Holmes Institute HI5020 Assignment: Corporate Accountant Requirements

This report, prepared for the HI5020 Corporate Accounting unit at Holmes Institute, analyzes thirty job advertisements from Australian job portals to determine the qualifications and experiences sought by employers for corporate accountant and financial accountant positions. The report examines the sources of the advertisements, including Seek.com.au, Indeed.com, Hays, and Adzuna.com.au, and provides an industry-wise and organization-wise breakdown. It identifies key job titles, required personal attributes (professional knowledge, communication, ethics, and teamwork), and academic and professional qualifications. The analysis covers roles, tasks, and responsibilities, while also discussing skills, experience, and attributes critical for success in corporate accounting roles. The report concludes with a critical analysis of these elements and their alignment with the unit's learning objectives, offering valuable insights into the Australian job market for accounting professionals.

HI5020- Profession of Corporate Accountant in
Australia
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Abstract
Accounting is considered as one of the oldest white color job in the world. As per the
gradual increase of business in global perspective, the need of accountants increases in
steady pace. This profession demands expertise of the personnel of same curriculum
with some pre-fixed qualification. As per the trend of global business, the accounting
professionals emerge with their high level expertise and accountability. This article will
highlight the scope of jobs of accounting professionals at Australia in the segments of
corporate jobs with the positions named as corporate accountant and corporate
financial accountant. Latest trend of meeting place of job seekers and employers’ is job
sites in social media, where the employers post their requirement and the aspirant
applicants post their resume to be connected with the employers. This article will
provide details of corporate accounting jobs posted in job websites under the categories
of corporate accountant and corporate financial accountant in Australia. These job
advertisements feature different aspects of accounting jobs with company profile, scope
of the job, respective professional requirement and experience, professional
qualification, and compensation offered to the deserving candidate, etc to make the
candidate well informed about the scope of the job offered. We will consider thirty such
job advertisements for the posts of corporate accountant and corporate financial
accountant available in Australia in recent period for the job aspirants with duly filled up
requirements for the candidature.
Key words: Professional Qualification; CPA; CA; compensation; job requirements;
corporate accountant; corporate financial accountant.
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Table of Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................4
Advertisements selected from online job portals........................................................................................4
Organization and industry-wise break up analysis of selected employment advertisement.......................5
Sample Job titles collected..........................................................................................................................8
Personal attributes required........................................................................................................................9
Micro observation of required personal attributes...................................................................................10
Academic and professional qualifications.................................................................................................11
Key roles, tasks and responsibilities..........................................................................................................11
Additional topics missing from MPA or HI5020.........................................................................................12
Critical analysis of skills, experience and attributes of corporate accountant...........................................12
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................13
References.................................................................................................................................................13
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Introduction
Australia is proving its global existence as one of the developed countries. Different
global business entities ensure their existence at Australia for their business. Hence, the
existence of domestic and global appearance of corporate are featured in Australia. For
running of their business, these business entities require professional accountants in
the form of corporate accountants and corporate financial accountants to ensure proper
financial accounting with financial reporting as per different statutory compliance of
accounting. The basic requisite of these professions is to ensure sound knowledge of
AASB standards, law of indirect and direct taxation, Corporation Act, Auditing Standard
and other legal compliance required to run business in the capacity of corporate listed in
ASX. For this purpose, the business entities require entry level accounting personnel
as well as senior level accountant to run their business. The scope of connecting the
aspirant candidates of this domain for the corporate entities are different media, out of
which job sites in social media are most popular for both the parties. The
advertisements are posted by the employers and the aspirant candidates apply through
job portal for those employment opportunities. After specific period to respond to those
advertisements, the employers find the right candidate for them through screening,
followed by interviews of written tests and verbal discussions. In this article, this
procedure of employment for accounting professional will be discussed with the
examples of thirty advertisements from different eminent job portals in Australia. This
article will cover the discussion of these advertisements in respect of the background of
the employers, professional requirement of the employers, compensation offered for the
deserving candidates and the clear and distinctive approach for demarcation of
deliverables from the right candidate. We will discuss these features of advertisement
by corporate entities in online job portals with specific emphasis on the said domains by
answering the relevant questions for each example.
Advertisements selection from online job portals
For the purpose of this article, we have selected thirty examples published in different
job portals related to Australian accounting professional from different corporate entities.
