiality. Include both types of skills in your resume.
- Do thoroughly proofread your resume before sending it in Even resumes with the best layouts can get thrown in the trash if silly spelling or grammatical mistakes crop up. Take the time to review your resume a few times before you submit it. Even just reading it out loud can help you find mistakes you missed the first time around. This is also your chance to make sure your content is accurate and correctly addresses job requirements.
- Do show how you add value to a company Statements backed by the “bottom line” — how you made a positive difference for a company — always stand out. Show recruiters how your skills and experience add value to a company’s objectives. For example: “Maintained and reconciled general ledger accounts for more than 175 clients,” or “Processed payroll for 100+ employees and updated accounting procedures for 20% increased efficiency in payouts.”
- Don’t laundry-list your skills It might be tempting to include every skill you have on your resume, but keep in mind that recruiters only take seconds to screen resumes, on average. Focus on presenting skills that are absolutely essential to the job, and match keywords from the job posting. For example, if the job mentions “‘exceptional communication skills” as a prerequisite, write “excellent written and verbal communication” in your resume. Don’t just blindly copy and paste keywords; come up with something similar from your skill set that fits the bill.
- Don’t use the same resume for all your applications A staff accountant role for a law firm won’t have the same requirements as a staff accountant position at a nonprofit organization, for example. Instead of using the same resume for all your job applications, create different versions of your resume to submit for different jobs, based on the keywords for skills and qualifications listed in each job description.
- Don’t forget to mention your accomplishments Any recognitions or awards you’ve received at the academic or professional level add a unique touch to your resume. For example: “Received ‘Employee of the Month’ recognition for increasing profitability by 17%” ). If you’re short on professional experience, you can also mention any activities outside of work (such as volunteering as an accountant for a local non-profit group) that ties in with accounting.
Top 4 Characteristics of a Best-in-Class Staff Accountant Resume
Summary
Your prime objective is to catch the recruiter’s attention from the get-go with this section. Pitch your best skills and work achievements, weaving your abilities and experiences together. For example: “Detail-oriented and proactive accountant, well-versed with financial statements and effective account reconciliation.”
Skills
Read the job description carefully, and emphasize the skills you have that match job requirements. Some examples that apply to accounting work include being adept in Intact ERP, NetSuite ERP and QuickBooks, or an in-depth understanding of tax laws. Add soft skills that give employers an understanding of how you’ll tackle your job, such the ability to work independently and as a team player, organizational skills, thorough analytical skills and adherence to strict confidentiality.
Work history
Rather than just detailing your full work experience, focus on achievements that are described in terms of facts and figures. Recruiters will have a better picture of your abilities if you can describe how effective you’ve been. For example: “Recorded miscellaneous cash receipts which helped lower accounts receivables by 10%,” or “Carried out in-depth account analysis that identified ways to cut variable costs by 14%.”
Education
Mention your educational qualifications in reverse chronological order. In addition to a bachelor’s degree in accounting, business accounting or finance, include any advanced degrees or certifications in accounting, such as a Certified Public Accountant license.
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Staff Accountant Resume Example
Kellie is a Certified Professional Resume Writer with extensive experience in digital media. She is passionate about helping job seekers navigate their careers. She earned a B.A. in English and writing from Temple University.
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