The job of an accountant will remain as long as there is economic activity. Business is flourishing in India and new startups are opening up every day. Accounting jobs in India are therefore in high demand.
Companies need diligent and reliable accounting professionals to manage their transactions effectively. It helps them function like a well-oiled machine – paying all bills and taxes on time as well as managing payroll activity efficiently.
A career as an accountant, therefore, is full of great possibilities. People who do well in this profession are some of the most successful individuals in the country. Many of them have gone on to assume important positions of leadership in various fields.
This blog will take an immersive look into the domain of accounting and see which accounting jobs in India would suit you the best. But before that let’s get a bird’s eye view of the profession.
No business can function without monitoring its transactions. Accounting, at the core, is all about monitoring the flow of money. An average business does hundreds of transactions every day and a multinational corporation is involved in thousands of such transactions. Maybe more!
You need professionals who can:
Such professionals also find and plot financial patterns to build better data visualization models. Needless to say, the accounting job role is crucial. It’s a job of great responsibility but one of high growth and reward.
So, let’s understand more about the nature and scope of the accounting job.
Accounting is the process of recording the financial transactions of an individual or a business. It is an organized report keeping of business and individual transactions. It is done to analyze, verify, and report financial data.
Accounting could be said to be a blend of various disciplines. This includes
It’s an amalgamation of these disciplines to create coherent reports that provide a company’s reliable financial data. The data is then organized into various reports and financial statements to be presented to relevant stakeholders whenever needed.
Accounting presents an accurate picture of a business and tells the stakeholders about the latter’s financial health and economic performance. The stakeholders that benefit from the accounting process are
Accounting presents a clear and comprehensive picture of the business data to the relevant people who observe the reports to make important decisions.
Corporate management needs financial accounting reports to analyze the company’s financial health and make the right business judgment. It could be an expansion of the business or cutting down on irrelevant expenditures.
Investors and shareholders observe the accounting reports to decide if they should invest in the business or not. Similarly, creditors analyze the accounting reports to decide whether they should continue extending loans to the business.
Auditors and tax authorities scan the account statements carefully to identify financial irregularities, if any. Preparing detailed accounting reports in time helps businesses achieve regulatory compliance.
Here’s what the job profile of an accountant looks like:
It is clear that accounting is a job of great significance. This rewarding role comes with its own set of responsibilities. Accounting jobs in India bring you tremendous growth opportunities and a vast learning experience.
Every sector needs accounting services. Lucrative job openings for accounting professionals are posted every day – from banking and insurance to healthcare and education.
To bag an accounting job in India, you must have the right skills and certifications. The scope of accounting is vast and expansive. The nature of the job is also diverse and interesting. Every business needs professional accounting services, irrespective of sector.
Here are the major sectors where accountants have a good scope:
The accounting field is a colossus in itself and the extent of the domain is vast. It is easy to get confused by the wide array of choices with respect to Accounting jobs in India. Therefore, what you need to do first is identify your area of interest and check out the scope over there.
Getting a detailed idea about the different accounting job roles would help you make a more informed career choice. So, here’s a list of the major specialization areas in the world of Accounting:
A qualified accountant certified by the ICAI is called a CA. Such a professional works in the wide spectrum of the accounting domain. This includes auditing, taxation, and financial consulting.
Companies always look for talented CAs as they are some of the fewer ones to meet the ICAI standards. They have good knowledge of accounting, audit, and finance streams. This helps them seamlessly fit in both private and public sectors. CAs provide their services to businesses and individuals alike.
A professional who is a qualified accountant of the Institute of Cost Accountants of India. A cost accountant helps a business analyze its production cost and plan a budget to maximize profits.
The role of a cost accountant is to keep track of expenses like:
The cost accountant examines the operational and supply chain costs to implement effective cost control measures.
A professional who plays a vital role in financial administration and corporate governance. The ICSI describes the CS as someone who is:
A Company Secretary is an expert in corporate laws, capital markets and securities regulations. The CS brings this expertise to advise the company’s board of directors in financial regulatory matters.
A financial analyst is someone who researches and analyzes the financial data for the in-house team or of other companies. He presents detailed reports for strategic decision-making based on this analysis.
The financial analyst performs securities and investment analysis as well as engages in ratings analysis work. This is a highly data-intensive work and requires a strong knack for research.
An accounting professional who verifies the accuracy of financial statements and checks whether they meet accounting standards or not. He ensures that the company’s financial records are up to date and they meet all compliance requirements.
The job of an auditor is to track and analyze the cash flow of a company from the beginning to the end. This helps him find out whether the company’s funds are well accounted for. The auditor also makes sure that the financial statements follow the accounting standards.
A tax consultant helps businesses file tax returns every year. They help corporations minimize their tax liabilities and be tax compliant simultaneously. The ultimate role of a tax consultant is to save the tax expenditure of clients.
The tax consultant conducts a thorough financial review of the client’s financial records and identifies potential tax deductions. He prepares the latter’s tax return and finds the lowest tax obligation.
A management accountant prepares the financial statements of a company. He then presents these report statements to the top management. From preparing monthly P&L statements and balance sheets to taking care of tax filings – the job of a management accountant is comprehensive.
The management accountant is a crucial intermediary between a business and external stakeholders like banks and NBFCs. He makes sure the business steers clear of loan defaults and gets easy credit facilities.
A financial controller is a senior-level accounting manager. He deals with a company’s day-to-day financial operations. However, his job extends beyond that of a regular bookkeeper. This is because the financial controller takes an in-depth approach to bookkeeping.
A financial controller is the lead business accountant who is responsible for keeping an accurate record of the company’s ledger accounts. The job involves a deep understanding of a company’s business operations.
While not strictly an accounting job in the traditional sense, an investment banker nevertheless is one of the most desired jobs for accounting and finance graduates. It’s one of the highest-paying jobs and comes with a lot of perks and benefits.
An investment banker is a financial expert with a splendid awareness of the prevailing investment climate. He decodes the company valuations and prepares financial models to make quality investment decisions.
The position of a payroll manager is a crucial one as it deals with processing payments of employees and clients. The reputation of a company depends upon how quickly and efficiently it clears its payment and tax obligations and a payroll manager is responsible for the task.
A payroll manager collects, stores and verifies payment processing data from internal stakeholders. He makes sure all payments are cleared in the agreed-upon timeframe.
The landscape of accounting jobs in India is quite diverse in role and complexity. The good news is, you can enroll in several accounting courses and certifications to prepare you for these posts. These are provided by various institutions across India. Entry to these courses (decided by the respective institutions) is subject to specific educational qualifications.
School education
College Education
f you want to enroll in a postgraduate course, you should have completed an undergraduate degree in commerce, economics, finance and accounts, taxation, etc.
Here’s a list of the bachelor’s and postgraduate courses in the Accounting field.
Bachelor’s courses:
Postgraduate courses:
Candidates who hold Accountancy degrees can work across industries in distinct roles as a financial analyst, CA, or CS. Their financial education and training is crucial in sectors like:
Accounting jobs in India are more prominent in cities with flourishing commercial activity. Here are the major cities in India with lucrative accounting jobs and competitive salaries:
Getting the right accounting jobs in India will take some effort on your part. Here’s how you approach your job hunt:
Accounting jobs in India are some of the most prestigious ones in the country due to the sophisticated nature of work as well as diverse opportunities. They involve a lot of analytical thinking and problem-solving abilities apart from having good communication skills. With the right educational qualifications and certifications to back your profile, there’s no stopping you from climbing the ladder of success in the accounting field.
