The moment has come. You have got an interview scheduled for the position of an accountant with a leading company. Congratulations!
An accountant’s interview is generally not similar to any other interview. Here, you can expect straightforward questions majorly technical in nature alongside the common ones.
Therefore, alongside preparing some common job interview questions, you must keep yourself all set to answer a few accountant-specific interview questions too.
Here is a rundown of such accounting interview questions with sample answers to help you come out with excellence.
Q1. Are you thorough with the accounting standards?
Even the hiring manager knows that it is impossible to memorize all the accounting standards as there are lot of them and they all keep changing from time to time. S/he just wants to understand your knowledge about the latest accounting standards and quickness to find up-to-date information about these standards.
Keep the latest upgradations in accounting standards handy and revise them thoroughly.
Sample answer:
“I keep updating myself about the latest modifications in the accounting standards. My experience of X years in the field of accounting has exposed me to the knowledge of these standards every now and then. Additionally, I believe my skilled computer literacy helps me to access".
Q2. Why did you choose accounting as your profession?
With this accounting interview question, interviewers mainly want to understand your objective for pursuing a career in accounting and evaluate your interest in the job offered by you.
Sample Answer:
“I have always been interested in numbers and calculations. Further, my sense of accountability, organizational skills and deep knowledge about the subject helps me excel at my profession. Being an accountant offers me a chance to handle finances of a business, which certainly excite me.”
Q3. As an accountant, what importance do you give to documentation?
Here, the hiring manager wants to understand about your meticulousness about the documents, the way you record data to support the planning and decision-making. You should speak about the kind of documentation you think would deem fit for the company and the industry you are presenting your candidature for.
Sample Answer:
“Not just accounting, I believe documentation is necessary in every profession. It helps the right narrative for the decisions made. I, as a part of the accounting team, play a role of a watchdog and need to present and communicate a fair view of financial stats to the management and shareholder. This makes it more important for me to have the right documentation in place from the beginning. It further helps me to maintain a proper audit trail and justify as and when required.”
Q4. Do you play any significant role in month-end processes?
‘Month-closures’ are very important in every organization. Accountants are required to generate accurate financial statements. It is a crucial question, which can also be dichotomous in nature, depending on your current job profile. However, here the interviewer is trying to gauge your functionality, current responsibilities and understanding about the process you opt for closing the month.
Sample Answer:
“Yes, I play a key role in assimilating accounts and numbers to generate accurate financial statements; from the consolidation of the data from multiple systems to reconciling account balances to transaction verification and adjustments. This further requires me to collaborate with different teams.”
And if the answer is no, tell the interviewer honestly and rather take him through your current role, responsibilities and specifics.
Q5. How do you manage tight deadlines while preparing financial statements?
This accounting interview question lets the interviewer check you on your ability to deal with work pressure and your reaction during the times when you can receive urgent work requests.
Sample Answer:
“During a tight deadline, I think what works the best is strategic and quick decisions based on facts and available data. We have to be meticulous while handling the given data. Therefore I make it a point to create a task list to not to miss any crucial point to lead to the accomplishment of the objective; be it preparing a financial statement or any other business objective. The key is to not jump the gun and compromise accuracy.”
Q6. What all methods do you use for estimating bad debt?
Share your understanding of the tools and methods you use. Try to be a little explanatory to help him or her know about your expertise. Here you can also brief the hiring manager about the tools that have used in your previous organizations and share your learnings with the past employers.
Sample Answer:
“I generally employ aging analysis or percentage of credit sales or percentage of outstanding accounts.”
Depending upon your method, you should explain the process.
Q7. Have you ever helped your company to save money or use their available financial resources effectively?
This question is your chance to bring the spotlight on you and leave the other candidates behind. Every company strives for profit maximization and you can prove your mettle here and show why you are the best choice for this role.
Sample Answer:
“It is a crucial part of my job to drive not only operational efficiency but cost efficiencies too in every process for the betterment of the organization. In my previous jobs also, I have proved my mettle by helping them excel at cost accounting and finding ways to minimize expenses, risks and maximize profits.”
Q8. How do you minimize the risks in your work?
Accountants are highly detail-oriented and generally held to high standards of excellence, leading to no error work. With this accounting interview question, the interviewer would like to know about your attention to detail, focus, accuracy and task orientation. How you identify errors, monitor and cross-check the available data. A good answer needs you to explain the methods you are habitual of or adopt to ensure no errors pertaining to risks in your work.
Sample Answer:
“I have an eye for detail and always prioritize accuracy over the speed. I always double-check the data and information and don’t shy away from reaching out to people if needed for accuracy and reliability. My ability to spot errors and experience as well as proficiency has helped me set high-performance standards for myself.”
Q9. Why should we hire you?
Your field offers you a high scope of working across industries. Since there is no dearth of job opportunities for accountants, your prospective employer would definitely try to understand the reason that makes you interested in their company.
A good way to start is to talk about the company’s reputation, its mission, and vision. Go prepared. Research about the company and map your professional objectives with their goals.
Sample Answer:
"I’m quite impressed by the kind of innovations and developments your organization keeps doing. Also, its vision and mission resonate with my personal work ethic. I’m sure this is a place where I can create a niche for myself, and grow within the company by learning new skills.”
Naukrigulf.com wishes you all the best for your interview and success in all your future endeavors. Keep reading and practice. Also, stay safe and healthy.
