Interview Questions & Answers For An Accountant

By Selipha Kihagi

If you are an Accountant professional, then you probably already know that the profession is one of the most saturated in Kenya. Just look back to campus and compare the number of people in your class to that of biochemists or related. Chances are you dominated the corridors, alongside IT and Finance professionals. It’s just how it is and there is nothing you can do about it.

However, when it comes to striving to be the best in the field, there is a lot you can do. For instance, to get an interview in an Accounting job, you have to apply as soon as the job is posted and submit a compelling CV that will impress the recruiter enough to want to meet you. To do that, you need to ensure that you avoid all unnecessary application mistakes, more of which you can read in this article here.

Today, let’s take a look at impressing in the interview stage. Once you have been invited to an Accounting job interview, your next step is to set aside time to prepare for that particular interview. You may have had a similar job interview the previous week and assume that you are ready, but organizations are different and so are the recruiting managers. You must prepare a fresh, and to do that here are common interview questions you should consider going through

Interview Questions & Answers for An Accountant

1. Tell us about yourself
As you may have seen in earlier articles on interview questions, the Tell me about yourself is one of the most popular ones. While it has been suggested that recruiters stop asking this particular question, it is still common in various job interviews. As an Accountant, here is one way of answering this question.

“My name is Naomi Muthoni. I am a Certified Public Accountant and a Bachelor of Commerce – Accounting option graduate with 8 months working experience. In my recent position, I assisted in the maintenance of all financial records in the company, collecting and monitoring revenue, processing payments as well as preparing accurate and timely financial reports.

I have a great concern for detail and when I commit to perform a certain task; I always deliver within the set time. I am now looking to work in a challenging environment where I can work with a dedicated team and continue to build on my Accounting skills.”

2. What Accounting software are you familiar with?
You probably already listed this in your CV, but the recruiting manager wants to make certain that you did not just write them down in your CV (or had someone do it for you) without really knowing about them. So in your answer, don’t just list them by name, go to an extent of pointing out the latest software and get opinionated by mentioning a particular one that you would recommend for the company.

If you have done your research well, your recommendation may be what gets you the job. But if you do not have much experience in this sector, you can say this; “I have only worked with QuickBooks and liked it for its effectiveness in terms of accuracy, simplicity to use and speed. However, I believe that my motivation and willingness to succeed in Accounting makes me able to learn any other software quickly. And to see this through, I would put in extra working hours if necessary.”

3. Tell us of a time when you helped reduce costs
As an Accountant, part of your important functions will include advising or suggesting to management on ways to reduce costs. It may not be part of your responsibilities, but portraying to the interviewer and employer once hired that you can save them money will be a great asset. So, if you have relevant accounting experience, pick one such example from your previous job.

And if you do not have much experience, think back to your internship or a scenario back in campus where you had to make a decision to save money and give a compelling example.

4. What would you do to ensure you do not make any mistakes?
As an Accounting professional, mistakes are not welcome as they could cause the company major losses and end up costing you that job you very much love. But as mistakes are not welcome, they always have a way of popping up since we are all not perfect, even the best accountant is not. While this question may appear tricky, it can be answered well if you think through what you are going to say early enough.

Ideal answer: “I try my best not make any mistakes, but I also understand everyone can make a mistake. If I am not completely certain about a record for example, I always make a point of consulting an experienced colleague or friend.  I also possess good knowledge of IAS and work with it often to ensure my actions are correct.”

5. What salary package are you expecting in this job?
Interview questions to expect are never complete without the salary question, which will mostly fall towards the end of the interview. While people have ruined their chances by naming an amount that is way above what the company has budgeted for, doing research will help you nail this question.

You can choose to either answer with an actual salary range, or go round the question without giving an actual amount.