What are the three core responsibilities of a financial auditor?

"cpa," "internal audit," and "audit findings" aren't the only skills we found finance auditors list on their resumes. In fact, there's a whole list of finance auditor responsibilities that we found, including:

  • Analytical skills can be considered to be the most important personality trait for a finance auditor to have. According to a finance auditor resume, "accountants and auditors must be able to identify issues in documentation and suggest solutions" finance auditors are able to use analytical skills in the following example we gathered from a resume: "examine and analyze accounting records to determine financial status of establishment and prepare financial reports concerning operating procedures. "
  • While it may not be the most important skill, we found that many finance auditor duties rely on communication skills. This example from a finance auditor explains why: "accountants and auditors must be able to listen carefully to facts and concerns from clients, managers, and others." This resume example is just one of many ways finance auditors are able to utilize communication skills: "prepare clear and concise audit work papers, reports, and other communication to document audit procedures performed and exceptions noted. "
  • Detail oriented is also an important skill for finance auditors to have. This example of how finance auditors use this skill comes from a finance auditor resume, "accountants and auditors must pay attention to detail when compiling and examining documentation." Read this excerpt from a resume to understand how vital it is to their everyday roles and responsibilities, "examined and analyzed financial records to determine company's financial status; prepared detailed financial reports. "
  • A thorough review of lots of resumes revealed to us that "math skills" is important to completing finance auditor responsibilities. This resume example shows just one way finance auditors use this skill: "accountants and auditors must be able to analyze, compare, and interpret facts and figures, although complex math skills are not necessary." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical finance auditor tasks: "assist in preparing audit reports summarizing audit results and findings of audited information and statistics. "
  • Another common skill for a finance auditor to be able to utilize is "organizational skills." Strong organizational skills are important for accountants and auditors, who often work with a range of financial documents for a variety of clients. A finance auditor demonstrated the need for this skill by putting this on their resume: "presented as guest speaker to unt's graduate internal audit class on audit engagement/organizational planning. "
  • See the full list of finance auditor skills.

    We've found that 69.7% of finance auditors have earned a bachelor's degree. Furthermore, 19.2% earned their master's degrees before becoming a finance auditor. While it's true that most finance auditors have a college degree, it's generally possible to become one with only a high school degree. In fact, one out of every nine finance auditors did not spend the extra money to attend college.

    The finance auditors who went onto college to earn a more in-depth education generally studied accounting and business, while a small population of finance auditors studied finance and management.

    When you're ready to become a finance auditor, you might wonder which companies hire finance auditors. According to our research through finance auditor resumes, finance auditors are mostly hired by MassMutual, Grant Thornton, and Navy Federal Credit Union. Now is a good time to apply as MassMutual has 6 finance auditors job openings, and there are 5 at Grant Thornton and 5 at Navy Federal Credit Union.

    Since salary is important to some finance auditors, it's good to note that they are figured to earn the highest salaries at Google, Microsoft, and Apple. If you were to take a closer look at Google, you'd find that the average finance auditor salary is $122,055. Then at Microsoft, finance auditors receive an average salary of $117,865, while the salary at Apple is $112,803.

    View more details on finance auditor salaries across the United States.

    If you earned a degree from the top 100 educational institutions in the United States, you might want to take a look at Ernst & Young, Deloitte, and KPMG. These three companies have hired a significant number of finance auditors from these institutions.

    What does an auditor do? Graduate salaries | Typical employers | Qualifications and training | Key skills

    Auditors review the accounts of companies and other organisations to ensure their financial records are correct and in line with the law. They could be inspecting the accounts of their own employer or those of another organisation, and they can also act in an advisory role to recommend risk aversion measures and cost savings.

    Typical duties include:

    • collating, checking and analysing spreadsheet data
    • examining company accounts and financial control systems
    • gauging levels of financial risk within organisations
    • checking that financial reports and records are accurate and reliable
    • ensuring that assets are protected
    • identifying if and where processes are not working as they should and advising on changes to be made
    • preparing reports, commentaries and financial statements
    • liaising with managerial staff and presenting findings and recommendations
    • ensuring procedures, policies, legislation and regulations are correctly followed and complied with
    • undertaking reviews of wages.

    Auditors typically work standard office hours, plus some overtime or weekend working at busy times, particularly at the financial year end. When conducting audits for clients, they may be required to work from their client’s workplace.

    Discover more about careers in auditing (and assurance work, of which auditing is a type, more broadly).

    Auditors’ salaries vary according to location and the type of employer. The National Audit Office offers graduates on their accountancy scheme a starting salary of £31,187 in London and £25,196 in Newcastle, for example, while you can expect the likes of the Big 4 professional services firms (Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC) to pay higher rates.

    According to a recent salary survey from the recruitment agency Hays UK, senior qualified auditors in the public practice of a private accountancy firm typically earn £33,000–£49,000 and directors £70,000–£110,000, depending on their location (with the lowest figures offered in Wales and Northern Ireland and the highest in London and the south east of England).

    Read more about the salaries and benefits in accountancy .

    Auditors can be either internal or external.

    Internal auditors may work:

    • for professional firms outsourced by client companies
    • in-house as part of an organisation’s accounting team
    • for large private companies, organisations and charities

    External auditors may work:

    • with private firms of accountants
    • for the National Audit Office, where they carry out obligatory audits of the public sector and governmental bodies.

    There are routes into a career in audit for both university graduates and school leavers, though routes differ depending on whether you are aiming for internal or external audit.

    External auditors first need to qualify as chartered accountants with a professional accounting body. For more information about how to do this, see our accountant job description .

    Alternatively, you can gain a qualification with the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) to work as an auditor in the public sector.

    You can also study for a professional accounting qualification while working for the National Audit Office, which offers a three-year graduate scheme.

    Achieving qualifications can take three to five years but you will work while studying. Employers often provide financial help with exams and allow time for study leave.

    Internal auditors do not have to qualify as accountants. You can apply with a degree in any discipline but subjects such as accountancy, economics and IT are particularly beneficial. School leavers can enter the profession by starting as a trainee auditor or apprentice.

    What are the top 3 qualities an auditor should possess?

    What are the qualities of a good auditor?.
    They show integrity. ... .
    They are effective communicators. ... .
    They are good with technology. ... .
    They are good at building collaborative relationships. ... .
    They are always learning. ... .
    They leverage data analytics. ... .
    They are innovative. ... .
    They are team orientated..

    What is the role of a financial auditor?

    A financial auditor is responsible for discovering errors and fraud within corporate documents. They perform accounting analyses to make sure that a company's financial statements are correct and in compliance with generally accepted accounting principles.

    What are the 3 main types of audits?

    Key Takeaways. There are three main types of audits: external audits, internal audits, and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) audits. External audits are commonly performed by Certified Public Accounting (CPA) firms and result in an auditor's opinion which is included in the audit report.

    What are the three key responsibilities of an auditor?

    Internal Audit Provide recommendations to improve weak internal controls. Investigate instances of possible fraud (even those considered immaterial) Perform reconciliations of financial and operating information.