Interview Question For Accounts Payable Position

Sample Situational Interview Questions For Account Payable Position

ACCOUNTING/ACCOUNTS PAYABLE Interview Questions & Answers

A company offers you a job, but the offer is 10% lower than what has been offered to other candidates. What would you do?

Youve been working for an hour and only have one more task left to complete. The workday ends in five minutes. Do you finish or go home early because its your first day? What about if its the last day of a project?

Your boss asks to speak with you privately in his office before going into a meeting together. Is this making you anxious or nervous at all? Why or why not?

Youre attending mandatory training for two days out of the office will your employer let us take these as PTO days instead since we cant be on-site?

You are about to leave work for the night when you realize that you made a mistake on the purchase order. What do you do?

How Can You Define A Good Supplier

We can use the following steps to define a good supplier:

A good supplier should create self-confidence in the client’s mind.
Services that he has promised have to be completed at any cost.
Services have to be completed according to the requirement of the client.
He should proceed with another order by completing the three steps.

Where Do You See Yourself In Five Years From Now

Try to connect your future with their business. Obviously nobody knows what will happen in five years time. You may live in another country, be married , and have a completely different job, or even run a business.

But big corporations invest a lot into the training of their new hires, and they hope to keep the best talent onboard. I suggest the following: Browse their website and try to find the organizational structure of the company. Find a job which you can realistically have in five years time, and refer to it in your interview answer: It would be great to work as an XYZ in your company.

Also Check: What To Ask In A Job Interview Employer

Interview Questions With Sample Answers

Review these questions with explanations and sample answers to better understand why hiring managers might ask a specific question or type of question during your accounting clerk interview.

What procedures do you use to avoid making errors?
How important is it to you to communicate with customers, vendors or colleagues?
Imagine you’re given an assignment with a very short deadline. How would you manage that alongside your other responsibilities?
Are you interested in any professional development opportunities for accounting clerks?
How would you reconcile a bank statement for a client?

Best Interview Questions For Ap Specialists

42 Accounts Payable Interview Questions and Answers

While theyre expected to demonstrate financial expertise and skills as standard accounts payable clerks, accounts payable specialists focushence specialistin making sure an organizations bills get paid correctly, completely, and on or before the due date. In this capacity, they must also engage in more direct vendor relationship management than standard AP clerks, as they will deal directly with suppliers in the course of everyday business as well as when resolving discrepancies.

The educational requirements for AP specialists are often more restrictive than for basic bookkeepers candidates may be expected to hold a two-year degree at a minimum, and preference will likely be given to those with more advanced education or considerable direct experience in the role of AP specialist. In addition, these candidates should have strong familiarity and extensive experience with standard accounting software as well as industry-specific tools.

In fact, because todays AP specialists tend to operate almost exclusively in digital environments rather than with manual workflows and paper-based processes, candidates should have a much more robust understanding of, and experience with, emerging digital technologies and tools.

When interviewing candidates for specialist roles, consider these questions as well:

Please describe your approach to task management.

Answers Should Demonstrate:

Also Check: What Questions To Ask When Interviewing Someone For A Job

We Have Tight Deadlines What Is Your Experience Meeting Deadlines In A Fast

Interviewers ask this question to discover how you will function in this jobâs specific work environment. Answer this question with examples of how you have met deadlines, and the consequences that followed after you met those deadlines, such as vendor loyalty, increased deliverables and high rates of client satisfaction.

Example:âI have been meeting deadlines in the workplace ever since I graduated college. My last position was in an extremely fast-paced environment. I worked for several levels of management who all needed results at different times. I managed my time and conserved my energy by setting achievable and productive daily goals for myself. I scheduled my tasks by priority and made sure to always allocate enough time to finishing each one. After I became accustomed to the environment, I was able to complete assignments efficiently and on time.â

General Accounts Payable Interview Questions

Some general questions asked during an accounts payable interview can include:

Why did you pursue a career in accounting?
How well do you work when there is a deadline to make a payment?
What influenced you to apply for an accounts payable position?
What skills do you want to improve on in this role?
Can you describe your approach to working with vendors?
Tell me about your biggest accomplishment since you’ve worked in accounting?
Can you outline the differences between each branch of accounting?
Do you believe that you can learn new processes quickly?
What financial statements should a company review to track its success?
Why does integrity matter in accounting?
Describe how this position can advance your career in accounting?

Also Check: What Questions Can You Not Ask In An Interview

Which Are The Main Mis Reports Of An Accounts Department What Format Is Used To Prepare The Mis

MIS is an acronym that stands for Management Information System. MIS helps the organization, especially the managers, organize, evaluate information and data, and provide information in a timely and efficient manner, which later helps management in decision-making. It is mainly used to focus on the accounting and economic aspects, analyzing problems, and providing solutions.

