Corporate accounting jobs range from clerks to chief financial officers. Clerks may not require formal education, while staff accountants need a degree and experience. Controllers supervise all accounting employees, while CFOs set policies and report financial numbers to stakeholders.
Corporate accounting jobs require individuals to have a technical background and understand how to record financial data related to business transactions. There are a wide variety of job classifications in corporate accounting, including clerk, accountant, manager or supervisor, controller, and chief financial officer. Employees are responsible for accounts payable or accounts receivable transactions. Staff accountants prepare and enter journal entries, create profit and loss statements, and work on ad hoc projects. Managers and supervisors direct staff accountants and controllers oversee the entire accounting office. Finally, chief financial officers manage the entire financial department of a corporation.
Accounting clerks are corporate accounting jobs for which formal education is typically not required. Individuals may have a high school diploma and some or no accounting experience. Accounts payable and accounts receivable jobs do not have high accounting experience requirements, as these positions primarily deal with opening correspondence, contacting vendors or customers, and reconciling invoices to statements.
Staff accountants work closely with a corporation’s daily financial information. These corporate accounting jobs typically require a college degree, a few years of experience, and professional certification, although some companies may have different requirements. People in these positions must have the ability to gather, review, prepare and correct financial data. Accountants work under an accounting supervisor or manager.
Accounting supervisors and managers are usually responsible for a specific department. For example, a company’s finance department may be made up of several smaller departments, such as general ledger, accounts payable or receivable, payroll, and cost accounting, among others. One or more supervisors or accounting managers will be responsible for each minor department. This framework allows companies to separate accounting duties to meet government guidelines. Additionally, multiple accounting supervisors and managers can give the company a presence in all aspects of accounting operations to limit issues or improprieties.
Controllers represent the main accounting position in an accounting firm. These corporate accounting jobs have significant requirements for education, licensing, and experience, particularly in the operating sector of the company. This position supervises all supervisors, managers, accountants and employees. Controllers also work with the CFO to set accounting policies and work with external auditors. They will also create an accounting manual that directs the activities of corporate accounting positions to ensure a smooth workflow.
Chief financial officers are the cornerstone of corporate accounting jobs. These people define the company’s comprehensive financial and accounting policies, as well as set up bank accounts and create other finance-related business relationships. As an executive of the corporation, the individual will also report financial numbers to other executives and stakeholders invested in the corporation. While chief financial officers generally do not liaise directly with the public, they will work with the chief communications officer to release financial information.
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