The fast-moving financial world of today does not operate on instinct; it relies upon data, analysis, and strategic insight. This is where financial analysts are brought to light. From predicting future revenues to investing in development programs and scaling a company, the work of a financial analyst helps in determining the course of an organisation’s success.
But what exactly does a financial analyst do? This blog will help you understand the full financial analyst job description, including daily duties, desired skills, and various types of financial analyst roles. For the beginner analyst or career switcher who is curious about what exactly an analyst does, or for those interested in hiring one with a more polished job description, this guide makes it clear and concise.
Table of Contents
What is a Financial Analyst
A financial analyst is a person who performs various research activities, including financial data analysis, studying current market developments, and analyzing financial statements of a company or organisation. They assist individuals and companies in making well-researched decisions.
But do all financial analysts perform the same duties? No, their responsibilities are also different depending on their role and specialisation. An example is someone in corporate finance, investment banking, or equity research who develops financial models to value, forecast, or make the best decisions for an organisation.
The role of financial analysts demands a lot of skills, especially mathematical and analytical skills. From big multinational companies to startups, every company and business needs professionals to assess their financial position and recommend how to improve their operations to generate higher returns.
Financial Analyst Job Description
A financial analyst assists the company in making sound decisions by analysing company’s financial data, future trends, and monitoring market fluctuations. Whether it is investment banking, consulting, or finance, what the analysts do is offer helpful information that would define the goals, objectives, and operations of a company or business.
Here’s a comprehensive strategic financial analyst job description sample that summarises the qualifications, responsibilities, and skills that are expected from a financial analyst.
Financial Analyst Job Overview
Our financial team is seeking a financial analyst with an analytical mindset and attention to detail. Being a financial analyst, you will work on developing financial strategies, creating financial and investor reports, reconciling, and promoting core business needs.
Key Financial Analyst Responsibilities
- Collect and evaluate financial data (financial statements, market trends, economic conditions) to identify patterns and evaluate potential investment opportunities.
- Suggest creative ideas to minimize expenditures and boost overall financial performance.
- Prepare structured financial reports monthly and yearly on financial status and risks.
- Build financial models for investors to determine promising investments and conduct benchmarking and process analysis.
- Monitor market trends and provide strategic guidance to senior management and stakeholders based on proper analysis.
- Work with other teams to improve business productivity.
- Identify opportunities to ensure accurate reporting and improve financial processes.
Required Qualifications
- Undergraduate Degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or any related field.
- Prior experience in financial management, accounting, financial analysis, and planning, or a similar role.
- Strong understanding of accounting principles, corporate finance, financial forecasting and diagnosis, and financial reporting.
- A Master’s degree (MBA in Finance) or a professional certification like CA, CFA, or CMA is preferred (not mandatory).
Preferred Skills and Proficiency
- Strong communication, presentation, and reporting skills.
- Expertise in Advanced Excel, MS Office, financial modeling software, and financial software applications.
- Familiarity with SQL, Power BI, Python, Oracle, and SAP is a plus.
- Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills, attention to detail, and a collaborative mindset.
Work Environment and Reporting
The financial analysts typically work in an on-site mode or in a hybrid format and connects with the operations team, finance, and strategy teams on regular basis. In most cases, they either answer to their manager or Senior Financial Analyst, or Chief Financial Officer (CFO), depending on the size and organising structure of the organisation.
Financial Analyst Salary Overview
A candidate will want to know the job description of the financial analyst as well as the salary. The salary of a financial analyst will vary depending on the location (city), specialisation, size of company, sector, entity (start-up or multinational company), or level of expertise.
| Experience Story |
Average Salary Range |
| Entry-level Financial Analyst (0–2 years) |
₹3 – ₹6 lakhs per year |
| Mid-level Financial Analyst (5+ years) |
₹12 – ₹25 lakhs per year |
| Senior Financial Analyst (15+ years) |
₹50 lakhs – ₹1 crore per year |
What Does a Financial Analyst Do?
The everyday routine of a financial analyst includes critical thinking, strategic planning, strong communication, and research and data analysis skills. The daily tasks of a financial analyst may vary depending on the specialization, industry type, and company size, but there are a few duties that every analyst prioritizes to drive strategic business planning.
1. Reviewing Financial Data and Reports
Financial analysts start their day by checking the latest financial reports, such as financial statements, sales numbers, and budget performance. The goal behind this is to identify any areas of concern, like unexpected cost spikes that require further investigation.
2. Maintaining and Updating Financial Models
To analyse the growth potential of the company, financial analysts need to build advanced Excel-based financial models. They input the latest data into the sheet to forecast future revenue, costs, or investment’s future performance.
