25 Finance Manager Interview Questions & Answers
Below is a list of our Finance Manager interview questions. Click on any interview question to view our answer advice and answer examples. You may view 5 answer examples before our paywall loads. Afterwards, you'll be asked to upgrade to view the rest of our answers.
Table of Contents
Behavioral
1. Have you ever had to explain complex accounting concepts to non-finance leaders? How did you go about that task?
How to Answer
This is a question to gain insight into your communication skills. Finance Managers and other financial leaders will often need to present to other leaders and colleagues who may not have strong financial backgrounds. Give a specific example of a time when you were able to communicate with other non-finance functions..
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"When I was Finance Manager at ABC Retailers, we noticed that bad debt expense was higher than normal. After analyzing the situation, we determined that our sales teams would need to change their product selection in order to return bad debt expense to an acceptable level. In order to do this effectively, I first needed to explain what we were seeing on the financial reporting side and the impact to the financial statements. I created a deck that laid out some concepts like accrual accounting and the components of how bad debt expense was measured. These were concepts I knew the audience would not be familiar with. Then I also gave examples of what steps could be taken from the sales side and the impact it would have financially. This process helped the sales team understand the importance of getting bad debt under control."
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Behavioral
2. Where do you see yourself in five years?
How to Answer
DO highlight that you want to continue growing professionally and help the company grow. DO NOT say you want the interviewer's role. The interviewer is probing to see that you aren't using this role as a quick stop before moving on to another organization.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"If I am fortunate enough to be hired for this role, my goal in the near term is to get up to speed on my responsibilities and learn as much as possible about the organization and my team. For my first year, I want to be a sponge and soak in as much as I can. From there, as long as I feel empowered to drive growth for the company and continue learning and growing professionally, I think I would be very fulfilled."
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
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Behavioral
3. How do you keep up with the latest developments in accounting and financial reporting practices?
How to Answer
This question is to see if you take the initiative to stay current on the latest accounting developments. If you are a CPA, talk about how you use mandatory continuing education requirements to stay up to date on the latest trends and regulations. Also, subscribing to e-letters and joining trade groups are other great ways to keep current on relevant developments.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"I stay up to date in various ways. First, as a CPA I am required to obtain 80 hours of continuing education every two years. I use this to my advantage by taking courses that are most relevant to my organization's industry and my job responsibilities. Additionally, I like to absorb information in other ways such as reading newsletters and participating in industry groups. I am always looking for ways to expand my knowledge."
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Behavioral
4. Identify a time when you made a mistake and the actions you took to correct it.
How to Answer
Everyone makes mistakes, so don't be tempted to say you don't! This is a good opportunity to show that you don't let a bad situation become worse. It is an opportunity to speak to your honor and integrity.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"One time in my Financial Analyst role I noticed I had made an error in a calculation that impacted the monthly financial reporting package. The financial package had already been distributed to the leadership team. I was embarrassed, but I knew the situation would be made worse if I waited or failed to say anything. I told the Finance Director what had happened, and we agreed that it was best if I made the correction and then redistribute the package. It ended up not being a huge deal, but it drove me to review my work even more thoroughly before distributing to others."
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Behavioral
5. What are some methods you use to motivate your team?
How to Answer
The job of a finance professional can be stressful. As a leader, you will be expected to not only manage your employees but also help motivate them to complete difficult assignments and 'stay sane' during the more hectic times.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"First and foremost, I motivate my team by setting a good example. I show enthusiasm for new projects, find the best in all our partners in the organization, and try to keep things light. Second, I understand that not all team members are motivated by the same incentives. Some enjoy praise for their work, while others like to be rewarded with more responsibility. Getting to know my team members and what motivates them is key for any good leader. Third, I like to 'let loose' with my team during slower times. In the past, we have gone bowling, gone to a baseball game and had holiday parties."
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
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Behavioral
6. How do you mitigate and manage stress?
How to Answer
The Finance Manager position is stressful as it is visible to leadership and is constrained by tight deadlines. The role is responsible not only for their team but also for presenting their work to leadership and other departments. Stress is inherent, and this question helps assess how you would manage the stress.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"Due to tight deadlines and the demands of the Finance Manager role, stress is inevitable. However, there are steps I take to help mitigate stress. First, I try to spread out the work as much as possible. This includes completing the tasks I can before the crunch of monthly reporting begins. Also, spreading work amongst my team helps take things off of my plate so I can focus on higher priority items. When I do feel stressed, I like to travel and read books to help alleviate the stress."
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Behavioral
7. What skills or qualities do you believe a good leader should possess?
How to Answer
Highlight that a good leader should have the ability to train their employees (patience/educator), trust/inspire their employees (trustful/not a micromanager/motivational), and be able to anticipate and react to changes (analytical/curious/flexible/nimble).
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"I believe a good leader should be able to both help their company and their people grow. To help their company grow, I believe that a leader should be analytical and flexible so that they can anticipate and react to changing situations. To help their employees grow, I think a leader should be able to educate, motivate and trust their employees."
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Behavioral
8. What skills or qualities do you believe a good Finance Manager should possess?
How to Answer
Highlight that an Finance Manager should have good technical skills (in other words, they have the knowledge to do the job), an analytical mind (curious/inquisitive) and will be thorough when it comes to reviewing statements/catching errors (detail oriented/meticulous).
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"I believe a good Finance Manager should first have the technical skills required to do the job. They should have a thorough understanding of accounting, the budgeting process, and other relevant knowledge areas. Secondly, the person should be analytical and persistent in their pursuit of an answer. This is extremely helpful when investigating variances. Finally, I believe that a good Finance Manager should be able to limit errors and mistakes by being detail oriented and meticulous when it comes to reviewing work."
