Accounting is one of the few fields where recruiters genuinely do keyword-search first. The vocabulary is standardized, the software matters, and a hiring manager filling a month-end close role has a specific list in mind. That works in your favour: the terms are knowable, and they're sitting in the posting. Here are the ones that come up most.
The usual caveat, which matters more in accounting than almost anywhere: claim only what you've done. "Led SOX walkthroughs" invites twenty minutes of follow-up questions from someone who has led hundreds.
Software and systems
Name the exact system, including the tier. QuickBooks (Online or Desktop), Xero, NetSuite, SAP (and the module: FI/CO), Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Sage Intacct, Workday Financials, Blackline, Concur, Bill.com, Hyperion. Plus the ones nobody lists and everyone uses: advanced Excel — pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, INDEX/MATCH, Power Query, macros — and increasingly SQL or Power BI for reporting-heavy roles.
"ERP experience" alone matches nothing. A recruiter searches "NetSuite".
Core functions
Month-end close and year-end close, account reconciliation, bank reconciliation, journal entries, general ledger, accounts payable and accounts receivable (write both the words and AP/AR — postings use each), fixed assets, depreciation, accruals, prepaid expenses, intercompany transactions, consolidations, payroll processing, cash flow management, revenue recognition.
Standards, compliance and audit
GAAP (or US GAAP), IFRS, SOX compliance, internal controls, ASC 606 (revenue) and ASC 842 (leases), external audit and internal audit, audit support or PBC schedules, variance analysis, financial statement preparation, tax provision, sales and use tax, 1099 filing, regulatory reporting.
Analysis and planning
FP&A, budgeting, forecasting, financial modeling, KPI reporting, cost accounting, margin analysis, working capital, budget vs. actual. If you're moving from bookkeeping toward analysis, these are the terms that signal the direction.
Credentials
CPA (say "CPA candidate" or "CPA eligible" if that's the honest status — both are searched), CMA, CIA, EA (Enrolled Agent), ACCA, CFA, QuickBooks ProAdvisor, plus your degree in Accounting or Finance. Put active licence numbers and state where relevant — public accounting roles filter on it.
Where to put them
- Headline: the standard title — "Senior Accountant", "Staff Accountant", "Accounting Manager" — and the credential if you hold it: "Senior Accountant, CPA".
- Skills line: one comma-separated line, systems first, most posting-relevant first. No tables or two-column layouts, which is where accounting resumes get mangled most often.
- Bullets: where keywords become evidence. A term in your skills list is a claim; the same term inside an achievement is proof.
Before and after
Before: "Responsible for month-end close and account reconciliations."
After: "Owned month-end close for 3 entities in NetSuite, cutting the cycle from 9 days to 5; reconciled 40+ balance sheet accounts monthly with zero audit adjustments in two consecutive years."
Before: "Assisted with the annual audit."
After: "Prepared PBC schedules and led auditor walkthroughs for the FY24 external audit; closed all requests within the fieldwork window."
Notice that the "after" versions contain more keywords than the "before" ones while reading less like keyword stuffing. That's the whole trick: specifics naturally carry the vocabulary.
Check it against the actual posting
A public accounting role, a corporate controller role and a startup's first finance hire all say "accountant" and want different things. Rather than guessing which of these terms this employer cares about, paste your resume and the posting into our free ATS resume checker — it shows which requirements you already cover and which ones you never mention. Add back only the ones that are genuinely yours (the full method here).