Roles and Responsibilities of an Accountant, Bookkeeper and CPA

Accountant, bookkeeper and CPA are the most common words appear on your screen when you search for bookkeeping or any other financial services. This creates a perception in the minds of people and makes them believe that these words are interchangeable. They wrongly believe that these three words represent one general financial professional. However, an accountant, bookkeeper and CPA have different roles to play. This differentiation helps you in determining whether you should hire a bookkeeping services company in California or an accountant or a CPA.

Role of an Accountant 

An accountant analyzes and verifies financial information. Preparing financial statements and advising executives about the impact of a financial decision on the business is the job of an accountant. Here are the other tasks performed by an accountant.

•        Adjusting and determining wages of employees

•        Creating allowances for uncollected accounts

•        Preparing balance sheets, tax returns, cash flows, income and other statements

•        Verifying financial information

•        Preparing and analyzing audits        

•        Overseeing bookkeeper’s work.

Role of a Bookkeeper  

A bookkeeper performs financial data entry roles. He records day-to-day transaction of a company. A bookkeeper

•        Processes payroll information

•        Records vendor bills

•        Creates sales invoice

•        Sends invoices to vendors and statements to customers

•        Updates information in financial software

•        Creates a trial balance by keeping track of credits and debits

•        Ensures that employee has submitted correct paperwork for payroll

•        Follow up on invoices

•        Balances and records subsidiaries, ledgers and other records

 Role of a CPA

CPA Stands For Certified Public Accountant. A CPA needs a degree in accounting and an extensive training. There are some regulations regarding ongoing education and experience before appearing for the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination. Though rules about CPAs vary from state to state, but in general, a CPA must have the required education and certification. Moreover, a CPA also has to renew his certificate every two years.

As compared to an accountant and a bookkeeper, a CPA has to take more responsibilities and obligations. Overseeing and auditing the financial information of the company is the primary job of a CPA. Apart from this, a CPA also works with accountants and bookkeepers of an organization. A CPA handles various tasks associated with auditing, tax preparation and more.

Now it is clear that a CPA and an accountant can file a tax return for you. In case you do not know how to file your taxes online, you should look for an experienced tax preparer in Brentwood.