"Experience is rewarded with a designation"

Chartered Financial Administrator (CFAdmin) - Typical job descriptions of the operational role:

Finance administrators help plan, perform, and manage a broad range of accounting, financial, and budgetary functions. They verify the completeness and accuracy of financial documents and transactions, create budget plans, rationalize expenditures and investments, and manage cash flow (accounts receivable/accounts payable). Finance administrators regularly generate and present reports to keep management and other corporate leaders updated about the company’s financial health and strategies.

Finance associates collect, process, analyze, and record financial data to help companies facilitate transactions, formulate smarter business decisions, and improve their financial health. These professionals help ensure accounting and financial processes comply with internal policies and industry standards. They provide assistance during budget planning generate reports and forecasts for strategy formulation and help streamline and optimize finance-related workflows.

Accounting Technician: Operating software packages to record and retrieve information, particularly spreadsheets. An accounting technician will analyse the information provided by a bookkeeper to generate financial statements and forecast future business needs. Accounting professionals must be able to work under pressure and be natural problem solvers. Monitoring company/department financial transactions and controlling budgets. Preparing accounts, budgets, reports and financial statements for clientele. They maintain records, prepare and review year-end entries. They also reconcile bank accounts, prepare payrolls and assist in budget preparation.

Business Accountant(SA) - Typical job descriptions of the operational role

Accountants prepare and evaluate financial documents, ensuring that records of all financial transactions - including taxes, balance sheets, cash flow documents, and income statements - are accurate and conform to governance, legal and international accounting standards.

Accounts assistants help facilitate and document their company's financial transactions such as payments, utility bills, invoices, purchase orders, payroll, reimbursements, and other financial processes. They record all these transactions, balance associated accounts, and enter/verify/update information via a customer database or accounting software.

Assistant accountants perform administrative, bookkeeping, and clerical functions in support of the company's Accounting or Finance department. These professionals analyse financial data, generate and present reports, manage documents, and engage customers.

Bank staff/clerks help process transactions and perform adminstrative and bank-related tasks. They help organise documents and files, analyze financial reports, reconcile/balance all financial records, and ensure everything complies with relevant standards, policies, and regulations. Frontline banking clerks provide customer service and in-person transactions. Like loan officers, bank cashiers are usually supervisor- or officer-level employees

Bookkeeping, auditing, and accounting clerks prepare, examine, validate, and record financial documents such as invoices, utility bills, financial statements, purchase orders, taxation forms, payroll, and sales reports. They work with top management, departmental heads, and other stakeholders to ensure financial decisions are cost-efficient and lead to better profitability for the organization. 

Budget analysts prepare budget reports aimed at helping organizations monitor spending, rationalize costs, and balance their finances. They review historical budget allocations, perform cost analyses, and offer insight on how to ensure that the organization achieves a better financial position compared to past review periods. 

Cost estimators research, gather and analyze diverse datasets to calculate the total cost of production inputs (time, labor, tools, machinery/equipment, third-party services, materials, etc.) needed to construct a building, provide a service, or manufacture an item. Cost estimators typically specialize in a specific service, product, or industry. In addition to estimating costs, these professionals provide insight into the feasibility, schedule, profitability, and other aspects of a process or project. Cost estimators create and present comprehensive reports to relevant stakeholders.

Finance administrators help plan, perform, and manage a broad range of accounting, financial, and budgetary functions. They verify the completeness and accuracy of financial documents and transactions, create budget plans, rationalize expenditures and investments, and manage cash flow (accounts receivable/accounts payable). Finance administrators regularly generate and present reports to keep management and other corporate leaders updated about the company’s financial health and strategies.

Finance associates collect, process, analyze, and record financial data to help companies facilitate transactions, formulate smarter business decisions, and improve their financial health. These professional help ensure accounting and financial processes comply with internal policies and industry standards. They provide assistance during budget planning generate reports and forecasts for strategy formulation and help streamline and optimize finance-related workflows.

Financial analysts evaluate economic, financial, and historical data for the purpose of helping organizations or clients discover and optimize opportunities for profitable investment, risk mitigation, asset growth, or value acquisition. Whether they work for an organization or serve a client, financial analysts focus on reducing risks, building wealth, and achieving sustainable long-term growth. Financial analysts use a wide range of data sets (market trends, microeconomic factors, financial statements, demographics, and other information) to formulate sound guidance and recommendations. They often prepare risk assessments and earnings forecasts to help businesses, individuals, or clients make the right investment decision.

Insurance underwriters assess risks related to insurance coverage, making recommendations on whether to insure an entity and under what terms if the risks are acceptable to the insurance company. These professionals use statistical analysis, financial software, and actuarial methods to determine the best pricing, payment schedule, premiums, and other terms of coverage. In addition, underwriters also actively seek potential revenue opportunities for their employers. 

