A Financial Analyst plays a crucial role in the day to day functioning of a company. The job description of a financial analyst has various factors into account. Like examining the financial data of an organization to help them make business decisions. These factors include market trends, past transactions of similar nature as well as the company budget.
More specifically, Financial Analysts make business predictions and recommend a plan of action based on the company’s performance. In order to make economic predictions, a Financial Analyst needs to be up to date about the developments in their field. In simple terms, a Financial Analyst helps the decision makers of a company with the necessary information to increase their revenue. Here we elaborate on the job description of a financial analyst.
Role And Responsibilities Of a Financial Analyst
The Financial Analysts work is crucial for the financial planning and decision making of a company. They keep track of a company’s financial performance and plan and performance in the dynamic business environment. This, therefore, helps in creating forecasts and finding out discrepancies between the forecast and actual performance. Moreover, a Financial Analysts job responsibilities include:
- Conduct financial forecasting and metrics tracking.
- Determine the cost of operations.
- Identify the company’s financial status by comparing predictions with actual results.
- Maintain a database and constantly update it.
- Work closely with the accounts team for detailed financial reporting.
- Perform market research.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Excel.
- Strong Analytical skills and problem solving skills.
- Analyze the company’s niche in the industry and then evaluate the performance of the company.
- Work on the vision of the company after taking into account the financial history of the company.
- Spot lucrative investment opportunities and never miss an opportunity.
Qualifications And Skill Set
A Financial Analyst needs to hold at least a bachelor’s degree in a finance-related major, like accounting, economics or statistics. For greater opportunities, an MBA in finance or any other Master’s degree in finance is recommended.
For the role of a financial analyst, there is no minimum number of work experience. Provided you have a Masters in Finance. But some companies might take an employee who is experienced in the financial sector over a fresher. Apart from these qualifications, a Financial Analyst needs to possess the following skills:
- Strong data analysis skills and the ability to gather data from multiple sources.
- High proficiency in setting and improving financial modeling techniques.
- Excellent presentation and communication skills.
- Extensive knowledge of corporate finance and information analysis.
- Strategic thinking and smart decision-making skills.
- Highly detail-oriented.
- Be comfortable in dealing with ambiguity.
- Excellent analytical as well as quantitative competency.
- Thorough knowledge of excel formulas and functions.
Financial Analyst Job Description: Career Scope
A Financial Analyst is one of the most popular career paths in finance. This is mainly because analytics is in demand in every industry which expands a Financial Analyst’s career scope. Besides, this field also has exceptional perks like great earning potential.
And since a Financial Analyst’s primary skill is to assist people with their investment decisions, they can also work as freelancers. They can also set up their own customer base or even in investment banking. The career path or choices available for a Financial Analyst look something like this:
Senior Analyst:
- With more than three years of experience as a junior Financial Analyst, the next step is a Senior Analyst. There’s little differences in the duties and responsibilities of a Junior and a Senior Analyst. The flow of their workdays is quite similar.
Portfolio Manager:
- Portfolio Managers are finance professionals who deal in investment portfolios. They meet regularly with analysts to discuss indications of market developments and current trends in the financial sector. Additionally, they do extensive research to make efficient investment decisions regarding a company’s funds.
Chief Financial Officer:
- A Chief Financial Officer is the senior-most executive. They are responsible for managing and handling the financial actions of a company. CFOs are the top-level financial controllers who manage everything associated with financial planning, taxation, and cash flow. Moreover, a CFO is the third-highest position in a company’s hierarchy.
Budget Analyst:
- Famously known as accountants or controllers, budget analysts are responsible for examining the operating cost of a company. And thereby preparing budget reports for the same.
Investment Analyst:
- Investment Analysts are also known as Portfolio Managers. They evaluate as well as draw investment strategies for the company after analyzing the investment data. The responsibility is to make the company aware of the various pros and cons of each investment plan that they draw.
Salary
Since strategic financial planning has become a necessity for a business, the demand for Financial Analysts is crucial in every sector. However, the first few years of your career path may require you to work in tough conditions. But you need to stick around.
Therefore, with experience in the field, you shall be looking at a great career path ahead of you. Typically, the salary bracket for a financial analyst in India is 4-4.5 LPA. It comes to an average of 33-37k per month.
