Management Accountant

Overview

The key features behind any successful enterprise are having a powerful circle of expert business advisors and remaining organised and informed at all times through timely and well-formatted reports and records. It is precisely these services that a Management Accountant delivers, integrating accounting, finance and management to drive businesses towards success.

A Management Accountant would typically need to:

• Record and crunch numbers, help to select and manage company investments, carry out risk management and budgeting, and formulate plans & strategies; assist management with decision-making while also explaining its financial impact; prepare financial statements
• Analyse and communicate a company's financial position and the financial implications of its business model and decisions; offer insights into enterprise performance; work with the general management to create business strategies that generate shareholder value
• Prepare commentaries, monthly budgets, forecasts, and accounts to help with business planning; analyse, control and forecast income and expenditure to ensure conformity with the budget
• Develop and maintain financial systems and policies; identify and recommend systems that reduce costs, manage risks better, and improve business performance
• Negotiate and procure finance for major projects
• Offer professional inputs on financial matters, such as competitor analysis, variance analysis, tender preparation and review, strategic planning, and long- & medium-term planning
• Liaise with colleagues; simplify and communicate financial data to non-financial managers
• Create and supervise a team of accountants who monitor the business activities of various firms
• Stay aware and ahead of different emerging macroeconomic trends and fluctuations in the financial markets

Management Accountants typically work in an office setting in government chambers, large firms and local businesses. Some may choose to take up residence near their workplace for ease of commuting.

They may sometimes travel to attend conferences and seminars.

Pre-entry experience is not compulsory for Management Accountants since freshers typically work under an experienced professional. As their knowledge and experience expand, they are assigned more complex projects, which foster independence. However, experience through sandwich courses, part-time employment, vacation placements or internships may help incorporate transferable skills that will ensure success in the professional accounting realm. You may contact accounting firms, local government agencies and even local companies and entrepreneurs to gain such opportunities.

Reading as much as possible about the profession and interviewing those working in management accounting will prove your commitment to course providers and prospective employers.

A bachelor's degree is highly recommended for aspiring Management Accountants. Although any major is acceptable, accountancy, finance, business, statistics, or mathematics may be more relevant. These subjects may exempt you from some exams required to qualify as a professional Management Accountant through relevant courses.

Aspiring Management Accountants may take high school classes in mathematics, economics and business to enhance their chances of securing admission into prestigious universities.

Individuals with a high school diploma may also become Management Accountants by taking a certificate course in business accounting from the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) before seeking professional qualification.

However, with relatively fewer years of experience than college graduates, one may seek only entry-level positions.

To become a Management Accountant, you must complete training with professional bodies for accountancy, such as the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). Certification demonstrates a Management Accountant's competence in a skill set, typically through work experience, training, and passing an examination. Although chartered management accountancy is open to all graduates, those new to business or accounting studies must first work towards the CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting (Cert BA), consisting of four examination subjects and computer-based assessments.

Performance, experience, and the acquisition of professional qualifications drive career progression. Employees with consistently high levels of performance may be eligible for promotion every two to three years. With experience of at least five years or a master's degree in accounting, Management Accountants can work their way up to senior roles such as Financial Controller, Finance Director, or Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of a company.

Management Accountants may also advance to become Senior Accountants or Senior Analysts, then to Accounting Supervisors, Controllers, and CFOs.

Management Accountants may diversify into areas within cost and…