Pick a Public Accounting Path

"The biggest decision [accounting] graduates need to make is public versus private accounting," explains Mary Feeney Bonawitz, Ph.D., CPA, assistant professor of accounting at Pennsylvania State University, Capital College, and past president of the American Society of Women Accountants.

"Staff Accountant or junior auditor are typical entry-level positions in public accounting, whether the firm is large or small," says Clar Rosso, director of communications for the California Society of Certified Public Accountants. In your first few years on the job, you'll assist senior auditors and prepare for the CPA exam.

At a Big Four firm such as Ernst & Young, you would work as a staff auditor for a year or two and then move up to a senior-level auditing post, then manager, then senior manager and ultimately to partner level. "The accounting function is the backbone of the financial markets," says Lisa Young, a partner at Ernst & Young in New York City. "When you come into public accounting, the most exciting thing is what you learn about commerce, the flow of business and understanding business overall."

To land the job and keep moving up the ladder, "you need to be a well-rounded individual with strong scholastics, demonstrated leadership capabilities and outside interests," Young says. "Public accounting is about relationships and understanding technical issues. It's about being able to work with a variety of people from all different walks of life."

Pick a Private Accounting Path

If you decide to go the private accounting route and work for a corporation, your first job will likely be in the controller's department. You might do monthly reports or internal audits of your own company, which could send you traveling to job sites in other states or countries.

People who follow this accounting track typically seek additional education or credentials to boost them into a job as an assistant controller, then controller and eventually chief financial officer. Options include earning a master's degree in accounting or MBA or becoming a CPA or a Certified Management Accountant.

Many people with accounting degrees also choose to start their own private accounting firm. A lot of the readers of the Rules of Thumb blog from MoneyThumb are owners of their own accounting business. Some are simply private bookkeepers from clients, all the way up to huge accounting firm members who read our blog.

Pick Government or Non-Profit Work

Accounting graduates have at least two other options: government or nonprofit work. Uncle Sam and his cousins at the state level hire accountants and auditors to prepare and analyze financial reports, as well as to review and record revenues and expenses. Auditors investigate agencies and programs looking for fraud or waste. Tax examiners decide how much businesses and citizens owe, and then they collect those funds. Purchasing agents buy supplies, while management analysts handle efficiency issues and may suggest solutions to management problems.

If you choose to take the nonprofit route with your accounting career, you can expect to earn less than your fellow grads who choose for-profit employers, but you may have the opportunity to make the world a cleaner, safer or better-educated place in which to live.

No matter which avenue of accounting you choose as your career path, the Rules of Thumb blog from MoneyThumb wants you to know that we are proud you have chosen the profession of accounting. We hope you will continue to find our information on our blog helpful to you. One great help we offer accountants, no matter what type of career path they have chosen, is the use of our PDF financial file converters. These are the best on the market.

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Since it is Friday, and also Cinco De Miyo, we thought we'd have a bit of fun with the above image. But the problems we are listing below, the top 5 scariest accounts payable problems, are nothing to laugh about. As an accountant, CPA, bookkeeper or small business owner handling your own finances, the following problems may very well be some you recognize from your own experience.

The Top Five Scariest Accounts Payable Problems

1. Fraud & Theft

It’s hard to believe that in our high-tech world, fraudulent payments are still a very prevalent concern. A 2013 study underwritten by J.P. Morgan and the Association for Financial Professionals found that “61% of surveyed organizations experienced attempted or actual payments fraud.” This can be avoided by employing an AP process with end-to-end security.

2. Accuracy & Errors

Poor data quality ultimately results in poor decision-making. After all, decisions are no better than the data on which they are based. Reliable, relevant, and complete data supports organizational efficiency and is a cornerstone of sound decision-making. Your AP department should have a fail-safe way to guarantee input data to avoid these issues.

3. Inefficiencies

Time is money, so when your employees are spending hours on arduous workflow processes, money is being spent that could be better utilized elsewhere. The misuse of resources and wasted labor time on faulty processes can quickly drive up your accounting costs each month. An AP automation solution will ensure that your employees are using their time effectively to fast-track monthly invoice processing.

4. Missed Due Dates & Late Payments

These things happen, but if missed due dates and late payments are a recurring problem, it’s a scary thought to add up the money spent on (non-profitable) expenses. Not to mention the missed opportunities of vendor discounts that are only available to early payers. By automating your AP, not only can your company avoid unnecessary fees but you can also potentially save money from eligible discounts.

