Financial auditor to bookkeeper
A financial auditor already meets 41% of what the bookkeeper role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.
59.2/ 100
1 How much of what a bookkeeper is expected to do is already part of a financial auditor’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 bookkeeper role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A bookkeeper role treats 9 of its required skills as things a financial auditor already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- accounting department processes
- accounting entries
- accounting techniques
- commercial law
- financial statements
- follow the statutory obligations
What stands in the way is 9 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 12 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A bookkeeper role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a financial auditor background worth leading with.
- already held identify accounting errors information skills
- already held accounting entries business, administration and law
- already held ensure compliance with accounting conventions information skills
- already held accounting department processes business, administration and law
- already held financial department processes business, administration and law
- already held follow the statutory obligations assisting and caring
All 12 carried skills, including the 9 the bookkeeper role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 24 missing skills fall into 4 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 attach accounting certificates to accounting transactions required
- still to learn perform balance sheet operations required
- still to learn use accounting systems required
- optional, not held issue sales invoices optional
- optional, not held manage cash desk optional
- optional, not held support development of annual budget optional
- optional, not held allocate bills optional
- optional, not held handle financial transactions optional
- optional, not held handle petty cash optional
- optional, not held manage accounts optional
- optional, not held organise business documents optional
- still to learn manage the general ledger required
- still to learn prepare financial statements required
- still to learn prepare trial accounting balances required
- optional, not held archive documentation related to work optional
- optional, not held calculate tax optional
- optional, not held follow up accounts receivables optional
- optional, not held manage payroll reports optional
- optional, not held prepare tax returns forms optional
- still to learn company policies required
- still to learn depreciation required
- still to learn bookkeeping regulations required
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a bookkeeper role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 company policies study this
- 02 depreciation study this
- 03 attach accounting certificates to accounting transactions 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 12 skills that carry over
- already held accounting department processes knowledge
- already held accounting entries knowledge
- already held accounting techniques knowledge
- already held commercial law knowledge
- already held financial statements knowledge
- already held follow the statutory obligations skill
- already held identify accounting errors skill
- already held maintain financial records skill
- already held tax legislation knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with accounting conventions skill
- already held financial department processes knowledge
- already held interpret financial statements skill
15 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held archive documentation related to work optional
- optional, not held issue sales invoices optional
- optional, not held manage cash desk optional
- optional, not held support development of annual budget optional
- optional, not held allocate bills optional
- optional, not held calculate tax optional
- optional, not held follow up accounts receivables optional
- optional, not held handle financial transactions optional
- optional, not held handle petty cash optional
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
- optional, not held manage accounts optional
- optional, not held manage payroll reports optional
- optional, not held organise business documents optional
- optional, not held prepare tax returns forms optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
48 held skills the bookkeeper role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role accounting knowledge
- not needed by the target role advise on credit rating skill
- not needed by the target role advise on financial matters skill
- not needed by the target role advise on tax planning skill
- not needed by the target role analyse financial performance of a company skill
- not needed by the target role analyse financial risk skill
- not needed by the target role arrange audit skill
- not needed by the target role banking activities knowledge
- not needed by the target role check accounting records skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with banking professionals skill
- not needed by the target role conduct financial audits skill
- not needed by the target role control financial resources skill
- not needed by the target role core banking software knowledge
- not needed by the target role corporate law knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop audit plan skill
- not needed by the target role develop financial statistics reports skill
- not needed by the target role disseminate information on tax legislation skill
- not needed by the target role economics knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with disclosure criteria of accounting information skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate budgets skill
- not needed by the target role financial analysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role financial jurisdiction knowledge
- not needed by the target role financial management knowledge
- not needed by the target role financial products knowledge
- not needed by the target role fraud detection knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify if a company is a going concern skill
- not needed by the target role insolvency law knowledge
- not needed by the target role inspect tax returns skill
- not needed by the target role internal auditing knowledge
- not needed by the target role international financial reporting standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role international tariffs knowledge
- not needed by the target role joint ventures knowledge
- not needed by the target role liaise with shareholders skill
- not needed by the target role maintain records of financial transactions skill
- not needed by the target role maintain trusts skill
- not needed by the target role make strategic business decisions skill
- not needed by the target role mergers and acquisitions knowledge
- not needed by the target role monitor banking activities skill
- not needed by the target role national generally accepted accounting principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role observe confidentiality skill
8 further entries not listed here
5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn company policies required
- still to learn depreciation required
- still to learn bookkeeping regulations required
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
Other moves recorded from financial auditor
- audit supervisor 61% covered · moderate
- financial fraud examiner 57% covered · moderate
- accounting analyst 54% covered · moderate
- bank treasurer 54% covered · moderate
- financial controller 53% covered · moderate
- accounting manager 46% covered · substantial
- accountant 46% covered · substantial
- bank account manager 39% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a financial auditor become a bookkeeper?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A financial auditor already covers 41% of what a bookkeeper is expected to do: 12 skills carry over, 9 of which the bookkeeper role treats as required.
What skills does a financial auditor need to become a bookkeeper?
9 required skills are missing, plus 15 optional ones. They fall into 4 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is company policies.
How hard is the move from financial auditor to bookkeeper?
Its learning distance is 59.2 out of 100, which is the substantial 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.