We have considered four different online renowned job portals namely- Seek.com.au;
au.indeed.com; Hays and Adzuna.com.au. For this article, we have chosen job
advertisements for three specific posts namely corporate accountant, corporate financial
accountant, and financial accountant. We have considered the advertisements as per
detailed below:
Source-wise analysis of advertisement considered
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Source Samples
Seek.com 14
indeed.com 13
Hyas 1
adzuna.com 2
Total 30
Given below the graph for analysis of this data:
Seek.com indeed.com Hyas adzuna.com
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Source-wise analysis of
advertisement considered Samples
From this graph, it is evident that the selection of examples of online job portal
advertisements of Australia are done from four major social websites of job portals.
Seek.com and indeed.com had contributed with 14 and 13 respectively. Adzuna.com
had contributed with 2 instances of examples while Hyas has contributed with 1
example.
Organization and industry-wise break up analysis of selected employment
advertisement
While analyzing organization wise job advertisements in online job portals, it is
evidently observed that the corporate entities are advertising for their scope of job
opportunities in the online websites of job portal either directly or through any human
resource solution organizations. At times, the employers directly advertise in the online
job portal specifying their names to know their status. Some advertisers are found to
advertise through the human resource solution entities, where those agencies do not
disclose the names of the employers. It is an internal control practice observed by the
human resource solution providers.
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From the list, we have found different eminent ASX listed companies advertise directly
with their requirements for the specified positions and their industry name. This feature
helps the aspirant candidates to find the suitability of the industry as per their
experience. Industry-type is also a major feature in this aspect. Candidates like to look
for a change in employment scope within the same industry for easy recapitulation and
expected level of deliverance identified for them. Due to global revolution of different
types of upcoming industries, the requirements of employees are also increasing. This
situation gives scopes for the aspirant employees to find the preferred employer with
their names and industry-type status. Although it is an analysis based on test samples,
normal trend prevails in the human resource deployment at Australia by the employers.
The employees prefer to choose from available options to find their comfort zone
regarding employment.
Company and Industry-wise Job advertisement
considered
Company Industry
Paybang Pty Ltd.
E-commerce and financial
services
Not disclosed Service
Allura FMCG
Not disclosed Service
Not disclosed IT Distribution
First Graphene Ltd Infrastructure
Advanced Traffic
management Service
Not disclosed Not disclosed
MPC Kinetic Infrastructure
Studco Infrastructure
Myer Retail chain
Suncorp Group Finance
Rio Tinto Mining
MPC Group Infrastructure
Redpath Partners Pty ltd Human resource
Pepper Group Finance
ME Bank Finance
OZ Minerals Mining
Lawson Elliott Human resource
iSelect Finance
Not disclosed Infrastructure
Reo Group Finance
Not disclosed Mining
National Service Group Finance
Not disclosed Infrastructure
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Not disclosed Entertainment
Solar Juice Energy
Freshmax Group Organic food
Not disclosed Real Estate
Australian Solicitor Group Service
Industry-wise analysis of samples considered
E-commerce and financial services 1
Energy 1
Entertainment 1
Finance 6
FMCG 1
Human resource 2
Infrastructure 6
IT Distribution 1
Mining 3
Not disclosed 1
Organic Food 1
Real estate 1
Retail Chain 1
Service 4
Total 30
The below mentioned graph depicts industry-wise analysis of chosen samples of job
opportunities available in Australia related to subjected positions. It is observed that
finance, infrastructure and service sectors are most demanding related to deployment of
accounting professionals, while mining and human resource solution are also
contributing substantially. The other sectors like energy, entertainment, human resource
solution, etc. are also contributing to this sample selection with their moderate
requirements.
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E-commerce and financial services
Energy
Entertainment
Finance
FMCG
Human resource
Infrastructure
IT Distribution
Mining
Not disclosed
Organic Food
Real estate
Retail Chain
Service
0
2
4
6
Industry wise analysis of samples considered
Sample Job titles collected
We have selected thirty samples from different eminent online job portals of Australia.
The details of this selection preference are given below with their numbers of
contribution in this sample study. Main selection of samples is done for the posts of
corporate accountant and financial accountant. The other selected samples are of
corporate financial accountant, corporate financial control accountant, and senior
corporate accountant. The roles of these positions are almost same with variance of
experience and respective deliverance demanded by the job opportunities. From the
list, it is evident that the demand of corporate accountant is most as per selected
samples for this study. Financial accountants are second in the selection with more or
less same job deliverables. All the samples selected for this study are related core
domain of corporate financial accounting with different nomenclature. (Mallory, n.d)
Job Titles mentioned in advertisement
Corporate Accountant
1
7
Corporate Financial Accountant 2
Corporate Financial Control
Accountant 1
Financial Accountant 9
Senior Corporate Accountant 1
Total
3
0
The below graph can give clear idea of positions selected for this study and their
respective contribution in the domain of corporate financial accounting. While corporate
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accountant contributes most with its specified nomenclature, financial accountant
stands second. The other specified positions with typical nomenclature covered under
corporate financial accountant and corporate accountant are also featured in this graph
with their contribution.
