An Accountant is a professional finance expert responsible for keeping and checking financial data. They also advise clients about tax operations and to make viable business decisions.
A good accountant is a financial expert who is able to uphold professional ethics, has acceptable public relations skills, and can patiently deal with various situations that arise in daily business operations. To be a good accountant in the UK, financial professionals must be experienced at what they do.
A business is classified as either large scale or small scale depending on the periphery of operations. For both of these scales, you must engage part-time or full-time accountants to assist in running your business smoothly and profitably. In this article, we shall examine the different general skills that you should identify in an accountant important for both small businesses and large-scale enterprises.
Financial spectacle
A good accountant is able to look at your financial records and immediately identify the strong and weak points in the business. He should be upfront in giving advice for the best corrective measures necessary if your business is operating at a loss. If the enterprise is doing well, he must provide professional financial tips on improving your business. To achieve all these, a good accountant should be qualified with The Chartered Institute of Management Accounts (CIMA), Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAS), or Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).
Entrepreneurship
The best accounting professionals are able to keep track of business trends.
They have the ability to tell you when the markets are favourable for your business
and when conditions make the business move slowly. In both cases, a good
accountant will be able to give relevant tips on how best to run the enterprise and
maximise profits. If he cannot identify market trends, then it is high time for you to
look for a replacement.
Organisation and structure
Accountants are known to be well organised in their work. A good accountant should
have a clean well-equipped office and sound time management skills to deliver
complete projects in time and accurately. Their firm must have a well defined operation where employees or associates play definite roles to ensure the success
of their business. This gives you assurance that they will no doubt transfer that structure and organisation to your enterprise.
Adaptability and innovativeness
The market trends in the UK very often fluctuate. They change with the factors that influence them. A good accountant should adapt to new market trends and come up with practical ways to run the enterprise under those conditions.
Communication skills
Any business, large or small, depends highly on the managements ability to
communicate with staff and customers. Your employees should
be made aware of any changes occurring in the business. Customers as
well must be notified of changes in business operations to avoid disappointments.
A good accountant should keep you informed of current market trends, business operations, and any necessary information relative to your business.
Credibility and Integrity
Can you trust your accountant? If yes, then they are the right person for your business.
When an accountant is credible, you, your employees, and your customers are
able to make deals with them. They must also be consistent to maintain credibility in order to attract and maintain customers.
These are not the sole characteristics of a good accountant. Very often, they will depend on the nature of your business. A small-scale business would most times run well even without an accountant unless when you need advice on Taxes and other technical financial matters.