How To Become A Fiscal Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a fiscal manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

For the fiscal manager, it's all about the money. They make sure that an organization's finances are in tip-top shape and that the balance books are in good health. No stray expense, suspicious deduction, or inefficient department can escape the fiscal manager's eagle eye.

A fiscal manager can work for a private business or government agency, wherever there is money to be managed. They make sure that an organization follows its budget, takes care of any accounting tasks, including audits, and manages the payroll. Sometimes, the fiscal manager's job includes cooperating with outside auditors or managing an organization's IPO. Basically, anything that has to do with money eventually comes under their jurisdiction.

Fiscal managers need to know a lot about money and financial procedures to succeed. Often, they get this knowledge from a bachelor's or master's degree and practical experience in the world of accounting.

ScoreFiscal ManagerUS Average

Salary

4.8

Avg. Salary $61,354

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

9.5

Growth Rate 17%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.4

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.34%

Asian 8.81%

Black or African American 7.80%

Hispanic or Latino 15.04%

Unknown 4.11%

White 63.89%

Gender

female 65.20%

male 34.80%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress Level

9.5

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

9.3

Complexity Level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

4.9

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a fiscal manager

Explore fiscal manager education requirements

Most common fiscal manager degrees

Bachelor's

62.3 %

Master's

15.5 %

Associate

15.3 %

Start to develop specific fiscal manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Fiscal Management	7.70%
Payroll Taxes	6.18%
General Ledger	4.55%
Federal Regulations	4.40%
Fiscal Policies	4.32%

Complete relevant fiscal manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New fiscal managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a fiscal manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real fiscal manager resumes.

Research fiscal manager duties and responsibilities

Manage the annual audit process; working with auditors to ensure programs compliance and GAAP.
Manage accounting operations, accounting close, account reporting & reconciliations.
Manage bank reconciliations, financial analysis, and monthly reporting, ensuring accuracy and completeness of data.
Coordinate annual audit with CPA firm.

Prepare your fiscal manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your fiscal manager resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a fiscal manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Fiscal Manager Resume templates

Build a professional Fiscal Manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Fiscal Manager resume.

Apply for fiscal manager jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a fiscal manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do fiscal managers rate their job?