Structure of an MIS report

You can see the following formats that are used to prepare the MIS report. Here you can see the contents sheet-wise. Let’s see an example of an MIS report of an organization.

First Sheet: Employee’s Details

This sheet contains the details of the employees.

Total Experience

Second Sheet: The salary structure

Here, you have to write down the complete salary structure and also make a column for the salary after any revision.

Third Sheet: New Joins

In this sheet, you have to write down the name of new joins of that month with detail like CTC, Designation, DOB, Contact no. etc.

Forth Sheet: Resigned employees

This sheet contains employees who have resigned during that month with details such as name, designation, date of joining, date of resignation, last working day, etc.

Fifth sheet: The attrition rate

According to this MIS report, you can find out the attrition report, qualification analysis reports, team management reports, etc.

What Is Most Challenging About Working As An Accounts Payable Clerk

Ultimate Guide to Accounts Payable Interview Questions and Answers

This question is designed to reveal the challenges that come with the job. It may also be a way to gauge your attitude and personality. Employers want to be sure you know what you are getting into and what working as an accounts payable clerk means. You should show your awareness of the challenges and your ability to resolve them.

Example answer: “The most challenging part of this job is managing the different file formats and managing the various numbers systems. It’s also important to be on the lookout for fraudulent invoices and missing invoices. I am confident that I can make the necessary adjustments to handle these challenges.”

Also Check: How To Correctly Answer Interview Questions

What Was A Major Accomplishment You Had At Your Previous Employer

How to Answer

When answering this question think about specific accomplishments and ways you improved the accounting/accounts payable department, whether you increased productivity, reduced error or successfully implemented a new system. It is important to provide specifics if you have them available, for example, “I redesigned the accounts payable system, which led to and 50% increase in the efficiency of our system” or “I processed over 3000 check requests in less than three weeks which totaled $90,000 in accounts payable.”

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What Steps Do You Take Before You Make A Payment

Some of the processes that candidates might mention in response to this question include:

Checking for holds when the income and expense statement is being coordinated and validated
Starting the process of approving the invoice if workflow implementation has been completed
After invoice approval, starting the payment
Completing the accounting process once the invoice has been endorsed

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Common Accounting Behavioral/fit Questions

Fit or “behavioral” questions are used to assess whether you have the right attitude, work ethic, personality, and values to fit in with an accounting firm’s culture. Most accounting firms look for an alignment between the candidate’s values with their firm’s culture and do so through asking situational and ethical questions.

This section walks you through 5 of the most common types of fit questions and suggests approaches for answering them. The suggested approaches and sample answers are meant to be illustrative. Always remember, as an accountant, you need to adapt your answers to be true to yourself and your own words.

What Do You Understand By An Early Payment Discount

Early payment discount is a type of discount given to buyers when they pay their bills early. According to the terms and conditions mentioned in the purchase order, the suppliers discount buyers when they make payment before the due date.

For example, if a company ABC sold 1 million rupees worth of goods to XYZ Company and payment terms are 30 days from the invoice date. The ABC Company can give a 5% discount to XYZ Company if they make the payment within one week from the invoice date. It is an example of an early payment discount.

A Vendor Claims They Haven’t Received Their Check For The Previous Month’s Work But You Mailed Out Their Check Last Week What Do You Do

Accounts payable specialists interact directly with vendors to make sure they get paid. Their ability to handle complex situations is important in maintaining positive relationships with vendors. This question allows interviewers to gauge a candidate’s customer service skills and their commitment to protecting their company’s financial information.

A candidate’s answer should emphasize:

Customer service skills

Why Do You Want To Work For Us Many Corporations In The City Recruit New Clerks

Most likely you do not care. Perhaps you even applied for a job with more companies, and will interview with them later on. But you should try to convince them that they are your first choice. Even if it is not true

Refer to something that resonates with you. It can be their field of business , it can be their goals and values, the system of work and working environment, career growth options they offer, etc.

Browsing their website should help you to find at least something you can refer to in your answer.

Special tip: If you experience anxiety, or simply do not know how to answer questions you may face in this interview, have a look at our Interview Success Package. Up to 10 sample answers to all questions you may face in your interview will help you stand out and sign a coveted employment contract

Tell Me About Your Ability To Work Under Pressure

Answer tips

You may say that you thrive under certain types of pressure. Give an example that relates to the type of position applied for. Mention routine pressure you face, such as dealing with deadlines on a regular basis. Try not to use an example where you created the pressure yourself, by waiting too long to start something, or by handling a task irresponsibly at the beginning. For example, working under pressure to meet a customers deadline could be a good example, but not if you had waited too long to start the project.Answer samples

Pressure is actually a catalyst to my work. When there is an imperative deadline, I refocus my energy into my work which in fact, has helped me to produce some of my best works. I guess you can say I thrive under pressure.

