Bookkeeping Assistant Job Description, Skills, and Salary
Are you searching for a bookkeeping assistant job description? Get to know about the duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and skills requirements of a bookkeeping assistant. Feel free to use our job description template to produce your own. We also provide you with information about the salary you can earn as a bookkeeping assistant.
Who is a Bookkeeping Assistant?
This is an individual that works with a bookkeeper to support and assist, easing the burden and making easy the work of the bookkeeper or accountant. The Bookkeeping Assistant aid in maintaining the financial records of a company or organization. The Bookkeeping Assistant is involved in a wide range of clerical duties, including data entry, account reconciliation, balance sheet maintenance, and general financial record keeping. The Bookkeeping Assistant may also be tasked with performing more specialized tasks on occasion. These might include creating reports or presentations based on company performance metrics, preparing tax filings, or even helping to develop new systems or procedures to improve efficiency. In conclusion, the Bookkeeping Assistant takes the responsibility of rendering support at all times to the company’s or organization’s accounting department. These individuals are in charge of checking documents, monitoring accounts, preparing bank deposits, coding documents, processing accounts receivables and accounts payables, creating invoices, preparing wire transfers, recording monetary transactions, helping with payroll processing, creating financial reports, handling bank reconciliations, and performing all essential administrative duties that ensure the running of an organization.
Bookkeeping Assistant Job Description
What is a bookkeeping assistant job description? A bookkeeping assistant job description is simply a list of duties and responsibilities of a bookkeeping assistant in an organization. Below are the bookkeeping assistant job description examples you can use to develop your resume or write a bookkeeping assistant job description for your employee. Employers can also use it to sieve out job seekers when choosing candidates for interviews.
The duties and responsibilities of bookkeeping assistants include the following:
- Processing accounts payable invoices and payments for the organization or agency
- Preparing bank deposits for the company’s checking account regularly.
- Supporting receptionist with answering phones and greeting visitors along with other clerical duties.
- Providing friendly advice to a wide range of customers while helping to identify services or products that best suit their needs.
- Providing consistently top-quality service and constantly receiving commendations from customers and sales force.
- Posting transactions, both to the bookkeeper or management for proper documentation and recordings.
- Entering data of financial transactions into the company’s or organization’s accounting software.
- Providing administrative support to the bookkeeping or accounting department.
- Calculating employee federal and state income and social security taxes and employer’s social security, unemployment, and workers’ compensation payments.
- Assisting in resolving payroll discrepancies by collecting and analyzing information.
- Reconciling accounts, especially those that are faulty or misappropriated.
- Maintaining petty cash funds and conducting monthly bank reconciliations for easy transactions.
- Reconciling vendors’ and customers’ statement accounts to ensure transaction transparency.
- Reviewing and maintaining storage files for all vendors, customers, and employees’ personal information for proper recording.
- Making journal entries, and maintaining records for record keeping.
- Inputting information for accounts payable and accounts receivable for proper recordings.
- Assisting in preparing check runs utilizing different software packages.
- Maintaining computerized accounting records including accounts receivable and payable, bank reconciliations, and payroll records.
- Understanding of the fundamental principles of accounting, including the recording of credits or debits.
- Understanding how to apply knowledge and skills to complete a wide range of tasks.
- Understanding how to work on assignments of moderate difficulty, requiring judgment in resolving issues or in making recommendations.
- Understanding how to work with limited instruction on daily work.
- Understanding how to use proven problem-solving skills in dealing with challenging deadlines.
- Being able to anticipate change, and to react efficiently and expeditiously at all times.
- Processing tax returns, filing taxes with the state, and preparing tax estimates for the tax payment of an organization.
- Understanding the preparation of financial reports using accounting software such as QuickBooks or Microsoft Dynamics GP.
- Reviewing and approving purchase orders before they are processed
- Monitoring cash flow to ensure that bills are paid on time and on the due date.
