Financial Manager

Overview

A financial manager is a professional who is responsible for the financial health of an organization. They produce financial reports, direct investment activities, and develop strategies and plans for the long-term financial goals of their organization. Financial managers work in many places, including banks and insurance companies.

Roles and Responsibilities

Financial managers typically do the following:

Prepare financial statements, business activity reports, and forecasts
Monitor financial details to ensure that legal requirements are met
Supervise employees who do financial reporting and budgeting
Review company financial reports and seek ways to reduce costs
Analyze market trends to maximize profits and find expansion opportunities
Help management make financial decisions

The role of the financial manager, particularly in business, is changing in response to technological advances that have significantly reduced the amount of time it takes to produce financial reports. Financial managers now perform more data analysis and use it to offer senior managers ideas on how to maximize profits. They often work on teams, acting as business advisors to top executives.

A financial manager at work in a modern office.

Types of Financial Managers

Financial managers' titles can vary by experience and education. The following are examples of types of financial managers:

Controllers: Controllers direct the preparation of financial reports that summarize and forecast an organization’s financial position, such as income statements, balance sheets, and analyses of future earnings or expenses. Controllers also are in charge of preparing special reports required by regulatory authorities.

Treasurers and finance officers: Treasurers and finance officers direct their organization’s budgets to meet its financial goals. They oversee the investment of funds and manage associated risks, supervise cash management activities, execute capital-raising strategies to support a firm’s expansion, and deal with mergers and acquisitions.

Credit managers: Credit managers oversee the firm’s issuance of credit. They set credit-rating criteria, determine credit ceilings, and monitor the collections of past-due accounts.

Cash managers: Cash managers monitor and control the flow of cash that comes in and goes out of the company to meet the company’s business and investment needs.

Risk managers: Risk managers control financial risk by using strategies to limit or offset the probability of a financial loss or a company’s exposure to financial uncertainty.

Insurance managers: Insurance managers decide how best to limit a company’s losses by obtaining insurance against risks such as the need to make disability payments for an employee who gets hurt on the job, and any costs imposed by a lawsuit against the company.

Work Environment

Financial managers work closely with top executives and with departments that develop the data that financial managers need. They can be employed in many different environments including both public and private sectors, such as multinational corporations, retail companies, and government agencies.

How to Become a Financial Manager

Financial managers typically have a bachelor’s degree and 5 years or more of experience in another business or financial occupation, such as an accountant, securities sales agent, or financial analyst.

Most financial managers work full time, and about 1 in 3 worked more than 40 hours per week in 2016. They often work long hours, particularly when they are finalizing reports or budgets.

Job Outlook

Employment of financial managers is projected to grow 19 percent from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations. However, growth will vary by industry.

Services provided by financial managers, such as planning, directing, and coordinating investments, will continue to be in demand as the economy grows. The United States remains an international financial center, meaning that the economic growth of countries around the world will likely contribute to employment growth in the U.S. financial industry.