Accounting Resumes - How Exciting is That?

Accounting Resumes - what an exciting topic! Chances are, you are reading this article because you are one of the approximately 1 million (per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics) practicing accountants in the US. And, the odds are even higher that you are also either looking for a new situation, or thinking about doing so. Otherwise, why would you be reading an article about accounting resumes?

Rather than put you to sleep while reading about this "sexy" topic, I want to put the topic of accounting resumes into a different perspective - one that will motivate you to change your own resume to highlight KSAs and MSAs, and will allow you to communicate your Value Proposition.

For a brief explanation, the term KSAs refers to your Knowledge, Skills and Ability; while the term MSAs refers to what you have already Made, Saved and Achieved in your career to this point. If you want to know more about KSAs and MSAs, go to some of my other articles on the web where they are defined in more detail and where their value is explained.

Now, let's get right to the point. Most of what we, as accountants do (I have my CPA from the State of Indiana, and have been a CAO and CFO of a Fortune 1000 company) does not seem very exciting to the rest of the business world. And, I believe, we tend to accept that what we do is unexciting, drab and mostly routine activity, even though we take many years to gain our proficiency.

What if you had a different attitude about your experience and capability? What if you wrote your accounting resume to highlight your KSAs and MSAs? What if you could communicate your Value Proposition to a hiring manager? If you could do that, your accounting resume would not be drab, would not portray a person who only does routine activities and would convey a sense of success, achievement and continuing capability that likely will be very attractive to any number of hiring managers.

In the past I have lectured to college accounting students about external financial reporting issues. During those lectures I would make the point that external reporting, even though it is very structured due to a combination of legal and SEC regulations as well as GAAP (and now IFRS) stipulations, was a way to "paint a mosaic" of a company and its results. The words used in financial reporting must convey accurate information, but different words create different reactions. The same is true in your accounting resume.

Let me give you an example. If you are currently a general ledger staff accountant at a large manufacturing company, you could write your accounting resume like this:

"ABC Company - G/L Staff Accountant"
"Generate monthly journal entries to record manufacturing costs and analyze related general ledger accounts to assure accuracy."

Now, let's assume that another accountant in the same company doing the exact same job writes her accounting resume like this:

"ABC Company - G/L Staff Accountant for the company's integrated widget manufacturing division comprised of 3 facilities on 2 continents."
"Responsible for the preparation and accuracy of monthly journal entries used by plant management to evaluate labor and material variances in order to improve gross margins. Also responsible for the analysis of related general ledger accounts, the purpose of which is to detect and correct errors in standard costs and which has resulted in a 3% improvement in reported margins"

Do you see the difference? Do you see how, in the first case, your accounting resume portrays you as an
"accountant"?? While in the second case, her accounting resume conveys that she is a partner with the plant management, has a focus on profitability, and understands the importance of providing accurate information with which to run the business?

And, do you see how a plant controller might be more anxious about talking to the second candidate and not to you? And you may even be better at the job than she is?

The simple point is this. When you are writing your accounting resume, combine KSAs and MSAs to create a Value Proposition. That Value Proposition can then be evaluated by the hiring manger to determine how well you match the job specifications (in other words, how well do you match what the manager needs). And, if you match the job specifications significantly, your accounting resume allows the hiring manager to "connect the dots" between what you offer and what he or she needs.

Your accounting resume must allow the hiring manager to connect the dots. If the dots connect, you get called for an interview. It is that simple. And, if you get called for an interview, your accounting resume has fulfilled its objective - which is to get you the interview that other jobseekers are not getting
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