by William Bond

Created on: April 26, 2008

You need a successful, competent, people orientated accountant if you want your business to survive and stay profitable in today's business economy. Your accountant can keep your business vibrant, during the changes in our troubled, slow, recession racked economy. Today's successful accountant is someone with expert accounting skills and experience preferably in your business field. Competent means knowing how to make your business profitable, and to find the answers to make your business compete and beat the competition. People orientated means, being able to talk the numbers so you can understand them, and relate with other employees, and deal with customers. I will give your a list of the questions you might consider asking your potential accountant, to find the right one. l. You are in the book publishing business, and your sell investment books all over the world. Does this applicant have any experience in the accounting field on the publishing business. Does he know how to do a cost projection of publishing a series of books? Has he worked with book contracts and editors and writers in the past? Does he express himself well in business and accounting? 2. What accounting skills do you want from your accountant right now? Since the other accountant is no longer with you, why are you replacing him? You might be looking for someone to help you with finances for your business, or being able to manage your accounts payable or account receivable departments. Or being a cost cutter, ask these questions on the day of the interview, and make notes of the answers. 3. How proficient is the applicant with the computerized accounting systems in the book publishing field? Ask your applicant if he has used any systems, and observe how he explains it to you. Do you understand it? Does he have the ability to teach other accounting people in the office the systems that will be introduced in the future. 4. The most important thing an accountant will do for you and your company, is to make it profitable. What experience has this applicant had in the past which proves that he can turn your company around, and make it profitable? What are the applicant's ideas to make companies profitable? What are his cost cutting ideas, revenue building ideas, and how to motivate key people within the organization with incentive pay plan? 5. Your accountant will have an important role in your company, a great deal more than simply working with numbers. It will require that the applicant work with every member of your company from the top person to the administrative person on the corporate ladder. 6. The time is up; this is decision time.Is the applicant bright enough to manage the accountant duties successfully? Do you have a good impression about him/her to be able to become part of the team? Is the applicant willing to do the world travel necessary? Do you see him/her as someone who can learn the accounting needs fully, and then implement a sound system, to make the financial side of the business one of the best in the publishing field? Did you check his/her references with past employers? Can you trust this person? When you can answer yes to all of these question you have a good applicant to take over your accounting duties.

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