Accounting consulting: How to become an accounting consultant Thomson Reuters

accounting consultant

This often involves extensive discussions with the client and a thorough review of the company’s financial records and business practices. Accounting consultants serve a vital role in businesses of varying sizes and industries. EY Digital Audit brings excitement to early career auditors and accelerates the pace of their professional progress. Discover how EY insights and services are helping to reframe the future of your industry.

CPA candidates need additional credits beyond a bachelor’s degree to qualify to take the set of exams, so earning a master’s degree or completing advanced accountancy coursework can meet the education requirement. State requirements vary, but verified accounting work experience is often an additional requirement to get the CPA license. Rather than managing the finances of a single company, accounting consultants more often work for specialized accounting agencies, finance companies and business consultancy firms that assist many clients. Others choose a freelance CPA role, in which they must seek their own clients but they have more freedom over their work. Offering accounting advice to multiple clients can require traveling to different locations. Overtime is not uncommon for accounting consultants, especially between January and April, when the busy tax season occurs.

accounting consultant

How to become an accounting consultant

If you succeed in forging a path to your client’s growth, you also create a solid footing to continue working with them long-term as a business partner and advisor. As a senior accountant analyst, your main role is to provide professional guidance to a company. You need to have excellent preparation skills to create financial reports that clearly state the expenses and forecast the company’s financial future. Moreover, as a senior accountant analyst, you are supposed to give general operational assistance to the company’s management. EY US is investing $1 billion over three years to transform the early career experience for accounting professionals. The firm will make the accounting field more appealing by offering competitive compensation, innovative career experiences and advanced technology integration.

Is there demand for accounting consulting services?

Assurance services are another critical area where these professionals provide unbiased opinions on the credibility of financial statements. Accountant consultants are well-versed in deciphering financial data to assess a company’s financial health. Consider a strategic vendor relationship that will help you manage workflow and client relationships with integrated solutions in addition to providing the guidance and support you need to push your firm’s transition into the future of accounting. Hourly rates for accounting consultants range from $27.39 (Tampa, FL) to $44.39 (Washington, D.C.).

Can I become an accounting consultant and work from home?

  1. Career development, CPA licensure and industry support offer long-term benefits for early career accountants.
  2. One of the essential duties of an accounting consultant involves performing regular audits to ensure that the business meets financial regulations.
  3. 11 Financial’s website is limited to the dissemination of general information pertaining to its advisory services, together with access to additional investment-related information, publications, and links.

A consulting gig is typically temporary, designed to help your client with a specific problem or situation, such as determining which entity type is the best for their new venture. You would consult on that, offering an analysis from an accounting and tax perspective, based on the business, the client’s goals and objectives, and specific needs. That doesn’t mean that you won’t have additional consulting opportunities with that same client in the future; it just means that you handle them one at a time as they arise. To become an accounting consultant, you also need to consider who you want to work with.

Ensure Compliance and Perform Regular Audits

Career development, CPA licensure and industry support offer long-term benefits for early career accountants. Consultants should be proficient in the skills their prospective employer needs and be able to quickly adapt to the processes and procedures of their new workplace. When working as an independent consultant, however, you may enjoy more freedom to choose your clients and the hours you work (see “From Controller to Consultant”). You can work out any problems or issues with your client directly without involving a third party.

When you provide accounting consulting services, you do more than make sure the numbers add up. You provide additional analysis or insight beyond the compliance transaction, usually by being hired to provide solutions to a particular problem (though some consulting can look like advisory services and be more open-ended and wide-ranging). As a how to create a discount pricing strategy for bigger profits CPA consultant, you analyze the numbers and trends and provide thoughtful, detailed insight to improve your client’s business going forward.

They are well-versed in the latest financial regulations, accounting practices, and industry trends, ensuring businesses can operate efficiently and comply with all necessary rules and regulations. Accounting consultants help businesses navigate these complex regulatory landscapes, advising on what is straight line depreciation and why does it matter tax preparation, adherence to financial reporting standards, and understanding and complying with relevant business laws. EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients.

Challenges of being an accountant consultant include intense work pressure, long working hours during busy periods, and the need for constant skill upgradation to keep up with changes in regulations and technology. A bachelor’s degree in non financial assets accounting or a related field serves as the foundational education, while higher degrees like an MBA or MAcc can provide specialized knowledge. Finding a specific industry or service to specialize in can help set you apart in the market. Specializations can make your services more appealing to certain clients, often allowing you to command higher fees.