Everyone knows that part of being a good accountant means being good with numbers. That much is obvious, but being a great accountant is about so much more. Aside from your basic math and accountancy skills, what can you improve to grow and advance your accountant career path?
Let’s take a look at six key skills that can help you in the future.
1. Good communication skills
Every person in an organization needs to be a good communicator, and that includes you, the accountant. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you’ll sit around and crunch numbers all day, avoiding any interaction with your peers or supervisors. This isn’t the case. In fact, it will be up to you to use your communication skills to translate dense, industry-specific language into plain English for the other members of your team or company.
2. Leadership skills
Even if you’re not necessarily in a leadership role, possessing strong leadership skills can help you in your career. Demonstrating that you’re willing to take responsibility for your team’s failures, helping to guide the organization toward success, and serving as a conduit between your team and others around the company all make a good impression on your supervisors. And that can pay serious dividends in the future when you’re ready to move up the ladder.
3. Meticulous organization
An accountant who isn’t organized is shooting themselves in the foot. The best numbers in the world won’t make much sense if your work is a mess! Whether it’s organizing your files alphabetically, color-coordinating invoices, or anything in between, remaining highly organized is an important skill to improve your career as an accounting professional.
4. Specialty focuses
Another way to improve your accounting career is by focusing on a specialty area, like forensic accounting or tax law. The more experienced you become in a particular niche, the more valuable you are to a company – even if that company isn’t where you’re currently employed. Developing a strong specialty focus is a great way to command more responsibility and a higher paycheck down the road.
5. Adaptability
Let’s face it: things change all the time in just about every job, accounting included. If you’re not capable of adapting to rapid change and new developments, you’ll be left in the dust. Try to work on being comfortable with change, and you’ll see it pay off.
6. Great time management
It’s hard to think of a profession in which time management wouldn’t be beneficial. Work on your time-management skills to get more work done, more efficiently, and your supervisors will take notice.
Ready to put your accounting skills to work in a job that you deserve? Contact High Profile at 972-991-7900 or visit our Jobs page to see what’s available.