External Auditors

ANZSCO ID 221213

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
9,900
Future Growth
N/A
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
87%
Female Share
46%
Average age
36

Summary

External Auditors design and operate information and reporting systems, procedures and controls to meet external financial reporting requirements.

Tasks

  • Identifies, manages and reports on financial risks.

  • Assists with equity management, debt management, securities and taxation planning issues.

  • Collects, analyses and interprets information on the financial standing, cost structures and trading effectiveness of organisations.

  • Devises, re-organises and establishes budgetary cost control and other accounting systems such as computer-based systems.

  • Conducts audits and investigations and prepares financial statements and reports for management, shareholders, and governing and statutory bodies.

  • Evaluates the cost effectiveness and risks of operational processes, activities, policies and systems.

  • Establishes audit objectives, and designs and implements audit methodologies, processes and audit report criteria.

Characteristics

Job Type
Professionals
Skill Level
Very high skill
ANZSCO Occupation group
Unemployment Rate
n/a
Industries
Pathway(s)
  • University
  • Vocational Education and Training (VET)
Interests
  • Administrative
  • Enterprising
Physical Demand
  • Sedentary

Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. Employment projections data are only produced for occupations at the broad four digit Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) level. While data are not available for this occupation, projections data are available for the parent occupation, Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers, under the outlook section.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 87% of people employed as External Auditors work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 21 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 44 hours per week in their main job. This is the same as the all jobs average.

    Sources:Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average.


Industries

Main industries

1
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
46.1%
2
Public Administration and Safety
27.4%
3
Financial and Insurance Services
9.1%
4
Health Care and Social Assistance
2.0%
5
Other industries
13.7%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

35.5% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

26.3% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

16.1% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

6.3% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

10.0% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

1.4% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.6% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

3.7% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State External Auditors All Jobs Average
NSW 35.5 31.6
VIC 26.3 25.6
QLD 16.1 20.0
SA 6.3 7.0
WA 10.0 10.8
TAS 1.4 2.0
NT 0.6 1.0
ACT 3.7 1.9



Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
36
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
46%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of External Auditors is 36 years. This is younger than the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 25 to 34 years.

    Females make up 46% of the workforce. This is similar to the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket External Auditors All Jobs Average
15-19 0.5 5.0
20-24 10.9 9.3
25-34 33.7 22.9
35-44 22.8 22.0
45-54 17.0 21.6
55-59 7.2 9.0
60-64 4.6 6.0
65 and Over 3.3 4.2
Median Age 36 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

A bachelor degree in accounting is usually needed to work as an External Auditor. Some workers have a Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification.

Registration with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission is required.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.
  • My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.
  • AAPathways website to explore Financial Services VET training pathways.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification External Auditors All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 22.7 10.1
Bachelor degree 50.2 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 8.5 11.6
Certificate III/IV 6.1 21.1
Year 12 8.9 18.1
Year 11 1.1 4.8
Year 10 and below 2.3 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.


Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers who have strong attention to detail, are organised and work independently.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 61%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 57%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 57%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 57%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 57%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 57%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 57%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 57%

    Mathematics

    Using maths to solve problems.

  • 55%

    Systems evaluation

    Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

  • 54%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 54%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 54%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.

  • 52%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 52%

    Systems analysis

    Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.

  • 50%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 50%

    Management of personnel resources

    Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.

  • 48%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 46%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.

  • 46%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 46%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 92%

    Economics and accounting

    Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.

  • 74%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 69%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 68%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 68%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 63%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 61%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 55%

    Personnel and human resources

    Recruiting and training people, managing pay and other entitlements (like sick leave), and negotiating pay and conditions.

  • 55%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 54%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 52%

    Sales and marketing

    Showing, promoting, and selling including marketing strategy, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

  • 34%

    Psychology

    Human behaviour; differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; research methods; assessing and treating disorders.

  • 32%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 22%

    Production and processing

    Raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and ways of making and distributing goods.

  • 17%

    Telecommunications

    Transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

  • 16%

    Geography

    Describing land, sea, and air, including their physical characteristics, locations, how they work together, and the location of plant, animal, and human life.

  • 16%

    Sociology and anthropology

    Group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

  • 16%

    Transportation

    Moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road.

  • 13%

    Technical design

    Design techniques, tools, and principles used to make detailed technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

  • 12%

    History and archeology

    Events of the past, their causes, how we learn about them, and how they influence the way we live today.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 66%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 66%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 63%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 61%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 61%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 59%

    Mathematics

    Choose the right maths method or formula to solve a problem.

  • 59%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 59%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 59%

    Working with numbers

    Add, subtract, multiply, or divide.

  • 59%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 57%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 54%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 54%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 52%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 52%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.

  • 52%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.

  • 48%

    Originality

    Come up with unusual or clever ideas, or creative ways to solve a problem.

  • 43%

    Memorization

    Remember things like words, numbers, pictures, and procedures.

  • 43%

    Perceptual speed

    Use your eyes to quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

  • 43%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.


Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 84%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 80%

    Checking compliance with standards

    Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.

  • 80%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 80%

    Planning and prioritising work

    Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.

  • 78%

    Collecting and organising information

    Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or checking information or data.

  • 78%

    Making sense of information and ideas

    Looking at, working with, and understanding data or information.

  • 77%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 76%

    Giving expert advice

    Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups.

  • 75%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 74%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 73%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 71%

    Coaching and developing others

    Working out the needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or helping them to improve.

  • 71%

    Coordinating the work of a team

    Getting members of a group to work together to finish a task.

  • 70%

    Documenting or recording information

    Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.

  • 70%

    Scheduling work and activities

    Working out the timing of events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

  • 69%

    Guiding and directing staff

    Guiding and directing staff, including setting and monitoring performance standards.

  • 67%

    Communicating with the public

    Giving information to the public, business or government by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 66%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.

  • 65%

    Leading and encouraging a team

    Encouraging and building trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.

  • 59%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.


Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 100%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 81%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.

  • 52%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 29%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 24%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

  • 14%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 71%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 67%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 67%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.

  • 62%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 62%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.

  • 60%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 100%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 96%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 96%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 95%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 91%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 90%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 90%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 90%

    Spend time sitting

    Spend time sitting at work.

  • 88%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 85%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 79%

    Responsible for outcomes

    Take responsibility for the results of other people's work.

  • 78%

    Competition

    Compete with others, or be aware of competitive pressures.

  • 78%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 78%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 75%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 72%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 72%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 72%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 71%

    Repeating same tasks

    Repeat the same tasks or activities (e.g., key entry) over and over, without stopping.

  • 62%

    Physically close to people

    Work physically close to other people.

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 13-2011.02 - Auditors.


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