An accountant has several roles and responsibilities to meet in their job, both in terms of their competence at carrying out accounting practices as well as their ethics and approach to the job.
It is the responsibility of an accountant to ensure they’re working within the law at all times. For example, an accountant might give advice on how a person could reduce their tax bill, but they shouldn’t be advising a person to do something illegal, such as deliberately misinforming the relevant authority about business revenues or earnings, for example.
An accountant should also notify the relevant authorities if they become aware of a person or business that is breaking the law within their financial affairs.
It is crucial that accountants maintain their impartiality; their role is to advise clients and act as they’re instructed, not to try to sell services. Yes, accountants will naturally tell clients what additional services they provide and how they might benefit from using them, but they shouldn’t be pushy or insistent while doing so.
An Accountant’s Job Role Accountancy is one of the most detailed and diverse roles in the finance industry and as such accountants are required to be competent in a number of areas.
Accountancy is one of the most detailed and diverse roles in the finance industry and as such accountants are required to be competent in a number of areas.
The role of an accountant might include the following:
It is such a diverse role that these areas might not ever be explored by some within the industry, although this is a typical representation of what an accountant will do.
It is important that an accountant has impeccable standards when it comes to both competence and behaviour, as without them they’ll be unable to do their job correctly and potentially harm their organization, certainly their own reputation, and perhaps even the whole industry.