Accounting is one of the important gears the keeps American business going.  Every industry needs accountants as a daily part of business to help in a variety of financial areas.  There are many different types of accountants including public (CPA), private, management and government accountants.

In 2002 there were approximately 1.1 million accountants employed in the United States. One out of five accounting professionals work for public firms and nearly one in ten are self-employed.  This article gives an overview of accounting careers.

Accountants are dedicated to ensuring that the businesses and organizations they work for run efficiently. They do this by offering a growing variety of business and accounting services to each of their clients.

Job duties of accountants vary greatly among the industry, however general tasks all accountants undertake include:

• Making revenue forecasts
• Performing general financial analysis
• Developing client budgets
• Analyzing financial data
• Evaluating degree of financial risk
• Writing administrative procedures
• Appraising property and equipment

Other responsibilities accountants have include keeping accurate public records, making sure taxes are paid properly and providing both internal and external auditing services for their clients. Because of technological advances, special accounting software packages have been developed. These various software packages enable accountants to keep, format and organize records, manage data and maintain auditing systems quickly and easily. Some examples include Quickbooks, MS Excel, Lotus and Peachtree accounting software.