Accountant to financial controller
An accountant already meets 67% of what the financial controller role asks for. The move turns on 5 required skills not yet in the profile.
34.1/ 100
1 How much of what a financial controller is expected to do is already part of an accountant’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the financial controller role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A financial controller role treats 12 of its required skills as things an accountant already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- accounting department processes
- analyse financial performance of a company
- ensure compliance with accounting conventions
- evaluate budgets
- exert expenditure control
- explain accounting records
What stands in the way is 5 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 24 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A financial controller role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an accountant background worth leading with.
- already held liaise with auditors communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held draft accounting procedures communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held exert expenditure control management skills
- already held explain accounting records management skills
- already held ensure compliance with accounting conventions information skills
- already held prepare tax returns forms information skills
All 24 carried skills, including the 12 the financial controller role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 13 missing skills fall into 3 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn develop financial statistics reports required
- still to learn synthesise financial information required
- still to learn track key performance indicators required
- optional, not held analyse financial risk optional
- optional, not held inspect government expenditures optional
- optional, not held manage the general ledger optional
- still to learn create a financial plan required
- still to learn enforce financial policies required
- optional, not held manage profitability optional
- optional, not held supervise accounting operations optional
- optional, not held advise on tax planning optional
- optional, not held liaise with financiers optional
- optional, not held liaise with shareholders optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a financial controller role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 create a financial plan practise this
- 02 develop financial statistics reports practise this
- 03 enforce financial policies practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 24 skills that carry over
- already held accounting department processes knowledge
- already held analyse financial performance of a company skill
- already held ensure compliance with accounting conventions skill
- already held evaluate budgets skill
- already held exert expenditure control skill
- already held explain accounting records skill
- already held financial department processes knowledge
- already held financial statements knowledge
- already held follow the statutory obligations skill
- already held interpret financial statements skill
- already held prepare financial statements skill
- already held tax legislation knowledge
- already held advise on financial matters skill
- already held check accounting records skill
- already held disseminate information on tax legislation skill
- already held draft accounting procedures skill
- already held financial forecasting knowledge
- already held insolvency law knowledge
- already held liaise with auditors skill
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held prepare financial auditing reports skill
- already held prepare tax returns forms skill
- already held statistics knowledge
- already held support development of annual budget skill
8 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on tax planning optional
- optional, not held analyse financial risk optional
- optional, not held inspect government expenditures optional
- optional, not held liaise with financiers optional
- optional, not held liaise with shareholders optional
- optional, not held manage profitability optional
- optional, not held manage the general ledger optional
- optional, not held supervise accounting operations optional
33 held skills the financial controller role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role accounting entries knowledge
- not needed by the target role accounting techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role advise on risk management skill
- not needed by the target role attach accounting certificates to accounting transactions skill
- not needed by the target role bookkeeping regulations knowledge
- not needed by the target role calculate production costs skill
- not needed by the target role calculate tax skill
- not needed by the target role check the production schedule skill
- not needed by the target role commercial law knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct financial audits skill
- not needed by the target role consult with motion picture producer skill
- not needed by the target role consult with production director skill
- not needed by the target role depreciation knowledge
- not needed by the target role film production process knowledge
- not needed by the target role fraud detection knowledge
- not needed by the target role handle financial transactions skill
- not needed by the target role identify accounting errors skill
- not needed by the target role international financial reporting standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role keep track of expenses skill
- not needed by the target role liquidity management knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage accounts skill
- not needed by the target role manage corporate bank accounts skill
- not needed by the target role manage inventory skill
- not needed by the target role manage payroll reports skill
- not needed by the target role manage revenue skill
- not needed by the target role monitor after sales records skill
- not needed by the target role national generally accepted accounting principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform balance sheet operations skill
- not needed by the target role perform cost accounting activities skill
- not needed by the target role perform dunning activities skill
- not needed by the target role perform risk analysis skill
- not needed by the target role prepare trial accounting balances skill
- not needed by the target role resolve difficult account allocation cases skill
Other moves recorded from accountant
- bookkeeper 72% covered · moderate
- accounting assistant 60% covered · moderate
- accounting manager 58% covered · moderate
- accounting analyst 57% covered · moderate
- tax clerk 50% covered · moderate
- financial fraud examiner 48% covered · moderate
- post-production supervisor 44% covered · moderate
- cost analyst 44% covered · moderate
Common questions about this move
Can an accountant become a financial controller?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An accountant already covers 67% of what a financial controller is expected to do: 24 skills carry over, 12 of which the financial controller role treats as required.
What skills does an accountant need to become a financial controller?
5 required skills are missing, plus 8 optional ones. They fall into 3 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is create a financial plan.
How hard is the move from accountant to financial controller?
Its learning distance is 34.1 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.