What Do People in Audit, Reporting and Business Finance Actually Do All Day?

Last Updated On -22 Oct 2026

Comparison of audit work, financial reporting and business finance roles

Ask a B.Com class about their plans after graduation and "finance" will come up more than anything else. But ask what a finance job looks like on a regular Tuesday, and most students go blank. That's not really their fault. College covers journal entries and ratios, yet it rarely shows what audit work, financial reporting or business finance looks like inside an office.

The three fields are closely linked, but a working day in each feels quite different. Auditors check figures someone else prepared. The reporting team prepares them, and the business finance team uses them to plan the company's next move.

If you're a commerce student, a fresher or a year into your first job, knowing how these roles differ makes choosing between CA, ACCA and CMA USA much easier. Below, our mentors walk through a normal day in each role, the main duties, salaries in India and common mistakes.

What Audit Work Really Involves

Ask a senior auditor to explain the meaning of the audit work in one line, and you'll probably hear "checking whether the books can be trusted." In practice, it's an independent check of a company's financial records to assess whether its statements give a true and fair view.

Under the Companies Act, 2013, every Indian company must appoint a statutory auditor, who follows the Standards on Auditing issued by the ICAI.

A Normal Day for an Audit Associate

By 9:30, you're at the client's office, planning the day with your senior.
Mornings go into vouching: matching invoices and bank statements with the books.
Anything that doesn't tally becomes a query for the client's accountant.
After lunch, you might test controls, such as whether payments were approved before release.
Before leaving, you update the working papers that record your checks for your manager's review.

The first year can feel repetitive, and we won't pretend otherwise. With most Indian companies closing their books on 31 March, April to September is often the busiest stretch.

Duties of an Auditor

The core duties of an auditor include:

Planning the audit and picking out risky areas
Verifying transactions and balances against documents
Checking that internal controls work in practice
Testing compliance with accounting standards and laws
Raising issues with management and documenting the findings
Expressing an independent opinion in the audit report

How the Audit Process Works

Planning:The team studies the client's business and agrees timelines.
Risk assessment:Auditors flag areas where errors or fraud are more likely.
Fieldwork:They test samples, confirm balances and collect evidence.
Review:Seniors and managers check files and clear pending points.
Reporting:The engagement partner signs the audit report.

Inside a Financial Reporting Team

Financial reporting is about preparing a company's financial statements under the applicable accounting standards. That means the balance sheet, profit and loss statement, cash flow statement and notes. Indian companies use Ind AS or Indian GAAP, while overseas clients may follow IFRS or US GAAP.

Financial Reporting Job Description

Read a financial reporting job description and you'll usually see the same core tasks. A financial reporting analyst usually handles:

Month-end closing, often within five to seven working days
Reconciliations, accruals and journal entries
Monthly, quarterly and annual statements
Accounting for new or unusual transactions
Schedules and explanations for auditors
Short notes on why numbers moved

A Month on the Reporting Desk

Reporting runs on a monthly rhythm more than a daily one. The first week is often hectic, with everyone racing to close the books. Mid-month is usually calmer, though quarter-end brings another rush.

Many of these roles now sit in global capability centres in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kochi, where your working hours may follow UK or US time zones.

Financial Statement Analysis and Reporting

Many students mix these two up. Reporting produces the statements, while analysis uses ratios and trends to explain what the figures mean. Most roles need both, so after a quarter closes, you may be explaining why gross margin fell by two percentage points.

What Business Finance Teams Work On

Students often ask us to explain the meaning of business finance. The easiest answer is "how a company manages its money." That covers raising funds, deciding where to spend them and checking whether the spending paid off.

Role of Business Finance in an Organisation

The role of finance in business is much wider than bookkeeping. A typical finance team looks after:

Annual budgets and monthly forecasts
Cash flow, so salaries and suppliers get paid on time
Deciding if a new branch is worth opening
Cost control and pricing support
Loans and the debt-equity balance
Realistic targets for sales and operations

A Day in Corporate Finance Jobs

Take an FP&A (financial planning and analysis) analyst. Mornings might start with the monthly forecast and a call with the sales head about a missed target. Afternoons go into Excel models, and the day ends with a note for the chief financial officer (CFO).

Corporate finance jobs often involve more meetings and more time with non-finance colleagues than audit roles. Common starting roles are FP&A analyst, treasury analyst and cost analyst, which can lead later to finance manager, controller and CFO positions.

Audit, Reporting and Business Finance Compared

Aspect	Audit	Financial Reporting	Business Finance
Main question	Are the numbers reliable?	Are they recorded correctly?	What should we do next?
Daily work	Vouching, testing, queries	Month-end close, reconciliations	Budgets, forecasts, models
Key skills	Scepticism, documentation	Accuracy, Ind AS, ERP	Excel, business sense
Entry roles	Audit associate, article assistant	Reporting analyst, GL accountant	FP&A analyst, finance analyst

What Salaries Look Like in India

Pay depends on your city, employer and qualification stage, so use these rough ranges as a guide:

Big 4 audit freshers in metros may get around ₹5.5 to 6 lakh a year, according to industry estimates, while smaller firms often pay less.
Newly qualified CAs in audit may start near ₹6 lakh at mid-size firms, with Big 4 packages around ₹8.5 to 13 lakh depending on the role.
Financial reporting analysts average about ₹4.8 lakh a year, according to Indeed's sample of four reported salaries, with a range of ₹2 to 11 lakh.
Business finance pay varies widely and can rise as you gain business exposure and responsibility.

Choosing the Path That Suits You

At IIC Lakshya, we often meet students who chose a course first and asked about jobs later. It works better the other way round:

Audit suits people who like detail, asking questions and seeing how businesses run.
Financial reporting fits those who enjoy structure and getting every figure right.
Business finance is for anyone who wants numbers to drive decisions.

CA and ACCA lead naturally into audit. ACCA, DipIFRS and CPA help in reporting roles with global clients, while CMA USA and CMA India fit business finance.

Common Mistakes We See

Picking a course because a friend did
Assuming your first job decides your career
Ignoring Excel and communication skills
Chasing the biggest package over real learning

Picking Your First Step in Accounting and Finance

Audit work, financial reporting and business finance are three parts of one system, and none is "better" than the others. The right fit depends on how you like to work. Still unsure? Talk it over before committing years to a course. Book a free career counselling session with IIC Lakshya mentors to discuss your options.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do audit accountants do every day?

They verify transactions, test internal controls and collect evidence for the financial statements. They also raise client queries and document everything for review.

Is audit work a good career for B.Com graduates?

For most graduates, yes. Audit shows you many industries early, and the demanding first year builds a strong base for later roles.

Which qualifications suit a financial reporting analyst?

Most employers want a B.Com or M.Com plus ACCA, CA, CPA or DipIFRS. Working knowledge of Ind AS or IFRS, Excel and SAP also helps.

Can I get corporate finance jobs without CA?

Yes. FP&A, treasury and costing roles regularly hire CMA USA, CMA India, ACCA and MBA Finance candidates. Strong Excel skills often matter just as much.