How Technical Accounting Skills Can Help You Advance Your Career
As policies from the Financial Accounting Standards Board constantly change, the need for accountants with technical accounting skills is growing quickly. Organizations are turning towards professionals with strong policy knowledge to help them keep up to date with new standards such as Revenue Recognition, Lease Accounting, and Credit Loss.
“Many people don’t think about accounting policy when leaving public accounting, however, it can provide a lucrative and rewarding career outside of the standard month-end accounting role,” says Michael Cooke, Executive Vice President at The Execu|Search Group. “Since this skillset is in such high demand, anyone with technical accounting knowledge will instantly be more appealing in the job market.”
If you have a knack for problem solving, are a good communicator, and are looking for more interpretive work, learning technical accounting may be the right path for you. Below are three reasons why you should consider learning these technical accounting skills:
Variety in your workday
Advancing your technical accounting skills will give you the opportunity to expand your current day-to-day tasks and could possibly give you more career options.
“If you are a public accountant and you are thinking about new opportunities outside of corporate accounting, becoming an expert in these policy standards is a great option,” says Michael. “These skills can put you on the path towards a technical accounting role, which provides opportunities that don’t only fall within a debits and credits role.”
From interpreting the latest tax laws to providing management with guidance on the latest policies, your work as a technical accountant can be more dynamic, varied, and less repetitive than other accounting roles.
Exposure to the c-suite
Many businesses are unaware of the latest standards and need the help of technical accountants to ensure they are in compliance with them. If you choose to become an expert in accounting policy, you’ll have the opportunity to help organizations solve problems that provide value and make an impact on their bottom line. This gives you the opportunity to work closely with key stakeholders and senior leaders, such as CFOs and VPs of Finance, to help them properly implement these new rules.
Have in-demand skills that set value in the market
Technical accounting provides value to every organization, so the demand for candidates with this skillset is at an all-time high. Unfortunately, the supply cannot keep up with the demand. “Due to this scarcity, there is a premium paid for individuals who develop these skills,” says Michael. “By becoming an expert in technical accounting, you’ll be able to command a higher salary and have more options as you develop your career.” These skills can also give you a leg up when pursuing lucrative accounting opportunities at consulting firms or at Fortune 500 companies.
