Construction accountants are no different from any other profession in having obstacles and difficulties. So, do you precisely know what difficulties construction accountants encounter? Can they be avoided in some way? Learn more about this topic in the article below of Navigos Search!
1. General introduction of the construction accountant job
The construction accountant is the one who has direct access to the cost estimates for the construction work required to complete a number of following tasks, including:
- Keep track of input expenses in accordance with building standards.
- Prepare and keep track of employee salary based on real construction progress.
- Keep track of machine expenses and labor for each job.
- calculating and allocating general production expenses for each project and project component
- Create year-end financial statements, monthly and quarterly tax reports.
- Keep track of the money that each project and item has earned.
- Internal financial statements to support construction project management needs
- Documents, such as invoices, receipts, estimates, final settlements, acceptance and handover minutes, should be organized and stored in a sensible way.
- Explain data of works and items to tax authorities and competent agencies upon request for inspection and settlement.
- Perform other requests given by the management board
This position is in charge of many tasks
2. Which difficulties does a construction accountant face?
Depending on the specifics of the task to be done, each job will have its own challenges. The role of construction accountant is maybe the most challenging in the discipline of accounting:
- It is challenging for accountants to balance budgets and create statistical reports on spending since many construction and installation businesses accept construction contracts without an estimate.
- There are some items used in the finalization documents preparation process that are not included in the estimate.
- Tax breaches result when extra estimated materials, VAT, and acquired items are removed from the tax finalization.
- The majority of small and medium-sized construction businesses purchase low-cost supplies and materials without invoices, therefore there is no input tax and inaccurate data is produced.
- Labor and human resources for the project are not properly assigned and there are no clear records and procedures
- In many situations, the business purchases the project-related supplies, but delivers them directly to the team without sending the receipt to the accounting department for oversight.
- Vehicles, excavators, tools, scaffolding, materials, supplies, and other assets,... cannot be managed at all because they are used everywhere, which always results in loss.
- Although the company typically only has one accounting employee to handle paperwork, insurance, tax, and other accounting-related duties, it is clear from the construction accounting job description that there is a substantial lot of work to be done. There is a great deal of pressure, and many people have even moved or abandoned their jobs as a result.
Read more: Finding internal accountant jobs, what are the opportunities?
3. What should you do to overcome the difficulties of being a construction accountant?
You must decide before you apply for a job that you will face many challenges in the industry. However, the following advice will help you to control better them:
Review the agreement and make a note of the winning bid
Assuming the role of construction accountant, it is your responsibility to thoroughly review the company's construction contract with an investment partner to comprehend problems like construction duration, work value, warranty policy, technique of construction, payment, etc.
When you sign a contract and your business is successful in getting the job, you need also be mindful of cost projections, work items, unit price analysis, labor performance,...
Review the agreement and make a note of the winning bid
Understanding how to breakdown the projected cost
To determine the estimated cost for each item precisely, a qualified construction accountant needs to be aware of the cost breakdown as below:
Materials: Analyze each component in depth to develop a supply-acquisition strategy.
Manpower: Direct dissection to determine the precise number of employees required for the project
Other expenses: accurately estimate of project-related service charges, asset depreciation,...
Utilizing accounting software requires you to pay close attention to input materials. Which client's debt is tracked by which customer, and which warehouse's materials are tracked in that warehouse. It should be noted that each project must have an export receipt and a delivery note to serve as the foundation for figuring out the project's cost.
Pay attention to getting input invoices
The job characteristics of this industry are always in contact and work with regular bills. You need to prepare to get input invoices of raw materials and invoices of other expenses in order to issue invoices more accurately and conveniently in the future acceptance work.
Invoicing needs to be based on the calculation table and you must take the cost equal to or higher than the estimated bill. If you find that the settlement stage has a high difference, take the input costs out of the list of cost sources so that the statistics table is properly balanced.
Create timesheets and make salary calculations transparent.
You must create an employee payroll for this position. A business will work on several projects at once. In order to make monitoring easier and to calculate closing salaries and bonuses when the work has been accepted, a skilled construction accountant will draw up a clear timesheet and salary calculation for each individual project.
Accurate acceptance of construction works
The accountant must review, approve, and transmit the work to the business managers after it is finished. You must also send out an invoice if the client hasn't paid to complete the tax declaration procedure. You must accurately report all information in the invoice, including minutes of the volume confirmation, construction time, payment records, as-built completion, as-built drawings, technical and economic reports, etc.
The appropriate authority will review this report and determine whether or not the work is of sufficient quality and technicality to be implemented.
Construction accountants need to master these important factors for success
Sensitivity and flexibility when handling problems
When unexpected incidents and situations arise, accountants need to work flexibly to solve problems quickly, avoiding affecting the interests of the business.
Besides professional capacity, you need to practice more communication skills, high prudence, honesty, work under pressure,... to become an excellent construction accountant.
The readers of the above Navigos Search article now have a detailed understanding of construction accounting. You must seriously think about the job as it involves great competence and a variety of crucial talents.
There are numerous mid- and senior-level jobs available in the employment directory of Navigossearch.com, including construction accountant jobs in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and other cities. Please take note of the frequent updating. We appreciate you taking the time to read Navigos Search's article.
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