- Generates purchase orders, reviews and processes invoices maintains expense records.
- Tracking all income and expenses for special events or activities.
- Handling reception and secretarial responsibilities for the bookkeeper and the department.
- Keeping track and reconciling credit card spending and making payments on credit accounts.
- Analyzing all vendors’ accounts on a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis to ensure payment accuracy.
- Working collaboratively with various departments to perform accounting audits regularly.
- Relying on instructions and pre-established guidelines given by one’s supervisor and the management.
- Working effectively in a team environment through collaboration and partnership and being productive.
- Handling calls in a professional and timely manner and still respectfully.
- Preparing report data for the Executive Director to ensure timely compliance with local, state, and federal government reporting requirements.
- Providing clerical and administrative support to the bookkeeper and the Executive Director as requested.
- Collaborating with CPA to prepare annual audits, gathering and organizing data, and verifying financial information.
- Managing the office equipment, scheduling maintenance, and service calls, and responding promptly.
- Processing paperwork for new employees and entering every employee’s information into the payroll system of the organization.
- Understanding and following all company and facility policies and procedures regularly.
- Checking Inventory, ordering, and purchasing office supplies as authorized by the Executive Director.
- Responding to questions and requests for information from grantors, reporting agencies, etc., as directed by the Executive Director.
- Answering incoming calls and other receptionist duties as requested by the Executive Director.
- Developing the quarterly and annual budgets based on sales and monitoring every order to keep financial reports and budgets up-to-date constantly.
- Maintaining office supplies, taking inventory, placing orders, and monitoring supply budgets to ensure employees have the tools necessary to perform their assigned tasks.
- Helping to proffer solutions to problems when possible and effectively.
- Coordinating meeting rooms, set up, and food arrangements for Development Council Committees, Foundation Board of Trustees, and departmental or board meetings.
- Opening and sorting incoming mail and keeping the organization, client, or department’s mailing list software updated regularly.
- Preparing cash receipts and disbursement reports under the supervision of the organization’s or client’s Account Manager, at all times.
- Assisting with the client’s medical insurance reimbursements as demanded by management.
- Assisting the accountant with other tasks such as maintaining accounting records, preparing tax returns, and preparing and recording financial statements.
- Understanding customer relationships and management.
- Tracking, recording, and maintaining expenditure records with details.
- Assisting and supporting internal and external audit teams to carry out proper audits.
- Integrating quality programs in bookkeeper assistant activities
- Preparing and recording day-to-day transactions of a business unit in books and ledgers regularly.
- Understanding how to read financial statements like a balance sheet or profit and loss statement is essential for effective communication with your clients.
- Verifying the accuracy of business accounts and alerting the Accountant and clients of errors in their financial statements.
- Recording any inconsistencies in the financial statements of clients and organizations to help the Accountants reconcile inaccuracies.
- Offering advice on how to reduce taxes and improve cash flow.
- Developing monthly financial statements that include cash flow, profit and loss, and balance sheets.
- Understanding how to use accounting software programs that generate invoices automatically or manually enter information into an invoice template.
- Preparing employee wages and benefits regularly as instructed by the management.
- Helping the Accountant with administrative duties and preparing yearly accounts.
Qualifications
- Obtaining a High school diploma or Ged certification is required.
- Obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree is preferred in finance, accounting or business administration, or an equivalent business experience field.
- Having (0-3) years of working experience and expertise building.
- Understanding and building interest in learning bookkeeping concepts.
- Being proficient with computers and bookkeeping software such as programs like Microsoft Office, QuickBooks, and Peachtree to manage their finances.
- Having exceptional time management and verbal and written communication skills.
- Having an understanding and being familiar with the basic accounting principles.
