Accounting technicians have many of the skills of accountants, but they
are not full-fledged accountants themselves. They make calculations, track
transactions, and prepare and issue bills, invoices and other statements.
They process and verify financial records. They also compile budgets.
They might also perform general clerical duties such as filing, preparing
reports and dealing with clients.
Accounting technicians work for private businesses, nonprofit groups, associations
and governments. They often work for accounting firms that have many clients
of all kinds and sizes. They usually work under the supervision of professional
accountants.
Accounting technicians might also work for themselves. Many call themselves
bookkeepers, accounting clerks, or bookkeeping clerks rather than accounting
technicians. Bookkeepers might or might not be professional accountants --
the term is not regulated.
"There is no federal or state regulation regarding use of the term 'bookkeeper'
-- anyone can say 'I'm a bookkeeper,' so the range of competence goes from
expert to incompetent," notes Stephen Sahlein. He's co-president of the American
Institute of Professional Bookkeepers.
Accounting technicians are not considered professional accountants. They
are "paraprofessionals." That's because they do not hold any of the major
professional accounting designations. These designations include CA (chartered
accountants), CGA (certified general accountants) and CMA (certified management
accountants).
"A lot of them end up working in public accounting firms," says Ivan Desjardins.
He's the coordinator of a two-year diploma program for accounting technicians.
"They're technicians, so they do a lot of the back-up work for the professional
accountants," says Desjardins. "And many of them do straight bookkeeping for
clients, and maybe open up their own companies. They're doing a lot of the
back-up work, like the paralegal in a law firm."
Large companies often have accounting technicians (or bookkeeping clerks)
who only enter data in one narrow area, such as accounts payable bookkeepers
or accounts receivable bookkeepers.
"The accounting technician term is normally applied in accounting offices,"
says Gwen McFarlane. She has her own home-based bookkeeping company.
"They would be their grunt people, I suppose, in many ways. And that's
what bookkeepers are. They do the basics -- they get the information in there
and get it in accurately."
Some accounting firms prefer to avoid the term "accounting technician."
They might use the title of "bookkeeper," "bookkeeping clerk," or another
title instead.
Working hours for accounting technicians do not vary much. Weekend work
is uncommon. They have a fairly steady routine based on deadlines. But they
do get to enjoy variety and interesting challenges.
"I get lots of variety," says Katherine Culligan. She's an accounting
technician for the City of Deltona in Florida. "I get to interact with quite
a few different departments, working on pulling together information for the
budgets and the [City] Commission."
There's a steady need for people with bookkeeping and accounting skills.
"Every business that is in existence needs a bookkeeper," says McFarlane.
"For people, if they've got a business, they've got a need for bookkeeping.
"Most of the time, [for] the people who start their own businesses, [accounting
is] not one of their skills," McFarlane adds. "They're normally out there
to be a plumber, or to be a hairdresser, and so they need someone who has
the financial skills to help them stay afloat."