As one of the most stable markets in the current economy, the demand in financial accounting remains very strong. In fact, it is practically impossible to find a field that parallels the job security levels that are often witnessed in this market. And rightly so. After all, accounting as a profession ensures that a couple of different areas are properly administered including auditing, attestation engagements, and taxes. Well, since there will pretty much always be the need to pay taxes and verify companies’ financial statements, it comes as no surprise that the financial accounting profession continues to soar.
What exactly is financial accounting?
Anyone who might have some business experience has probably realized that there are multiple types of accounting. Some of the most common ones include the cost, tax, governmental, and financial styles. While all of them are built on the same foundation and technical knowledge of the profession, they each have a specific purpose and utilization. So, what would be the purpose and utilization of financial accounting?
In simple terms, this form of accounting was created to provide the necessary insight to those in charge of companies when it comes to their operations. Over time, however, the purpose evolved and now includes a lot of other factors as well. For instance, financial reporting is responsible for giving for-profit businesses a way to quantify their results in tangible and verified dollar figures. In addition, even those that may not be working in the for-profit sector can rely on financial accountants to ensure that their record-keeping is done appropriately.
Providing the Necessary and Truthful Information to Investors
The reason why a lot of the major laws such as the Securities Act of 1933 are in existence is based on a reactive approach. In translation, the government reacted to major incidents in history and tried to prevent them from ever repeating again through legislative action. Well, when the Great Depression in the 1930s took place, the lack of proper financial reporting was deemed to be among the main reasons for the downturn in the economy. Due to that, every public corporation that is trading its stocks on one of the stock exchanges must comply with strict rules governing financial accountancy.
Therefore, according to Accounting Coach, financial accounting is responsible for the proper representation of the financial statements. In other words, it ensures that the amounts presented by entities are actually correct. Just consider, for example, if there was absolutely no financial reporting in the market. Odds are, every business would just state whatever they want without ever backing any of their claims up. Consequently, investing would be non-existent and most of the markets would collapse due to the corporate inability to raise funds.
Provides Comparability
The final purpose that should be mentioned ties to comparability between different markets. If an entity in the service sector is being compared with someone in the product-based market, the only thing that will tie them together is the financial statements. Expectedly, those statements will have to be made utilizing the said methods of accounting.
Conclusion
Ultimately, there are many other important roles that proper reporting portrays when it comes to transparency, consistency, accountability, and legality. Nonetheless, simply understanding that financial accounting is the reason why businesses can continue to serve customers in a responsible manner is a great starting point!
Related Resources:
- Top 25 Most Affordable Online Bachelor’s Degrees in Accounting
- 5 Differences Between Cost and Financial Accounting Practices
- 5 Differences Between Financial and Management Accounting Practices
- 5 Electives in a Master’s in Financial Planning Program