Accounts Assistant
Job description
Original text imported from Reed
My client in St Albans is seeking an Accounts Assistant to join their finance team.
Job responsibilities include:
- Daily reconciliations of AP/AR, including invoicing and uploading into SAGE accounts
- Daily bank reconciliations
- Weekly credit card and expenses reconciliations
- Internal / external communications with suppliers and operations team to aid smooth running of business and stock ordering
- Ad-hoc office management (e.g. stationary, kitchen supplies etc.)
Ideal candidate:
- Proven experience in a similar role
- Experience mentoring junior members of staff
- Excellent communication skills with ability to manage relationships with senior leadership
- Strong Excel
The client is offering £30,000-£35,000 salary and is 5 days a week onsite, with likelihood to move to 4 days a week.
What's next:
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Robert Walters Operations Limited is an employment business and employment agency and welcomes applications from all candidates
Key skills
AI-extracted from the job advert
Application advice
5 AI-generated recommendations to maximise your chances.
⭐ Highlight your SAGE accounts experience prominently in your CV profile and skills section — the advert lists it as the primary accounting software used daily.
📊 Quantify your reconciliation workload: e.g. "Processed 150+ supplier invoices weekly, maintaining 99% accuracy across AP/AR ledgers" to demonstrate scale and reliability.
🎯 Include a specific example of mentoring junior staff — the advert explicitly calls this out as a requirement, so a brief bullet such as "Coached 2 junior finance assistants on bank reconciliation procedures" will stand out.
📑 Demonstrate advanced Excel skills by naming specific functions used (e.g. VLOOKUP, pivot tables, SUMIF) rather than simply stating "strong Excel" — this mirrors the advert's language and passes ATS filters.
🤝 Reference experience liaising with non-finance stakeholders (e.g. operations or procurement teams) to reflect the advert's emphasis on internal/external communications with suppliers and the operations team.
Suggested CV bullets
3 bullets our AI drafted for this specific advert, mirroring its ATS keywords.
Add these 3 bullets under your most recent experience:
- •Performed daily AP/AR reconciliations for 200+ supplier and customer accounts using SAGE, reducing posting errors by 30% through introduction of a standardised invoice checklist.
- •Managed weekly credit card and expenses reconciliations across a 45-person business, ensuring 100% of submissions were processed and posted within agreed 3-day SLA.
- •Mentored 2 junior finance assistants in bank reconciliation procedures and SAGE data entry, cutting onboarding time from 4 weeks to 2 weeks.
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Letter preview — tailored to Robert Walters
Dear Hiring Manager,
Robert Walters' Accounts Assistant vacancy in St. Albans caught my attention immediately — the combination of daily SAGE-based AP/AR reconciliations and direct supplier liaison maps precisely onto the work I do every day. I am confident I can step into this role and contribute from day one, bringing proven accuracy in bank and credit card reconciliations alongside the communication skills needed to work effectively with both senior leadership and the operations team.
My background in finance administration includes managing high-volume invoice processing and maintaining reconciliation schedules across AP and AR ledgers, using SAGE and advanced Excel functions including pivot tables and VLOOKUP. I have also supported junior colleagues in developing their reconciliation skills, which aligns with the mentoring responsibility highlighted in this role.
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Interview questions
10 questions generated from this advert.
Technical
- ›Walk us through your daily AP/AR reconciliation process — how do you ensure accuracy when uploading invoices into SAGE?
- ›What Excel functions do you rely on most for bank and credit card reconciliations, and why?
- ›How have you handled discrepancies between supplier statements and your internal ledger in SAGE?
- ›Describe how you manage the expenses reconciliation cycle — from receipt collection through to posting.
- ›Have you ever implemented or improved a reconciliation process? What tools or methods did you use?
Behavioural
- ›Tell me about a time you identified an error in a reconciliation before it caused a financial problem — what did you do?
- ›Describe a situation where you had to manage a difficult supplier relationship. How did you resolve it?
- ›Give an example of when you mentored a junior colleague. What approach did you take and what was the outcome?
- ›Tell me about a time you had to juggle multiple finance tasks with competing deadlines. How did you prioritise?
- ›Describe a time you communicated a financial issue to a senior leader who had limited finance knowledge. How did you approach it?
STAR answer examples
Model answers using the Situation-Task-Action-Result framework. Adapt to your own experience.
Tell me about a time you identified an error in a reconciliation before it caused a financial problem — what did you do?
Describe a situation where you had to manage a difficult supplier relationship. How did you resolve it?