Soft skills that public accountants must have
Do you know what are the soft skills for accountants? Even if you think that an accountant only needs numerical skills to do his job, it is important to develop other non-quantifiable skills to achieve the objectives of the organization.
What are soft skills?
These skills are related to the way you work. It goes beyond the knowledge you have in relation to a work area.
To understand it better, knowledge, professional training and technical skills correspond to hard skills or aptitudes that a person has.
On the other hand, interpersonal relationships, communication, teamwork, and flexibility are attitudes that cannot be quantified and correspond to soft skills.
Why are they so important?
Every organization wants to have a multidisciplinary team in its workforce that achieves all the objectives set in the company. This is not possible if the workers do not get along with each other and do not reach any agreement.
When interaction between people is facilitated and there is a pleasant work environment, then it is easier to make decisions and carry them out. Some of the benefits of this type of skills are the following:
- Foster a sense of belonging: If the worker is comfortable with the work environment, then the employee will feel that this is the place where he belongs and will make an effort to remain in it for a long time.
- Build trust: Each member of the team learns to be tolerant with others and trust the decisions made for the good of the organization.
- Decreases staff turnover: If the worker is happy, he will continue to support the organization and work in it.
What are the soft skills that an accountant should develop?
Considering everything mentioned above, the people who manage the accounting management area in Colombia must learn to develop the following skills to get the company to go to the next level:
Time management
This skill is essential in the accounting area to be able to balance the different responsibilities and tasks that you have to assume, and to be able to meet the established deadlines and complete everything in due time.
You will have to learn to evaluate within your tasks what is priority and what can wait. These types of skills are not learned while working with an accounting software. It is something you have to learn to develop.
Communication
It’s not just about doing the work, on many occasions, you will have to explain in a simple way to colleagues, clients, and bosses all the processes you implemented. Communication is essential especially when you have to explain all procedures to people who do not handle accounting terms.
Proactivity
You cannot have a passive attitude at work. They will not always give you precise instructions on what to do. Make your voice heard, but without imposing it by force. Propose ideas that help solve problems, leave a mark of the work you do.
Creativity
Although it is true that accountants are governed by pre-established accounting procedures and standards, all companies are not the same. Therefore, you must develop creativity to solve the problems that arise.
Professional ethics
An accountant must keep in mind that will often be handling confidential information. For this reason, having a high sense of values and commitment to clients will contribute to not taking advantage of what they know or above the law.
The accountant in Bogotá, and in any part of the world, must be prepared to overcome all the challenges that may arise, but always with the best attitude to offer added value and prove to be the best leader. We hope this information is useful to you.