The functions of an accounting assistant are those that seek to support the area or the person responsible for accounting in a company. They are employees in a company and are in charge of its financial accounting.
The person who has the job position of accounting assistant must be organized, because he must keep the accounting and financial documentation in order.
Information and communication technologies (ICT) should be proficient because today many aspects of accounting are handled automatically with specialized computer programs.
Your concentration level should be high since you will handle sensitive information for the organization, and in some cases cash. For this reason, their ethical conduct must be irreproachable.
Obviously, the accounting assistant is expected to have knowledge of accounting, since his responsibilities will be concentrated in that area.
Main functions of an accounting assistant
There is no regulation or regulation that definitively indicates the functions that an accounting assistant must fulfill, but in general terms they must fulfill the following tasks:
1- Commercial operations
The accounting assistant must support the accountant in carrying out ordinary and extraordinary operations related to the purchase of inputs required for the operations of the company.
In this sense, look for and compare budgets so that the company can decide who to buy from. Once the decision is made, the accountant is the one who registers the provider and issues the paycheck.
Another task of an accounting assistant is to manage payments to suppliers and payments for public services.
2- Inventory management
An accounting assistant is also responsible for keeping track and controlling the inventory of institutional assets and office supplies.
Also, on many occasions you are asked to keep track of the depreciation of said inventory.
3- Billing
The preparation and control of invoices is one of the tasks that occupies most of the time of an accounting assistant.
Their duty is to record all the invoices issued by the company, complying with the institutional and legal regulations that apply.
The accounting assistant prepares the invoices, enters them in the company's system, registers them as accounts payable and ensures that the payment is made in accordance with the conditions established with the client.
This task must be done with strict order and accuracy, since this information affects the results of the company's expense reports and affects the accounts of the suppliers.
4- Bank reconciliations
This function consists of knowing exactly how the company's bank accounts are located and comparing them with the register of accounts receivable and payable of the company itself, with the objective that there are no discrepancies between one thing and another.
In this way, possible oversights can be detected in the records of an account receivable or that has already been paid.
In the same way, it serves to verify the accuracy of the record that is kept from the company.
5- Preparation of reports
The accounting assistant is also assigned to write the accounting reports, which are the detailed records of all the movable and immovable property of the organization.
This report is written in prose and does not have as many numbers as a balance would have. Likewise, the accounting assistant writes the financial reports that detail in textual form the money that the company owns.
The periodicity of these reports depends on institutional policies.
These reports are a requirement when applying for bank loans, or they may be required by government entities when they must do something about it.
6- Projection of financial statements
The accountant is responsible for preparing this projection, but the accounting assistant supports him by giving him all the inputs he requires for its elaboration.
Similarly, the accounting assistant is usually the one who prepares the documents that will serve as support for such a projection.
7- Preparation of tax returns
Every company has fiscal and tributary obligations before the government of its country, and the accounting assistant supports in the procedures that the fulfillment of these obligations implies.
Usually it involves gathering tax information from the company, filling out forms and paying duties or taxes.
You must also keep the receipts of these steps and then present them to the control entities that request them.
Other responsibilities of the accounting clerk
In addition to the functions listed above, an accounting clerk must:
- Register the credits paid or owed to the company.
- Monitor the due dates of accounts receivable and payable.
- Support in debt collection.
- Prepare and make bank deposits.
- Correct credit card transactions.
- Go shopping.
- Pay bills.
- Maintain updated records of financial operations.
- Monitor the company's cash flow balance.
- Make charges and payments.
- Keep the T accounts ( graphic representation of the accounting account).
- Support the Human Resources office in calculating the hours worked by employees.
Accounting Clerk Skills
In addition to technical knowledge, an accounting assistant must possess certain characteristics or special qualities for their work to be carried out with quality. Some of these qualities are the following:
- Honesty
- Bargaining power
- Frankness
- Maturity or emotional intelligence
- Fluency in communication
- Ability to build trust