Essential Skills
- Communication skills: The Bookkeeper Assistant meets with clients or customers always so there is a need to communicate effectively. Communication skills are important for bookkeeping assistants because they help you to convey information clearly and understand the needs of your employer or clients. They need to be able to communicate clearly and professionally, answer questions about the company’s services or products and resolve any issues that arise. You may need to communicate with clients over the phone or in person, so it’s important that you can relay messages effectively and be in mutual understanding with your clients. Your communication skills also allow you to work well with others, not just your supervisors, which is an essential skill for any position.
- Accounting skills: Bookkeeping is an essential skill for a bookkeeper assistant. Having strong accounting skills can help you understand the financial records you’re responsible for and ensure they’re accurate or free of error. You can develop your accounting skills through education, experience, and continuing education. Every client would want a bank statement or financial report free of error and that is what a bookkeeper assistant ought to give.
- Organization skills: The Bookkeeper assistant needs to be organized in other to carry out filling and all clerical activities such as keeping track of multiple files, documents, and records for your employer, associated with bookkeeping or its job description. You are also responsible for maintaining records. Having good organizational skills can also make it easier for you to find information when someone asks you a question or if you need to look up something yourself or a client. The bookkeeper assistant performs administrative duties and this requires organizational skills.
- Time management skill: With the need to deliver on time, even as demanded by the management, every Bookkeeper assistant needs this skill. The bookkeeper assistant must be able to effectively deliver even if they are tasked with multiple tasks. Being able to meet up with deadlines, especially for clients’ weekly, monthly, or annual bank statements, reports, or financial auditing. Time management is the ability to plan and execute tasks in a way that ensures you meet deadlines. Bookkeeping assistants often have multiple duties, so time management skills are important for completing work on time.
- Attention skill: The bookkeeper assistant needs to pay attention to detail, this is a skill that can help you perform your job well. Bookkeeping assistants often have to enter data accurately and maintain records in an organized manner. This requires attention to detail, as it ensures the accuracy of financial information and allows others to find the information they need when reviewing company records. Being able to identify problems quickly and come up with solutions is essential for any office role and is what a bookkeeper assistant should have. In other to maintain financial records be able to notice any discrepancies in the numbers you’re working with.
- Computer skills: Every bookkeeper assistant should be analytical in thinking and understand how to make good use of all tools essential for the proper auditing of financial statements or bank statements of their clients, companies, or organizations. Being comfortable with computers and understanding how every software needed for auditing and all administrative duties works is essential for a bookkeeper assistant. Being able to use a variety of computer programs to complete their job duties, including spreadsheets, word processing programs, and accounting software. Having strong computer skills can help in completing work more efficiently and effectively.
How to Become a Bookkeeping Assistant
- Obtain a high school diploma or GED certificate.
- Obtain a bachelor’s degree in clerical finance, accounting, business, or any related field.
- Have at least (2-3) years of working experience as a bookkeeper assistant.
- Obtain a certificate as a certified public accountant (CPA) can be essential to understand accounting and financial auditing.
- Have an understanding of analytical tools and their use.
- Understand financial statements, payroll, taxes, and other aspects of business administration.
- Pay attention to detail is seen as essential to a bookkeeper assistant for effective delivery of service.
Where to Work as a Bookkeeping Assistant.
- Financial houses.
- Brokerage houses and firms.
- Banking firms.
- Accounting firms.
- Law firms and agencies.
- Federal houses.
- Insurance agencies.
- Hotels and suites.
- Universities and colleges.
Bookkeeping Assistant Salary Scale
This figure can vary based on the level of experience, benefits, compensation or type of employer or level of education, industry, and geographical location of the bookkeeper.
The average salary of a Bookkeeping Assistant in the United States is $38,456. The range typically falls between $49,000 per year and $29,000 per year. In the United Kingdom, the national average salary for an Assistant Bookkeeper is £23,462, and the range is between £17,000 – £33,053 per year. The average bookkeeper salary in Canada is $40,950 per year with entry-level positions starting at $35,100 per year, and the most experienced workers making up to $50,000 per year.