3. Collaborating with Teams
Aside from the finance team, analysts work closely with sales, product, and operations teams to gather useful information and analyse the financial impact of their actions. They even attend meetings on budgets, KPIs, and performance drivers.
4. Creating Reports and Presentations
A financial analyst’s entire day almost goes into preparing the financial reports and presentation for internal stakeholders and collecting feedback for continuous improvement.
5. Watching Market Trends and News
Watching market news and trends, and staying up-to-date with stock movements, and new technologies is important for financial analysts as it helps them foresee changes that could affect the business/company or its investment portfolio.
6. Supporting Management Decisions
Analysts continuously track and analyse market conditions and a company’s current financial performance to provide data-backed insights to managers and the management team. They consult with management to lead and motivate long-term and strategic decision-making within the most comprehensive scope.
Must-Have Financial Analyst Skills and Qualifications
An individual working as a financial analyst must possess excellent education in the field of financial services, accounting, or any related discipline. As a candidate seeking to be a financial analyst, it is important to learn technical and soft skills. Now, let’s take a look at the qualifications and skills required:
Educational Qualifications
The candidate should possess a bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, economics, or any other related degree course. Among the available choices are B.Com, BBA, and B.Sc in Finance, etc. Moreover, in order to grow in the career, one may take a master’s degree, such as an MBA, MS in Finance, etc.
To get an advanced position, you can pursue a certification course, which is highly valued by the company, such as CFA, CMA, or FRM, etc. Further, several financial analyst courses are available on online platforms like Udemy, Coursera, etc.
Important Skills
Although there are numerous financial analyst skills that an individual or professional looking to take a job as a financial analyst needs to learn. Some of the key skills are as follows:
- Critical (Analytical) Thinking: Financial analysts should have the capabilities to process and summarise big data, draw trends, and find solutions to various problems.
- Communication and Presentation Skills: A financial analyst should possess good communication and presentation skills to cut through the complex financial information in explaining the same to stakeholders, management, and other teams.
- Know how to Build Financial Models: While not all analysts’ jobs, but some requires financial model building skills. These models help analysts to accurately predict a company’s future financial performance and find whether the company should raise capital or pursue mergers and acquisitions.
- Financial Software: Microsoft Excel, SQL, Bloomberg, Cube, QuickBooks, R programming, Python, and Tableau, etc., are some of the tools widely used by financial analysts to anlayse data, build financial models, and make strategic decisions.
- Accounting Knowledge: Strong accounting knowledge can help you get insights into financial data, check the company’s well-being, and make strategic decisions.
- Interpersonal Skills: Teamwork, leadership, problem-solving, and connecting with other teams are important skills that a financial analyst should have.
You can also do a financial analyst internship to gain some experience and polish your skills before taking full-time employment.
Tools and Software Used by Financial Analysts
Financial analysts rely on a mix of Advanced Excel, accounting software, reporting facilities, financial databases, and data analytics and visualisation to efficiently perform their daily tasks. These tools and software save them a lot of time, enable them to process data, prepare reports, and convey their results to both the management and interested parties.
Financial analysts often use these tools and software:
1. Excel (Advanced): Excel is a budgeting, forecasting, financial modeling, and scenario analysis tool utilized by analysts. It possesses capabilities of manipulating, calculating, as well as Visualising data.
2. Enterprise Resource Planning systems (Oracle, SAP, NetSuite): ERP systems take care of a company financially, operationally and reporting portfolios in a single space. These systems assist the analysts in getting information in real time.
3. Power BI/ Tableau: It is a visualisation tool used to generate colourful and interactive dashboards, reports, charts, and graphs, and help in making the financial information more understandable to the non-financial teams.
4. QuickBooks and Tally: This software is used by the financial analysts in taking up the basic accounting records as well as the basic financial records. Mostly applied in small and mid-sized firms in India.
5. Python, R, SQL: Knowing Python, R, and SQL coding languages are especially useful for analyst working in FinTech or related fields. They are used for big data analysis, automation, and creating financial models.
Additionally, Google Sheets allows users to collaborate and make real-time data updates, so it is also used in place of Excel.
Types of Financial Analysts
Now, you know what is expected from a financial analyst, but not all financial analysts do the same job. From predicting budgets to assessing risk, financial analysts specialise in different areas based on their expertise, role, and industry.
