12 Bookkeeper Assistant Skills: Definition and Examples

These include the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement. Some bookkeepers are also assigned payroll duties from checking worker time logs and benefits to cutting cheques and making bank deposits. Having the ability to prepare an accurate financial picture of an enterprise and keep records organized is essential for being a bookkeeper.

In that case, whether you’re a freelance bookkeeper with several clients or simply looking to handle the bookkeeping for your own business, FreshBooks can help. Our cloud-based bookkeeping software solution is quick, efficient, and capable of saving you countless hours of administrative work. Pay attention to the job description to identify which jobs are remote bookkeeping jobs and which are in-house. This is a great way to gain real-world experience as you become a bookkeeper and, potentially, a bookkeeping business owner. Previous work experience makes finding clients as a bookkeeping business owner much easier.

• Textbook assignments tend to be very clear on what items are needed or not needed, but such is not always the scenario in the workplace.
• Some provide free and low-cost resources, while others may be more expensive but provide more knowledge.
• Bookkeepers manage a company’s financial accounts, ensuring they are accurate and easy to review.
• It’ll let you work your way into the world of accounting and finance, something that will remain relevant until essentially the end of time.

We ranked the top skills for bookkeepers based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 12.3% of bookkeeper resumes contained payroll tax returns as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a bookkeeper needs to be successful tax identification number in the workplace. Organizational skills are identifiable, like effective time management and the ability to properly prioritize tasks. The most highly organized people will even know how to create and develop systems to meet their goals.

Bookkeeper Education, Training & Certification

This is the useful form of the data that business owners can draw on to make the right decisions moving forward. Accountants are also responsible for creating the official quarterly reports and yearly statements for the business, as well as all the documentation needed for tax filing. A client’s financial activities will include all transactions related to their income and expenses and a bookkeeper is responsible for recording all of these transactions accurately. Some bookkeepers may also have to facilitate financial transactions and ensure  transactions are legally compliant.

Not only can bookkeeping itself get complicated, but the software can also be challenging to use. When I look for a bookkeeper, I want to make sure that I already know what software I want to use. Then I have that right on the job description, and make sure I check each candidate’s experience using it. At the end of the day, even if I pay a slightly higher rate, I get a better deal. A bookkeeper is responsible for recording transactions into the system, which is part of the wider and more general practice of accounting.

Showcase the Right Skills in Your Resume

In addition, smaller businesses may use single-entry bookkeeping, while larger businesses are more likely to use double-entry bookkeeping. As a bookkeeper, you may need to help the business learn the best practices to keep their financial records up to date and organized. Bookkeeping is a part of the accounting process that involves recording financial transactions.

Financial Literacy and Accounting Principles

Being dedicated to fulfilling your bookkeeper role will surely help you gain the trust and respect of your clients. However, aside from showing your commitment to your job, it is also crucial that you show your clients that you have their business interests at heart. Regardless of whether you work full-time or part-time, your clients need to feel that you are passionate about working with them. Make sure that you give all of your clients the same level of commitment and never treat them poorly just because they gave you a low paycheck.

What skills do you need to become a bookkeeper?

In your resume, you should mention good time management skills, flexible work schedules, and the ability to work with different company departments. It will make your hiring process more accessible and more pleasant for your managers. Bookkeepers are administrators first and foremost and are responsible for updating and maintaining financial transactions and reports.

Case study: How Sukhi reduces shortlisting time

With a certified bookkeeper designation, you are qualified to perform all critical functions through the adjusted trial balance and basic payroll for small to medium-sized businesses. When you apply for a job you can show your bookkeeping skills on your resume and cover letter, as well as during the job interview. In all cases, make sure to specify your type of bookkeeping skills and match them with the job description. If you want to be a great asset to the company you work for, you need to think long-term so that you can see the bigger picture. Remember that your task is not merely to record financial data information. If you are prone to making impulsive and uninformed decisions, then this role may not be for you.

A bookkeeper can expect to earn a salary in the range of $30,000-$60,000 a year in the US. However, compensation will widely vary depending on the employer, location, and candidate experience. Bigger companies tend to offer better compensation for bookkeepers; this is largely due to the increased volume of transactions and data. A multinational corporation performs hundreds of transactions a second, while a small business might perform less than a hundred in a day.

As a professional bookkeeper, you would keep track of a company’s financial transactions and record them in the general ledger accounts. Bookkeeping focuses more on accurate record-keeping and the organization of a business’s financial information. Accounting, on the other hand, interprets the information that a bookkeeper prepares to generate analyses.

Compared with bookkeepers, accountants are more focused on contextualizing financial data and making sense of it. Their priorities are to maintain consistency in how they record financial data and to make sure it’s accurate. Bookkeepers are responsible for the initial recording of their organization’s financial transactions. Certifications aren’t necessary to become a bookkeeper but can signal to employers that you have the training and knowledge to meet industry standards. After you have a couple of years of experience, you can earn the Certified Bookkeeper designation from the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers by passing a series of exams.