Accounting Clerk Interview Questions to Ask

Accounting clerk sitting at her desk, talking on the phone, and putting documents into a desk file.

When you’re hiring an accounting clerk for your firm, it’s essential to find someone who has the financial acumen to help your team with essential accounting tasks like bookkeeping and managing payroll. They also need to collaborate well with colleagues, be detail-oriented, and have a strong work ethic. These accounting clerk interview questions can help you determine which candidate is a great match for your company.

Questions to Break the Ice

Allowing the candidate to warm up with some general, easy-to-answer questions will help get the interview off to a great start for both the candidate and interviewer. Some questions to break the ice include:

  • What interested you in applying to this role and company?
  • What do you like the most about being an accounting clerk?
  • What do you like the least about being an accounting clerk?

Questions That Gauge Communication and Analytical Skills

Knowing which questions to ask candidates will help you find the ideal hire whom you can trust with your financial and office-related tasks. These questions will dig deeper into their level of analytic knowledge and communication skills. Some examples include:

  • How do you prepare financial reports?
  • How do you deal with financial discrepancies?
  • Which accounting software do you like to use? Why?

Questions That Assess Experience

Ask experience-based interview questions to assess whether a candidate can has the skills and experience to handle the job responsibilities. Keep in mind that a candidate who is missing some of the requirements but has a  strong work ethic and growth mindset is likely to be able to learn quickly on-the-job. Here are some accounting clerk interview questions you can ask to evaluate a candidate’s past work experience:

  • Which accounting software do you use?
  • What educational and/or on-the-job training have you had?
  • What are your biggest professional strengths and weaknesses?

Questions That Assess Behavior 

These accounting clerk interview questions will help you determine how candidates are likely to handle situations they face on-the-job. Behavioral interview questions require candidates to reflect on how they handled situations in their previous jobs. Situational interview questions require candidates to share how they’d manage situations they are likely to face at your company. Here are some questions you can ask:

  • Tell me about a project you’re proud of and why it’s meaningful?
  • Tell me about a challenging project. How did you complete it?
  • What would you do if you realized you made a mistake? How would you resolve it?

Put These Accounting Clerk Interview Questions to Work

Before you start asking these accounting clerk interview questions, you’ll need to find candidates that fit the job description. Find out how we can speed up your hiring process with a free job posting.

Accounting clerk sitting at her desk, talking on the phone, and putting documents into a desk file.