Let’s take a closer look at the various types of financial analysts so you can understand which one suits you best.
| Type of Analyst |
Typical Employer |
Key Focus Area |
| Risk Analyst |
Majorly: Banks, Insurance Companies,
Investment Banks
Others: IT and Consulting Companies
|
Identifying and assessing risks
Risk mitigation strategies
Monitoring the effectiveness of mitigation strategies
Reporting risk exposure to management
|
| Investment Analyst |
Majorly: Investment Banks, Asset Management Firms, Private Equity Firms, Hedge Funds
Others: Insurance Companies and Consulting Firms
|
Performing research and analysis
Building financial models and applying different valuation techniques
Creating detailed research reports
Presenting reports in front of stakeholders and clients
Suggest whether to buy, sell, or hold securities
|
| Quantitative Analyst |
Majorly: Investment Banks, Asset Management Firms, Private Equity Firms, Hedge Funds
Others: Consulting and Technological Companies
|
Building financial models and analysing data
Developing risk management strategies
Researching to find new investment opportunities
Working with other financial experts to implement investment strategies
|
| Equity Analyst |
Majorly: Investment Banks, Asset Management Firms, Hedge Funds
Others: Healthcare, Technology, Finance
|
Performing industry and company research and statement analysis
Creating detailed reports and presenting their findings to stakeholders and clients
Making investment recommendations (Buy, sell, or hold securities)
Collaborating with other team members and building relationships with institutional investors and market participants
|
| Credit Analyst |
Majorly: Investment Banks, Commercial Banks, Credit Rating Agencies, NBFCs
Others: Corporate Treasury Departments and Insurance Companies
|
Examining all financial statements and calculating ratios
Evaluating credit reports and conducting risk assessments
Based on the analysis, making recommendations on whether to approve or deny credit applications
|
| Corporate Financial Analyst (FP&A Analyst) |
Majorly: Manufacturing, Technology, Financial Services
Others: Real Estate and FinTech
|
Creating and improving financial plans, budgets, and predictions
Creating and maintaining financial models
Preparing financial reports and presentations based on analysis
Tracking market trends and economic conditions to identify and assess new opportunities
|
| Rating Analyst |
Majorly: Investment Banks, Commercial Banks, Credit Rating Agencies
Others: Financial Services, Consulting, and Technology Companies
|
Estimating the creditworthiness of an individual or a business/company
Assessing the risk associated with their debt obligations
Making recommendations on loan and bond ratings
|
| Budget Analyst |
Majorly: Government, Management of Companies and Enterprises
Others: Financial Services and Consulting
|
Creating budget proposals and monitoring spending
Performing cost-benefit analyses, variance analyses, and financial report analyses
Forecasting future financial requirements to help companies achieve their goals
|
You can search online for financial analyst jobs for freshers or experienced and apply to any of these roles according to your specialisation through online platforms like LinkedIn, Naukri, Apna, or the company’s website.
Tips for Writing an Effective Financial Analyst Job Description
Here are the key steps to write an effective financial analyst job description:
- Mention the job title and a summary of the role’s responsibilities and main objectives.
- Highlight the key responsibilities and primary duties of a financial analyst.
- Specify the required skills (technical and soft skills) that are important for the role.
- Write the educational qualifications that are required for the role, and remember to mention them (not mandatory in case it is not that important).
- Mention the job location (City & State).
- Provide an overview of company culture, perks, benefits, and growth opportunities that a candidate will get after joining your company.
Conclusion
Through this blog, you have a clear understanding of how a financial analyst plays a crucial role in driving business plans, data-backed decision-making, and financial performance. In the blog, we have covered the complete financial analyst job description, day-to-day duties and responsibilities, essential financial analyst skills, and tools and techniques they use. Now, whether you are hiring for this role or aspiring to become a financial analyst, having a clear understanding of every minute detail is important.
Want to become a financial analyst? Check out our step-by-step process guide: How to Become a Financial Analyst in India
Financial Analyst Job Description – FAQs
Q1: What does a financial analyst do?
A financial analyst checks an organisation’s financial well-being, analyses data, including statements, and advises on investments and strategies.
Q2: Who does a Financial Analyst work with?
A financial analyst works closely with a lot of individuals and businesses, including investors, companies, banks, insurance companies, the government, etc.
Q3: What is the scope of a financial analyst?
The scope of a financial analyst is vast. It involves evaluating financial data, analysing risks, building financial models, and recommending potential investments. Also, the demand for financial analysts is high across almost all industries, from banking to fintech.
Q4: Is a financial analyst a high-paying job?
Yes, a financial analyst salary is considered a high-paying job, as you can earn between ₹3 lakhs – ₹1 crore per year and even more. This salary depends on various factors such as experience level, qualification, city, company size, and industry.
Q5: Can I become a financial analyst without a CFA?
Yes, you can become a financial analyst without a CFA certification. Although there are particular firms like investment management that demand a CFA certification from candidates, on the other hand, there are other financial analyst roles that do not require a CFA certification. Moreover, many financial analysts just hold a bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, or any related field.