Understanding which skills to look for when searching for accounting talent is essential. You can interview candidates with these skills to determine which professional should be added to your team.

Determining which hard and soft skills would provide the most value to your accounting team guides the types of questions you ask during interviews. Targeting your questions helps uncover which candidates should advance in your hiring process.

Look for these four skills when searching for accounting talent:

1. Cloud-Based Accounting  

Cloud-based technology is used for enterprise resource planning (ERP), inventory management, project management, and general communication. Also, cloud-based accounting software stores data that can be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection.

Deloitte’s 2020 global survey From Mirage to Reality: Bringing Finance into Focus in a Digital World showed that approximately 46% of nearly 800 accounting and finance managers, directors, controllers, and CFOs ranked cloud-based accounting solutions as important for business. Because these skills are highly sought-after, you should look for them when searching for accounting talent.

2. Budgeting, Forecasting, and Reporting  

Cloud-based technology is increasingly being used in budgeting, forecasting, and reporting tools. According to the Deloitte survey, more than 53% of respondents ranked these tools as significantly important. Therefore, you should look for skills in using budgeting, forecasting, and reporting tools when searching for accounting talent.

3. Data Analysis

The increasing use of technology in accounting elevates the need for professionals who are skilled in data analytics. The ability to use software and tools to uncover patterns, analyze data, and draw conclusions is important.

The Deloitte survey found that over 44% of respondents ranked data analytics and visualization as extremely important for companies. Therefore, you should look for this skill when interviewing accounting talent.

4. Relationship Building

The rise of technology in accounting makes the need for relationship-building more important than ever. According to the Deloitte report, more than 28% of respondents ranked people skills among the most important core skills and capabilities for talent to improve upon.

Accountants must excel at communicating in person, over the phone, and online to effectively build relationships in an increasingly digital world. These forms of communication support motivation and collaboration to remain engaged and productive at work.

Effective relationship building is required for accountants to build rapport with clients and clearly understand their goals and needs. These details help accountants provide tailored services to achieve their clients’ objectives.

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