20 tasks, each one witnessed by the sources that watched the job — and behind every one, a prompt you can use tonight.
You start by matching bank statements to the company ledger — usually in Microsoft Excel or SAP — and flag differences. That means importing bank files, running reconciliation reports, and noting outstanding checks or deposits.
Afternoons often include running cash forecasts in Adaptive Planning, updating Power BI dashboards for treasury, and emailing managers in Outlook about unclear items. Expect periodic meetings to approve funding requests or to advise on short-term cash decisions.
You’ll use Microsoft Excel every day for line-by-line reconciliations, VLOOKUPs/XLOOKUPs, and pivot tables. SAP often stores the official ledger and posted transactions that you reconcile to.
For forecasting and budget controls use Adaptive Planning; for visual reports use Microsoft Power BI. SQL is useful when pulling bulk transactions from databases. Word, PowerPoint and Outlook are for formal notes, presentations and stakeholder communication.
Begin with Excel: strong formulas, pivot tables, and bank-reconciliation templates — practice reconciling sample bank statements to a ledger. Take short online courses or use company sample files if available.
Then learn SAP basics (how to navigate the general ledger and export reports) and Adaptive Planning for cash forecasts. Basic SQL (SELECT, JOIN) helps you pull transaction tables. Build one Power BI dashboard that shows cash position and unreconciled items.
Yes, but use AI carefully. Use it for routine text tasks: summarizing discrepancies, drafting emails, or suggesting formula fixes in Excel. Always verify AI outputs against the ledger and bank files — don’t let it post or approve transactions.
Never disclose full bank account numbers or confidential customer data to public AI tools. If your company permits generative AI, use it only on anonymized or internal models and log what it changed for audit purposes.
Bank reconciliation analysts focus on matching bank records to the company’s ledger and clearing timing differences; tasks are transaction-level and routine-heavy. Accountants may do broader month-end closes and tax or audit work.
Treasury analysts focus more on liquidity management, investments, and funding strategy. You’ll touch forecasting and budgeting (Adaptive Planning) and advise managers, but you won’t usually manage corporate investments or debt issuances.
Attention to detail plus pattern recognition. Good analysts spot repeating timing issues, unexpected fees, or systematic posting errors across months, not just single mismatches.
That skill lets you suggest process fixes (ERP mappings in SAP, bank import routines, or Power BI alerts) so the same reconciliation item stops reappearing. It saves hours each month and reduces audit findings.
You’ll deliver reconciled bank accounts with zero material differences at month-end, usually a set number of accounts (for example, 10–50 bank accounts depending on company size). You’ll also prepare cash forecasts in Adaptive Planning and variance reports in Excel or Power BI.
Other outputs include approved funding recommendations, budget adherence checks, and documentation for audits: reconciliations saved, SQL extracts used, and emails or Word summaries explaining unresolved items.