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These Accounting and Finance Certifications Can Help Boost Your Career
The sheer number of certifications available to accounting and finance professionals can be dizzying. After a while, it may seem like alphabet soup, just with too many c’s.
However, choosing the wrong path can have consequences. Obtaining each certification requires a massive investment of time and effort. Picking the wrong one won’t necessarily hurt you, but it represents a big waste of time.
There are some clear standouts in terms of career advancement, though, a hierarchy within the seeming chaos of professional certifications. Here are five of the most helpful certifications to have on your resume:
Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
The CPA is by far the most common accounting certification, though fulfilling all the requirements (and studying for the test) can take a sizable investment of time and effort. Still, you’ll likely need it if you want to land higher-paying, higher-level accounting positions.
You can earn the certification, issued by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, by taking a four-part exam. Other requirements include certain education prerequisites and at least a year of professional accounting experience.
Certified Management Accountant (CMA)
Many of the topics covered in the CPA exam are included in the CMA as well, but the CMA has more of a corporate focus. Getting the additional certification will help you build a career in business finance.
The CMA certification is issued by the Institute of Management Accountants. It requires a bachelor’s degree and some professional experience. There’s also an eight-hour exam.
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
The CFA has become a highly regarded certification for the wealth management space. It’s required for many positions related to asset management and can open a lot of doors in the higher echelons of companies.
The certification process is rigorous, requiring at least an undergraduate degree, plus four years of professional experience. The three-stage exam takes a total of 18 hours. But don’t worry: you don’t take all three parts at once.
Certified Financial Planner (CFP)
This is another key certification for the wealth management sector. Like the CPA, it’s basically a must-have for its field, as it opens the door to positions in retail financial planning. The process prepares you for a career in retirement and investment planning, as well as covering topics like estates and taxes.
The CFP, issued by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc., requires passing a six-hour test, broken into two sections.
Certified Internal Auditor (CIA)
This certification has a relatively narrow focus compared to some of the others on the list. But it’s highly regarded within the field, a key achievement for anyone looking to make a career as an internal auditor. It also looks good on a resume when applying for management positions.
There’s a three-part exam to receive a CIA, which is issued by the Institute of Internal Auditors. The test takes a total of 6.5 hours. The certification also requires an undergraduate degree and some on-the-job experience, though the amount of professional background required varies depending on the level of education you’ve obtained.
Boost Your Accounting and Finance Career With PrideStaff
At PrideStaff, we provide our candidates with the right sources to improve their career paths. Contact our leading Central Oregon recruiters today to learn more, or check out our latest accounting and finance job opportunities.
5 Long-Term Benefits to Partnering With a Staffing Firm
It’s no secret you need specialists for some parts of your business. When you need to get your taxes done, you hire an accountant. When you need to get a contract written, you hire a lawyer. Yet, you’re still doing all your company’s hiring yourself.
That’s a shame. There are several benefits to partnering with a staffing firm to fulfill your hiring needs. You don’t need to lose control of your staffing process in order to see improvements. Staffing firms can compliment your current HR functions and unlock hidden potential in your business.
Here are five specific benefits to partnering with a staffing firm:
1. Maximize Flexibility
The key to maintaining profitability is being ready for the ebb and flow of the business cycle. You don’t want to miss out on an opportunity by not having the capacity to take on surprise (or surprisingly big) orders. But you don’t want to find yourself overstaffed in slower times.
A staffing firm makes this flexibility easier. You can grow or shrink your staff as needed, making sure you are ready for anything.
2. Minimize Risk
Taking on new employees can open a lot of risk. There’s their salary, of course, but also all the benefits and other hidden costs. Then there’s the danger that a new hire won’t work out, leaving you to start the recruitment process all over again, already out of a lot of time and money.
You can put off hiring by paying expensive overtime. Or you can use a staffing firm to fill in your additional capacity. This allows you to try out a worker without the commitment or expense that goes into bringing on a full-timer.
3. Focus on the Long Term
It’s easy to decide to spend time setting up a long-term strategy and moving the necessary chess pieces to prepare for what business will look like years down the road. But try finding time to actually sit down and plan.
Just keeping your current business humming is more than a full-time job. So why not offload some of that responsibility to a trusted partner?
Using a staffing agency allows you to spend more time looking ahead. Allow them to help with recruiting and some of your near-term production worries, opening you up for more long-range projects.
4. New Recruitment Tools
Let’s face it, every time you go to hire, you do it the same way. It’s hard enough finding the time to keep staff levels right and run the day-to-day business. Launching a complete revamp of the hiring process would never get done, even if you were convinced it was the right thing to do.
Staffing firms recruit and hire full time. By using them to help fill some of your employment needs, you open yourself up to the cutting edge of the industry. They provide the latest techniques, utilizing the newest technology to find just the right hire for you.
5. Ease of Mind
Why worry about everything? The best thing about finding a long-term partner you can trust: the psychological benefit. You have enough to keep you up at night, without worrying what you’re going to do if someone calls in sick. Using a staffing firm will alleviate those concerns.
Partner With PrideStaff Bend
If you have more questions about the benefits of a staffing firm, the best thing to do is go to the source. Contact Central Oregon’s top recruiting agency, PrideStaff Bend, to learn the ways they can help your business.