Sample Communication Skills Interview Questions For Account Payable Assistant Position

Accounts Payable: Interview Questions & Answersð

What is your communication style?

What are the best ways to work with difficult people in the workplace?

How do you handle sensitive or confidential information from employers?

Do you have a problem handling criticism well when it comes from your peers and supervisors?

Can you provide an example of how you effectively collaborated on a project with someone who had different priorities than you did?

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What Does Ais Mean

An AIS is an accounting information system. The term refers to a structural process that businesses use to compile and store, manage and process, and then report the organization’s financial data. Accountants, business analysts, chief financial officers, and managers use AISs to ensure accurate financial reporting.

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Take a look at our library of skills tests and start working on your list of interview questions to hire the best talent for your organization. Get started for free today

Read Also: How To Pass A Behavioral Interview

What Experience Do You Have When It Comes To Discussing Our Recently Postedccounts Payable Clerk Position

Answer tips:

Speak about specifics that relate to the position you are applying for. If you know you do not have much experience in the job you are applying for, plan for this question ahead of time and ensure you can provide some relatable examples based on what you have done.

Almost all interviewers will appreciate confidence and pride in the work experience you have earned and your passion in transfering these valuable skills to your future role or position.

Answer sample

Ever since my first paper route at age 10 Ive been doing something to keep myself busy and earn money. Back then, it was obviously about earning some spending money. What I didnt realize was that I was actually starting the journey of establishing what I liked to do and how I fit in to the grand scheme of things. I then worked as a junior computer tech in my last 2 summers of high school. It was here that I discovered what I was passionate about and what I wanted to do. I enrolled in college to get my degree in computer sciences, and I have been working around technology ever since.

Most Common Account Payable Assistant Interview Questions And Answers

Account Payable Interview Questions And Answers

Here are some of the commonest questions you might face in an account payable assistant interview :

What skills would you need to excel in this position?

The skills I need to excel in this position include good math skills, bookkeeping skills, and excellent organizational skills. I also need to be able to pay attention to detail and be able to work independently.

2. How would you go about finding information for this position?

I would need to know where to find the information that I am looking for. I would ask the appropriate people how to get that information, or use different references or resources.

3. What have you done in previous jobs to increase profitability?

I have created efficiencies in the work process, I have tracked and analyzed data to find discrepancies and potential savings, and I have reduced waste.

4. What is your experience with accounts payable?

I have experience with processing invoices, maintaining vendor files, and issuing payments.

5. What is your education and/or work experience in bookkeeping?

I have a degree in bookkeeping and I have two years of work experience in the field.

6. Why did you choose to pursue a career in accounting and/or bookkeeping?

The stability of the accounting and bookkeeping profession, the opportunity for advancement, and the challenge of the work.

7. What do you think this position has to offer?

Opportunity to learn new skills, work with many different people, and complete challenging tasks.

8. What are your strengths?

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Soft Skill Questions In An Accounts Payable Interview

Like any other job interview, accounts payable interviews also consist of questions that help understand the personality and values of a candidate. Through these questions, recruiters try to identify the leadership skills, teamwork skills and problem-solving abilities of a candidate. To answer them, refer to your previous experiences and be honest while answering. Here are some soft skill questions that an interviewer can ask you when you interview for an accounts payable role:

How do you manage your time when you have multiple deadlines to meet?
What is the biggest challenge that you have faced in your workplace?
How do you handle situations where your coworkers disagree with you?
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
How do you explain complex or new topics to your coworkers or clients?

What Do You See As The Key Challenges Facing An Accounts Payable Clerk

It is important that the accounts payable clerk understand those challenges and is able to think of ways to overcome them. In this question, the supervisor is looking for a discussion that demonstrates your critical thinking skills. Use the STAR approach to structure your answer and be sure to use examples to illustrate how you would approach each challenge.

Example answer: “There are three main challenges facing an accounts payable clerk: the first is time management, the second is communication, and the third is accuracy. Time management is the most important issue because if a vendor is not paid on time, then there are penalties that could be incurred. I would address this by creating a schedule that includes the due dates for each payment by vendor. This will allow me to better manage my time. Communicating with vendors is essential because it offers them more security. For example, if a bill is not paid in the designated time frame, it could result in a vendor’s ceasing business with us. Having good communications solves this problem. Finally, accuracy is also very important. If invoices are paid incorrectly, then the accounts payable clerk’s supervisor has to spend time fixing the mistake. I would make sure that invoices are paid exactly how they were received so they don’t have to be changed.”