Corporate
Accountant Corporate
Financial
Accountant
Corporate
Financial
Control
Accountant
Financial
Accountant Senior
Corporate
Accountant
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
Job titles mentioned in
advertisement
Personal attributes
From the samples selected for this study, personal attributes required for the right
candidates are with two-fold aspects. First one is professional, technical and theoretical
knowledge with preferred experience. The second one is his ability to cope up with the
corporate culture, and sincere strive to prove his ability to justify his team membership
ability, with probable exploration of specific leadership scope to be a perfect team
member. Effective interpersonal skill and strong communication skill is also required to
be important attributes for the candidature. Ethics is another area on which the aspirant
candidate should insist. (seek, n,d)
The job of corporate accountant demands strong knowledge of accounting with
analytical abilities, budgeting and forecasting, ability to work in different prevailing
accounting software and fluency in communicating with the higher reporting authorities.
It is evident from the advertisements that personal attributes are mostly emphasized on
the approach of the candidate with positive thinking, manage odd situations, and ensure
regular and routine jobs with proficiency. The role of corporate accountants also
demands different legal and statutory compliance. Hence, knowledge of the same with
prevailing accounting standards and other relevant corporate laws are to be considered
as basic criteria for the incumbent. The position of senior corporate financial accountant
demands the maturity to take care of the team to ensure strong team building and
effective execution of corporate strategies for better future of the corporate. Personal
attributes contribute to the certain level of deliverance empowered with technical
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knowledge in each field of job, and accountants are no exception to this concept.
(Auatralia, n.d)
Hence, the lists of desirable personal attributes of the candidates featured in the
selected advertisements are summed up as follows: (Guide, n.d)
 Professional knowledge and respective skill;
 Preferred level of experience;
 Personal analytical abilities;
 Knowledge of present statutory compliance;
 Strong interpersonal and communication skill;
 Strong ethical attitude;
 To be a true team member;
 Respect to the superiors;
 Constant ability to update with new additions to the field;
 Flexible approach;
 Deliverance in due time;
 Skill of innovation applicable for the field of corporate accounting;
 Ability to ensure effective crisis management.
Micro observation of required personal attributes
With the above discussion regarding requirements of personal attributes for the
specified accounting jobs, we can find the list of personal attributes needed for these
employment opportunities. To discuss them as per their contribution to the jobs in micro
level, we have to analyze critically each of them with their contribution to the professions
for better understanding. (education, 2017)
 Professional knowledge and respective skill- these are required to perform as per
the need of the job. Professional knowledge comes from qualification and
respective skill is generated through working experience. Practical application of
theoretical knowledge is most important and to assure this deliverance,
experience plays vital role. (workable, n.d)
 Preferred level of experience- as per the requirement of the employer and the
position offered, certain level of experience in the domain of operation is
necessary to ensure coveted level of deliverance. (Ngo, n.d )
 Personal analytical abilities- the deliverables of accounting in corporate level
demands high level of analytical abilities from the candidate. These abilities are
required for presentation of data to help the management towards decision
making. (Proschool, n.d)
 Knowledge of present statutory compliance- the profession of corporate
accounting needs to comply with different statutory compliance related to
regulations set by different regulatory bodies including government. A thorough
knowledge of the same is required to comply with those regulations for smooth
running of business of the entity. (Lloyd, n.d) (Legislation, 2018)
 Strong interpersonal and communication skill- this skill is required to understand
the communications made for the professional achievements with respective
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reciprocation with others. Good interpersonal and communication skills enable
the candidate to understand and comply with the requirements of the job.
(Michael, n.d)
 Strong ethical attitude- the profession of accounting, like others, demands strong
ethical attitude to serve the stakeholders with prudence and honesty.
 Team member- the corporate accountant must prove himself as a true member
to achieve corporate goals set by the management. (Davis, 2019)
 Respect to the superior- the incumbent should possess respect for superior to
learn about the deliverables and the way to execute that.
 Upgrading knowledge- the field of corporate accounting is changing in domestic
and global perspective. To be with the tide, the candidate should have the ability
to learn and understand that learning is a continuous process for upgrading
knowledge with subsequent deliverance as per demand of the job. (Government,
2019) (Deloitte, n.d)
 Flexibility- flexibility proves to be a vital virtue of accountants to prove his
eagerness to deliver. It may be for knowledge, working time or other aspects as
demanded by the situation. (TUOVILA, 2019)
 Deliverance in due time- like other professions, accounting also demands
deliverance of assignment by specific time. The candidate should ensure that in
order to ensure regularity and discipline of the organization.
