Building capability

- Early on in my career, I learned the hard way that having strong technical skills alone doesn't equip you to be an expert in managerial accounting. The applications of managerial accounting are incredibly diverse, and as a result, you'll be producing not only different end products but also working with various audiences whilst contributing to solving a broad range of business problems. You must be able to adapt to this. So you're probably wondering then, aside from possessing good technical skills, such as spreadsheeting and data analysis, what are the key ingredients that will prime you for a successful career in management accounting? Firstly, will I have listed technical skills here as whilst they aren't the only requirement for managerial accounting, they still are incredibly important to have. Next are interpersonal skills. I'm talking here about the ability to communicate with your stakeholders in a way that resonates with them, and through multiple mediums, such as email, phone, and also face to face. Then, there's visual aids or just presentation skills. Having the right outputs is only half the battle won. They need to be set out in an easy-to-digest format. Next are delivery skills. Now look, this is a little bit difficult to describe, but I like to think of it as one's ability to sell. When put in front of your stakeholders, how effectively can you articulate or sell your findings and recommendations? Then there's project management skills, believe it or not. I'll almost guarantee you that your managerial accounting work is contributing to an organizational milestone of some sort that's on a critical path, and as a result, you must be able to effectively plan and manage your work. Sure sounds like project management to me, and lastly, there's writing skills. Managerial accounting always calls for some form of writing, whether it's reports for the executive, narratives in a cost model, or perhaps just documenting your work. Being able to succinctly write in multiple styles is an often overlooked yet essential ingredient in the managerial accounting mix. Actually, there is one more, but I haven't listed it here as a skill or a capability, as it's more of a modus operandi. As a managerial accountant, you need to be able to conduct yourself in a way that makes it clear that you're serving the interest of the business and not the accounting department. This way of operating I've heard referred to in many ways, including a service delivery manager, a business partner, and just an account manager, to name a few, but look, the title that's given to this way of operating doesn't really matter. Having a clear understanding of your place in the organization is what will make the biggest difference. It will also make your organization more confident in using your work to drive the business forward, thus distinguishing you from the pack.