Taking a management accounting career path in financial services sets you up for a wide range of career opportunities, including financial planning and analysis, business analysis and COO roles.
So what exactly does this role encompass, and what career opportunities can you expect if you make the move out of practice and into management accounting? Here’s what you should know about a future career in management accounting…
Management accountants provide business data and analysis to managers within organizations to assist in business decision-making and control. As a management accountant, you will analyze the company’s financial position and provide insight into business performance. Monthly management accounts, budgets and forecasts will be some of your key responsibilities.
You will also be involved in cost analysis and cost-reduction projects, competitor analysis, variance analysis, tender preparation and review, strategic planning, long and medium-term planning and investor appraisal.
This is a highly commercial role interacting with different areas of the business. You will not only analyze historical data but will provide information on what the business needs to do to meet future expectations. You are very much considered to be a finance business partner and will be expected to offer an opinion on your analysis.
There are two main paths for a management accountant to follow:
As a management accountant, you can also transfer to financial services up to manager level.
Historically, companies tended to recruit newly-qualifieds with CMA qualifications but the focus has shifted in recent years – nowadays, employers are more likely to look for transferable skill sets.
If you are a commercially-minded accountant with strong modelling and analysis skills, you will be suited to this role. You will develop excellent communication skills due to your frequent interaction with finance and non-finance professionals when preparing, interpreting and communicating a variety of reports for your portfolio of internal clients.
Banks and financial services institutions are crucial to the growth of Canada’s and the world’s economy. Toronto is the hub of the Canadian financial industry and is home to the head offices of Canada’s five largest banks, three of which rank among the world’s largest 30 banks by market capitalization You will also find:
The financial services sector is a sector of innovation – every day new financial products, new ways of protecting business against risk, and new technology is created to make business more cost effective and able to react to a fast-changing world.
Networking is crucial for accountants
As the pool of talented accounting professionals continues to grow, qualifications and technical skills alone will not always land you with your dream role. Looking forward, the accounting function is expected to take a proactive position within businesses, whereby the accountant will be partnered w
Read MoreHow to deal with imposter syndrome
Feel like a fraud at work? – How to deal with imposter syndrome Do you have a nagging worry that you don’t deserve the job you’re in and any day now you’re going to be outed as a fraud in your workplace? You’re not alone. From sports stars to CEOs, imposter syndrome is a psychological phenomenon tha
Read MorePrivate practice or in-house: what’s right for you?
Despite fluctuating economic conditions, demand has remained high for qualified accountants, and it's set to remain so for the foreseeable future. With this in mind, candidates are in a position to choose which career path suits them best; whether it’s working for an accountancy practice or in-house
Read More