Financial fraud examiner to accounting analyst
A financial fraud examiner already meets 23% of what the accounting analyst role asks for. The move turns on 14 required skills not yet in the profile.
75.2/ 100
1 How much of what an accounting analyst is expected to do is already part of a financial fraud examiner’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 accounting analyst role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An accounting analyst role treats 4 of its required skills as things a financial fraud examiner already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- financial statements
- international financial reporting standards
- interpret financial statements
- national generally accepted accounting principles
What stands in the way is 14 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 9 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An accounting analyst role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a financial fraud examiner background worth leading with.
- already held perform forensic accounting information skills
- already held identify if a company is a going concern information skills
- already held public offering business, administration and law
- already held ensure compliance with accounting conventions information skills
- already held national generally accepted accounting principles business, administration and law
- already held international financial reporting standards business, administration and law
All 9 carried skills, including the 4 the accounting analyst role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 30 missing skills fall into 5 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 create a financial report required
- still to learn analyse business processes required
- still to learn analyse financial performance of a company required
- still to learn analyse financial risk required
- still to learn check accounting records required
- still to learn monitor financial accounts required
- optional, not held ensure compliance with disclosure criteria of accounting information optional
- optional, not held forecast account metrics optional
- optional, not held perform stock valuation optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- still to learn accounting department processes required
- still to learn financial department processes required
- still to learn accounting entries required
- still to learn accounting techniques required
- optional, not held global standards for sustainability reporting optional
- optional, not held investment analysis optional
- optional, not held treasury management system optional
- optional, not held liquidity management optional
- optional, not held stock market optional
- still to learn identify process improvements required
- still to learn explain accounting records required
- still to learn supervise accounting operations required
- optional, not held evaluate budgets optional
- optional, not held make strategic business decisions optional
- optional, not held manage accounts optional
- still to learn draft accounting procedures required
- optional, not held advise on financial matters optional
- optional, not held liaise with shareholders optional
- optional, not held review investment portfolios optional
- optional, not held follow the statutory obligations optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an accounting analyst role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 accounting department processes study this
- 02 create a financial report practise this
- 03 financial department processes study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 9 skills that carry over
- already held financial statements knowledge
- already held international financial reporting standards knowledge
- already held interpret financial statements skill
- already held national generally accepted accounting principles knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with accounting conventions skill
- already held identify if a company is a going concern skill
- already held perform forensic accounting skill
- already held prepare financial statements skill
- already held public offering knowledge
16 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held global standards for sustainability reporting optional
- optional, not held investment analysis optional
- optional, not held treasury management system optional
- optional, not held advise on financial matters optional
- optional, not held ensure compliance with disclosure criteria of accounting information optional
- optional, not held evaluate budgets optional
- optional, not held follow the statutory obligations optional
- optional, not held forecast account metrics optional
- optional, not held liaise with shareholders optional
- optional, not held liquidity management optional
- optional, not held make strategic business decisions optional
- optional, not held manage accounts optional
- optional, not held perform stock valuation optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held review investment portfolios optional
- optional, not held stock market optional
17 held skills the accounting analyst role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role anti-dumping law knowledge
- not needed by the target role banking activities knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct financial audits skill
- not needed by the target role criminal law knowledge
- not needed by the target role detect financial crime skill
- not needed by the target role financial jurisdiction knowledge
- not needed by the target role financial products knowledge
- not needed by the target role forensic intelligence knowledge
- not needed by the target role fraud detection knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify accounting errors skill
- not needed by the target role international law knowledge
- not needed by the target role interpret law skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with managers skill
- not needed by the target role manage corporate bank accounts skill
- not needed by the target role prepare financial auditing reports skill
- not needed by the target role tax legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role trace financial transactions skill
9 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 accounting department processes required
- still to learn financial department processes required
- still to learn accounting entries required
- still to learn accounting techniques required
- optional, not held global standards for sustainability reporting optional
- optional, not held investment analysis optional
- optional, not held treasury management system optional
- optional, not held liquidity management optional
- optional, not held stock market optional
Common questions about this move
Can a financial fraud examiner become an accounting analyst?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A financial fraud examiner already covers 23% of what an accounting analyst is expected to do: 9 skills carry over, 4 of which the accounting analyst role treats as required.
What skills does a financial fraud examiner need to become an accounting analyst?
14 required skills are missing, plus 16 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is accounting department processes.
How hard is the move from financial fraud examiner to accounting analyst?
Its learning distance is 75.2 out of 100, which is the career change 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.