 Innovative power- the candidate should have personal attribute by applying
innovative power by asking self-question of what, why and how.
 Effective crisis management- business process may face crisis in every level of
operation. With the ability to handle such crisis in the domain of accounting, the
candidate should prove his ability by risk assessment and subsequent
management for restoration. (Tan & Fawzi, 2017)
Academic and professional qualifications
The advertisements feature requirement of different academic and professional
qualification. Basic requirements are the graduation in accounting science from a
renowned institution. It is followed by the professional qualification of Chartered
accountant or certified public accountant as accredited by Australian government.
These are the basic academic and professional qualifications required to meet the
requirement of the employers as per the selected examples of job advertisement.
Key roles, tasks and responsibilities
The key roles of corporate accountant are to ensure deliverance of financial
statements in the form of profit or loss account, balance sheet, cash flow and other
required financial reports for any corporate entity. (cpaAustralia, n.d)The role also
demands proper treatment of different financial instruments applicable for this
preparation of financial reports. As a corporate accountant, he should ensure the
role of accounting control with initial auditing to ensure prudence for stakeholders.
(Murphy, 2015)
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The key tasks specified for corporate accountant are generally covering preparation
of financial statements for certain periods as per the company norms. Along with
that, budgetary exercise with forecasting is featured as key task. Statutory
compliance is another task to be delivered as per specified requirement of regulatory
bodies. Along with these tasks, the deliverance of accurate data is considered as
important task for them. (Half, n.d)
Responsibilities of corporate accountant is to ensure timely deliverance of required
financial reports, analysis of different ratios as part of management accounting for
the management to help decision making, assurance of statutory compliance as
required by different statutory bodies and ensure accurateness of accounting entries
to mitigate the chances of mistakes and subsequent wrong reporting of the
corporate entity. (IFAC, 2013)
The topic of MPA and HI5020 corporate accounting describes roles, tasks and
responsibilities of performing accounting jobs of any corporate like Bank
Reconciliation with examination of data, monitoring reimbursement of expenses,
receivable and payable accounting, preparation of financial reports, management
accounting exercises by examining financial data with detection of revenue status,
use of software for data collection and examining their viability, generation of profit
or loss account, balance sheet and cash flow statement to understand the financial
health of the company. All these elements are essential to help the stakeholders
determining future course of action; hence, prudence and accuracy are to be
maintained to justify this profession.
Additional topics missing from MPA or HI5020
Although all relevant topics, attributes or learning are prevalent in the
advertisements selected here, the learning of practical accounting approach towards
MIS by data analysis is not present in MPA of HI5020. As a member of the
management team, corporate accountant should be proficient with this exercise also
apart from normal features like company formation, distribution of profits,
reconstruction of capital etc, as specified in the course material of MPA or HI5020.
(Institute, n.d)
Critical analysis of skills, experience and attributes of corporate
accountant
Corporate accountant should have six skills to perform:
 General knowledge of respective business;
 Expertise of latest technological update;
 Interpersonal and communication skill with proper application;
 Orientation of leadership attribute;
 Orientation of customer service;
 Application of theoretical knowledge to work.
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Specialized experience in the field of corporate accountant is based on the learning of
MPA or Hi5020 related to corporate matters with statutory compliance of regulatory
bodies and its accounting perspective for the stakeholders. (Half, 2018)
Attributes of corporate accountant are consisting of ethical application in professional
deliverance, continuous process of learning, prioritizing accuracy, communication skill,
feeling of accountability, technical knowledge of the field of corporate accounting,
reliable and trustworthy appearance. (nuvest, 2017)
Role of MPA or Hi5020 is instrumental to acquire above said skills, experience and
attributes with their learning outcome. The courses provide proper guideline to make the
aspirant aware of required skills, experience or attributes required to perform
successfully as corporate accountant.
Conclusion
With the samples of 30 examples chosen for this article, it is evident that corporate
accountant has good demand in the field of corporate job market. To be successful in
that field, one should be well aware of required professional qualification, required skills,
personal attributes and coveted experience to be a successful corporate accountant. It
is to be noted that the job market of corporate accountant in Australia has good demand
from different corporate entities listed in ASX and other business entities that require
this expertise to run their business smoothly. A successful candidate should aware of
the basic qualities in the form of skills, qualification, attributes and experience to prove
his success in this professional field of job.
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References
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program-candidates/your-experience/skills-list [Accessed 16 September 2019].
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seek, n,d. How to become an Accountant. [Online] Available at:
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