Loan officers evaluate loan applications, recommend loan releases, monitor loan accounts, and market loan products. They gather and examine applicant information including financial background, credit score, and the purpose for which credit is being requested. Once an application is approved, loan officers monitor the client’s loan account.

Mortgage advisors evaluate, endorse, document, and process the requests of mortgage loan applicants. Primarily tasked to provide technical advice to potential and existing borrowers, mortgage advisors help determine applicants’ actual funding needs, creating proposals based on each applicant’s debt servicing capabilities, cash flow, collateral, and other factors. Sometimes, mortgage advisors are also tasked to keep the company’s lending pipeline full and flowing.

Payroll administrators process the computation, taxation, documentation, and delivery of salaries, commissions, applicable benefits, and other forms of compensation to employees. They ensure that all workers in an organization always receive their compensation accurately and on time. In some companies, these professionals also participate in policy formulation and perform other accounting, reporting, or HR tasks.

Personal bankers may perform a range of banking functions but their primary focus is to expand a satisfied customer base by helping individual clients manage their financial risks and benefits. These professionals monitor the activities of select accounts and coordinate with specific clients when money market opportunities or disruptions arise.

Certified Business Accountant(SA) - Typical job descriptions of the management role

Financial controllers manage finance-related departments — such as audit, budget, accounting, and finance — of a company. These professionals perform financial audits and produce various reports and documents such as financial statements, revenue forecasts, risk assessments, tax compliance papers, and regulatory requirements for state and federal agencies. Controllers work with other finance leaders in the company to formulate and implement policy guidelines and internal controls.

Finance lawyers focus on the legal aspects of finance, banking, taxation, lending, investments, private equity, real estate finance, insurance, and other related fields. These legal practitioners help clients navigate the regulatory climate and other compliance requirements for doing business and conducting financial transactions. Providing counsel on contract development especially for unique situations, finance lawyers also represent their clients during court proceedings.

Finance Managers play a key role in formulating corporate and departmental budgets, developing long-term strategies, making investment decisions, and directing the daily financial operations of their companies. In performing these functions, finance managers always aim to keep their company’s financial position as healthy and expansive as possible. Finance managers lead a team of other finance professionals to whom they delegate a wide range of tasks — from making revenue forecasts and tracking expenses to processing, recording, and verifying transactions. Finance managers regularly create and present financial reports to various stakeholders.

Investment bankers serve as the bridge between entities that need funds and entities that are willing to provide credit or to make capital investments. These professionals help business organizations, governments, and individuals to raise money through different channels such as private lending, public stock offerings, and mergers and acquisitions. Investment bankers conduct industry research, craft detailed financial plans and assessments, perform valuation analyses, and provide risk-benefit recommendations.

Personal relationship managers build and nurture long-term and value-laden relationships with select bank clients through hyper-customization and personalization of the products and services these clients use. For this purpose, relationship managers monitor and evaluate clients’ accounts and recommend new services, products, or techniques that will help clients improve their returns or minimize risks. When not servicing existing customers, relationship managers market bank products to potential clients by evaluating their funding or investment goals and linking these with the right banking solutions.

Procurement managers lead a team of professionals tasked to find and maintain good relationships with the best sources and vendors for their company’s supply, administrative, production, and operational requirements. Procurement managers correspond with vendors and negotiate the best possible purchase, delivery, and support terms. They facilitate and document purchase orders or service agreements, and play a key role in forming and implementing procurement policies.

Treasury analysts focus on optimizing financial assets, transactions, and decisions for their employers. They evaluate fees, expenses, and charges to recommend effective ways by which their organizations can reduce costs. These professionals monitor and manage their employer’s transactions, accounts, and investments with financial institutions to balance risks and benefits. They analyze income streams, cash flow, and return on investments to determine the best strategy for optimizing value.

Certified Financial Officer(SA) - Typical job descriptions of the strategic role

Chief financial officers (CFO) play a strategic and top leadership role in the financial management and operations of an organization. They typically lead a company’s accounting, revenue, and finance departments, focusing on achieving and projecting excellent financial health for the company. They lead in the formulation of growth strategies, budget plans, and internal policies while also ensuring compliance to relevant industry standards and regulations. CFOs keep operations aligned with the organization’s short-term and long-term financial goals.  With the exception the CEO or chairman of a financial institution, this is the highest possible position for a finance-focused professional.

Business Accountant in Practice(SA) - Typical job descriptions for accountants providing services to the public for a fee

BAP(SA)s are trusted business advisors for SMEs and assist with making business better by providing services such as:

Statutory reports such as accounting officer and independent review, implements and maintains accounting systems, reports on business performance, develop strategies to reduce expenses and increase revenue, analyse financial data, perform projections, prepare budgets, set up tax saving structures, ensure tax compliance, maintain systems that help safe guard against fraud, negotiate with creditors, banks, and funders, prepare business plans, help improve cashflow, mentor and coach, debt management, cloud accounting, inventory management, reduce cost of doing business, advice on technology, secretarial services, internal controls, funding and loans.