Accounting Manager Resume Example
Hiring managers evaluating Accounting Managers look for team-wide delivery of audit-ready controls, not individual ledger maintenance.
This resume is for accounting managers who oversee staff and manage complex financial reporting, but aren't yet responsible for total department P&L or setting global corporate strategy. It captures the transition from being a technical expert to a people leader who delivers results through others.
- Evidence of leading teams to hit strict reporting deadlines
- Ownership of financial integrity and audit-ready controls
- Ability to drive process improvements that result in measurable cost or time savings
- Experience section leading with team size and portfolio scope
- Skills categorized by technical GAAP knowledge and leadership competencies
- Professional summary highlighting specific cycle-time reductions
Jasmine Johnson
Summary
Experience
- Led a team of 6 accountants to manage the month-end close for a $2.4B portfolio, reducing the close cycle from 8 to 5 business days through workflow optimization.
- Owned the integrity of the general ledger and consolidated financial statements, maintaining a 92% team retention rate through structured career development and mentorship.
- Spearheaded the implementation of an automated reconciliation tool, cutting manual journal entry time by 35% and saving $115K in annual operational costs.
- Prioritized the overhaul of high-risk account reconciliations over routine process updates to ensure 100% audit readiness for the fiscal year-end.
- Managed complex journal entries and technical accounting research for high-growth clients, improving financial reporting accuracy by 28%.
- Directed the year-end audit process for 5 major accounts, resolving $140K in historical discrepancies through detailed forensic reconciliation of the general ledger.
- Streamlined the financial reporting workflow by consolidating disparate spreadsheets into a unified ERP dashboard, saving 20 hours of manual labor per month.
- Chose to delay the rollout of a new expense policy to focus resources on resolving a critical general ledger mapping error during the Q3 close.
- Executed monthly bank and balance sheet reconciliations for 12 entities, maintaining a zero-variance record for 3 consecutive years.
- Prepared preliminary financial statements and supporting schedules for senior management review, identifying $95K in misallocated expenses.
- Automated the recurring journal entry process using advanced Excel functions, reducing preparation time by 42%.
- Defined a new documentation standard for audit trails after identifying gaps in the existing filing system, reducing auditor inquiry volume by 15%.
Education
Skills
General Ledger · Excel · Account Reconciliation · Financial Reporting · GAAP · Month-End Close · Team Leadership · Process Improvement · Hiring · Performance Management · Audit Management · Budget Management · SAP · SOX Compliance · Journal Entry
What makes this resume effective
- This resume meets the hiring bar for an accounting manager by demonstrating team leadership of six staff, ownership of a $2.4B portfolio, and significant process optimization.
- Notice how Jasmine highlights a 92% retention rate at Truist, which signals the people management maturity recruiters look for at this level.
- The resume shows technical credibility by detailing the resolution of $140K in historical discrepancies at BDO, proving she hasn't lost the hands-on skills needed to oversee staff.
How to write better bullet points
Managed the month-end close process for the team.
Led a team of 6 to reduce the month-end close cycle from 8 to 5 days for a $2.4B portfolio.
It quantifies the team size, the portfolio scope, and the specific efficiency gain achieved through leadership.
Helped with the annual audit.
Prioritized high-risk account reconciliations to ensure 100% audit readiness and zero material findings.
It shifts the focus from passive assistance to proactive risk management and outcome ownership.
Used Excel to automate some accounting tasks.
Automated the recurring journal entry process using advanced Excel functions, reducing preparation time by 42%.
It specifies the exact technical method and the measurable time-saving impact of the automation.
Accounting Manager resume writing tips
- Highlight team metrics like retention or promotion rates to prove management success.
- Quantify how your process changes shortened the month-end close cycle.
- Detail your role in audit readiness to demonstrate control over financial integrity.
Common mistakes
- Focusing only on individual technical tasks instead of team-wide delivery and oversight.
- Neglecting to mention team size or the dollar value of the portfolio managed.
- Failing to explain how you transitioned from doing the work to reviewing and improving it.
Frequently asked questions
Is this resume right for someone with 5 years of experience? Yes, if you have formal or informal experience overseeing others' work. It is less suitable for resumes focused solely on individual ledger tasks.
Yes, if you have formal or informal experience overseeing others' work. It is less suitable for resumes focused solely on individual ledger tasks.
Yes, if you have moved into a formal or informal lead role where you oversee the work of others. It is less suitable if you are still exclusively an individual contributor focused on your own ledger without any mentorship responsibilities.
What if my background isn't in banking or at a firm like Truist? Yes, because team health and process efficiency are universal. Simply swap the specific portfolio details for your own industry-specific data.
Yes, because team health and process efficiency are universal. Simply swap the specific portfolio details for your own industry-specific data.
The structure remains effective across all industries because the core challenges of management—team health and process efficiency—are universal. Simply swap the portfolio types for the specific industries or company sizes you have managed.
What if I don't have exact percentages for my time savings? Use raw data, such as days saved in a month-end close cycle, to demonstrate a clear 'before and after' state for specific process improvements.
Use raw data, such as days saved in a month-end close cycle, to demonstrate a clear 'before and after' state for specific process improvements.
In this resume, Jasmine uses a mix of percentages and raw days saved, such as the 8 to 5 business day reduction. You can normalize partial data by focusing on the 'before and after' state of a specific process you improved.
How much should I change before applying? Keep the Action-Result format but update the team size and specific ERP software, like SAP or Oracle, to accurately reflect your experience.
Keep the Action-Result format but update the team size and specific ERP software, like SAP or Oracle, to accurately reflect your experience.
Keep the focus on the 'Action -> Result' format used in the Truist section, but ensure you swap specific software like SAP for the ERP you actually use. You should also update the team size to accurately reflect your direct reports.
What do hiring managers focus on at this level? They prioritize your ability to scale output and reduce errors through others rather than your personal proficiency with technical GAAP tasks.
They prioritize your ability to scale output and reduce errors through others rather than your personal proficiency with technical GAAP tasks.
Hiring managers look for a balance of technical GAAP knowledge and the ability to scale a team's output. They specifically focus on your ability to reduce errors and meet deadlines through others rather than just through your own labor.
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