Successful accountants are able to analyze business data and make appropriate decisions. From determining how to categorize expenses to assessing fraud control measures, decision-making is a critical ability for accountants. Decision-making skills for accounting function as a competitive business advantage and help ensure financial gains and adherence to financial reporting requirements.
- Learn to make the day-to-day data decisions that are the foundation of accurate and useful reports. Daily decisions can include how to properly classify expenses, what information to use from supporting documents to make journal entries and even how to divide shared expenses between multiple departments. Accurate decision-making on these routine accounting tasks is a skill that must be developed.
- Master the cost-benefit analysis method of decision-making. When reviewing financial data or answering business questions, think in terms of costs and benefits. Provide both sides of an issue and then present your best decision. By presenting a fully rounded answer to questions, business managers will have the information they need to put your information in context and make better decisions themselves. Additionally, cost-benefit decision-making skills are needed to advance in the accounting field from data entry to management and eventually to executive ranks.
- Forecasting skills require highly developed decision-making skills. From determining projected cash flow statements to break-even points, accounting departments must determine the logical progression of data based on trends and relevant information. Use mathematical models to create the foundation for your decisions and then overlay them with contextual knowledge to create strong forecasting projections.
- Develop your ability to determine the unintended consequences of decisions through impact analysis. Look at the logical progression of events based on decision possibilities. For all potential choices for a decision, outline both the immediate financial and business results as well as the long-term impact. Learn to make decisions by looking beyond the short-term impact. While some decisions will need to be made purely on short-term results, knowing the long-term impact can help you prepare and plan for known impacts of a decision.
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