What's in a day?
The phrase "money makes the world go round" is certainly true for a hotel accountant. It's your job to keep track of every financial transaction in the hotel to make sure that all incoming and outgoing money is accurately recorded and handled. If there are any discrepancies, you'll have to investigate and correct them, or report the reason why they happened, such as mistake or fraud.
You'll also be handling wage and salary calculations and payments, too.
You'll be based at the hotel, unless you work for a large hotel group, in which case you might be based at head office with responsibility for a specific property.
Key responsibilities:
- Controlling the payroll
- Producing an accurate set of month-end accounts, with comparisons to forecasts and previous periods
- Preparing profit and loss accounts and the balance sheet for senior management
- Assisting in preparing budgets and business planning, including projected room revenue
- Reconciling bank statements
- Ensuring legislation is followed regarding VAT and PAYE
- Chasing late payments, reporting bad debts and keeping a careful eye on the cash flow
What sort of hours will I work?
You'll keep office hours, unlike the customer facing hotel staff.
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The best bit about being a hotel accountant
It's a varied and fast moving role.
And the worst?
"There are lots of simultaneous deadlines, which can be hard to manage. Also, the job title varies between properties and groups," say the team at COREcruitment.
What skills do I need?
- Accountancy skills, ideally honed in a hospitality environment
- IT knowledge, as transactions are usually done through computerised systems, electronic cash tills and so on
- Data processing skills, including spreadsheet packages
- Analytical and communication skills
- Unmatched attention to detail as you’ll be preparing detailed financial information for senior management
What qualifications do I need?
Needless to say, these vary depending on the size and scope of the role, but when you start out, most companies will look for candidates with a grounding in mathematics and some experience of PCs and spreadsheets.
Larger hotels often want to recruit a qualified accountant, but among medium sized hotels, you may be able to find an employer prepared to allow you to train while you work.
Who would it suit?
A number crunching computer expert with a head for complex financial data, who likes things to add up.
What sort of salary can I expect?
This varies between properties and groups, but you can expect to earn in the low to mid £20,000s
Source: Krishnan Doyle and the hospitality specialists at COREcruitment
Where can I go from here?
The good news is that you can eventually progress into financial controller and financial director positions, or even into other hotel departments.
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