5. Audits

Just saying the word auditor makes you cringe at the amount of work that could possibly be required from the accounting team. As many days as the auditor spends looking over payables documents will no doubt equal the number of days spent by your staff being pulled away from their regular work to find invoice copies, cheque stubs and chase down backup information. Though audits are unavoidable, your accounting team should have an organized, digital system in place that makes finding specific documents a breeze.

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At one time or another in our lives, we have all held some sort of leadership role. Maybe for some of you it hasn't been since your school days, but for most of the people reading this blog post--which are accountants with their own firms, small business owners, and CPAs, either with their own firm or in a leadership role at the firm they work for--leadership is a major part of your job.

Most of the time we talk about accounting-related subjects at MoneyThumb, but since many leaders are part of our readership, today we'd like to share some information, tips and advice from some of the top leaders in the field and what 23 traits good leaders possess, in their personal opinions. At the end of this post, be looking for a link to a free webinar on Leadership that will be held on Nov. 15, 2016.

Traits All Good Leaders Possess

Michael Burke, account supervisor, MSR Communications, a public relations firm has this to say about leaders, "Great leaders are aware of their own style and make the effort to learn how their style actually comes across to their team. They learn to flex their leadership style to individual team members so that they communicate and behave in ways that motivate and inspire."

Here is what three leadership professionals consider to be traits that make up a good leader:

Darcy Eikenberg, a leadership and workplace coach, Red Cape Revolution

1. Confidence. If you don't believe in yourself, no one will. I hear leaders worrying that if they show too much confidence, others will think them arrogant. The reality is people want to know what you know for sure -- and what you don't. Having the confidence to say "I don't know" is a powerful skill.

2. Clarity. The only way you can get confidence is by becoming really, really clear about who you are and what is most important to you. New leaders fail when they try to become all things to all people, or try to do too much out of their area of excellence. Clarity helps you say "yes" to the right things -- and "no" to others.

3. Care. The strongest, most effective leaders I've met care not just about the business, but about the people in it and the people impacted by it. Plus, they show they care through their words and actions, even proving how they care for themselves and their family by taking unplugged vacations and continuing their own professional development. Care shouldn't be a four-letter word in our workplace today -- and the best leaders know it.

Mike Sprouse, CMO, Epic Media Group, and author of "The Greatness Gap"

1. Humility. True leaders have confidence but realize the point at which it becomes hubris.

2. Empowering. True leaders make their associates feel emboldened and powerful, not diminished and powerless.

3. Collaborative. True leaders solicit input and feedback from those around them so that everyone feels part of the process.

4. Communicative. True leaders share their vision or strategy often with those around them.

5. Fearlessness. True leaders are not afraid to take risks or make mistakes. True leaders make mistakes born from risk.

Nancy Clark, author of "18 Holes for Leadership"

1. Genuine. You need to be clear on what your values are and must be consistent in applying them. As part of that, you need to have the courage to hold true to them. You must not lose sight of reality. Lost values may be one of the biggest causes of downfalls.

2. Self-awareness. You need to be clear on what your strengths are and what complementary strengths you need from others. This includes understanding others and learning how best to utilize their strengths. Many unsophisticated leaders think everyone should be like them; that too can cause their downfall. They surround themselves with people like them. "Group think" can blindside them and cause failure.

3. Leverage team strengths. Part of awareness is don't expect people to change. If you think you can change someone, think again. This doesn't mean you can't help them grow and develop. But don't expect to change anyone (even yourself) behaviorally. We are who we are. Your job as a leader is to understand each person's strengths and place them in positions where they can flourish and grow. If you are good at that, you have a huge part of the equation for success.

4. Leadership transitions. Going from individual contributor to supervisor is only the first of many transitions along the leadership pipeline. You need to understand the business model, how it applies to your current position, what you need to do to provide the greatest value, and how to leverage your strengths at this level. This requires building competencies and focusing on the right things. No one ever tells you that there are many levels and many adjustments you need to make along the way.

5. Supportive. You need to foster a positive environment that allows your team to flourish. Also by aligning the reward and recognition systems that best match your teams profile and deliver results.

Hopefully the input from these leadership professionals will help you decide if you are already a good leader or could use some polish. To help with that, take time to attend this FREE webinar which will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2016 and hosted by Illumeo, specifically geared toward accountants, bookkeepers, and CPAs. In fact, by attending this webinar you can receive CPA, CPD, or CMA credits. 

The post Traits All Good Leaders Possess and a Free Leadership Webinar appeared first on MoneyThumb.