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Behavioral
9. What is your experience with presenting to senior executives?
How to Answer
A Finance Manager is expected to not only prepare monthly financial reporting packages, but also be able to present their work to leadership. Highlight that you not only have experience presenting in front of leadership, but also that you are comfortable doing it. Be specific with what you presented. For example, monthly results, pitches for new initiatives, etc.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
" I have ample experience getting in front of leadership and presenting. In my previous role as finance manager, I would present to the CEO, CFO and other senior leaders during our monthly Finance Review meetings. I always felt the need to prepare in advance for any questions that might arise, and would often circle back promptly on follow-ups that developed during those meetings."
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Behavioral
10. Describe how previous experience has prepared you for the Finance Manager role.
How to Answer
Use this opportunity to expand on your experience as it specifically relates to the Finance Manager role. Some key areas to highlight, if applicable, include: performing 'nuts and bolts' accounting functions in early roles (journal entries, balance sheet recs, etc), managing staff, and involvement in the budgeting and forecasting process.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"I believe my past experience in previous roles has prepared me well for the Finance Manager position. I have a strong foundation in financial accounting, having started my career as a staff accountant where I was heavily involved in the monthly close process Next I moved over to the financial planning and analysis side of finance, where I learned how to budget and forecast. I was then promoted to a manager role where I developed 'soft skills' that helped me become a better leader."
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Behavioral
11. Why do you want to work for XYZ Corporation?
How to Answer
This question is an opportunity to show that you did your research. Speak about why the company itself is attractive. Tie in how the company is a great place to utilize your skills and experience.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"I have always been interested in travel, and XYZ corporation is one of the leaders in the hotel space. They have been named Hotelier of the Year by Travel Magazine the last three years. They are world-renowned for innovation, which aligns nicely with my professional mindset. The opportunity to apply my analytical skills and experience to such a premier organization would be an amazing opportunity."
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Behavioral
12. How would your management style change if your employees and team members worked remotely full time or part time?
How to Answer
Many professionals are working remotely in the wake of the pandemic. Even as things return to normal, a partial or full remote work environment may be common in the future. Speak to changes to your management style that you have implemented in previous roles.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"The pandemic has allowed me to revisit how I manage my team and adjust in a few areas. For example, I realize that I must be more flexible as each team member has unique family and other demands that impact their work-life balance. This forced me to adjust deadlines to focus on higher priority deliverables. Additionally, I can no longer drop by my team members' desks to catch up so I started scheduling weekly check-ins."
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Technical
13. What experience do you have with analyzing business metrics?
How to Answer
Business metrics are key performance indicators that can be used to measure the financial health of the company. A Finance Manager should be able to calculate relevant metrics and compare vs benchmarks. For example, Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) measures the health of Accounts Receivable. If the days outstanding get too high, there is an issue with collecting receivables which could present a cash flow problem.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"In my last role as Financial Analyst, I created a one page summary entitled Health of Financial Indicators that would be prepared along with the monthly financial reports. The summary included metrics such as Days Sales Outstanding, Days Payable Outstanding, and Free Cash Flow Conversion Rate. The report allowed myself and leadership to identify any trends in the business that should be looked at further. How do you currently utilize metrics in your financial analysis here at XYZ Corporation?"
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Technical
14. What is the role of a Finance Manager as you understand it?
How to Answer
You may want to touch on most of the following key Finance Manager responsibilities: prepare monthly financial reports with analysis of variances; manage the annual budget and long range plan process; mange reforecasting throughout the year; plan and analyze free cash flow; liaison with other departments such as accounting, tax and treasury
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"The Finance Manager role has many responsibilities. First, the Finance Manager role is responsible for directing the financial reporting and analysis process. This includes producing monthly reporting packages with variance analysis. A Finance Manager also coordinates the annual budget and LRP process, as well as reforecasting throughout the year. They must liaison with other departments such as treasury, tax and accounting. Finally, they must be an effective leader of team members."
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Technical
15. What is free cash flow and what does it tell about a company's finances?
How to Answer
Free Cash Flow (FCF) is the cash a company generates from operations less expenditures for capital expenditures and other assets. FCF is a measure of profitability, and it tells investors how much cash is available for a company to repay creditors or pay dividends. At many organizations, a Finance Manager may be required to forecast and report on free cash flow. Even if not, it's still important for the candidate to know what free cash flow is.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"Free Cash Flow is a measure of a company's profitability, but unlike net income it focuses on how much cash the company generates from operations after adjusting for spend on capital expenditures and other assets. Cash is king, and free cash flow tells investors how much money is available for dividends and payments to creditors. Low or unhealthy Free Cash Flow would be a concern for many investors."
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Technical
16. Do you have experience handling massive amounts of data? Give an example of how you used data to solve a problem?
How to Answer
Due to the advancement of technology, Finance Managers and other finance professionals have the ability to take massive amounts of data and analyze it . Give a specific example of a time when you used data to answer a question or solve a problem.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"Yes, we use Big Data frequently at my current employer, ABC Retailers. One way we were able to use Big Data to our advantage was for analyzing sales returns. We noticed return rates were coming in higher, and we were able to pull thousands of rows of transaction-level data and filter by customer type. This allowed us to catch that new customers were driving our return rate higher. We created a dashboard that allows us to view this data each month as part of our analysis."
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Technical
17. Have you ever been involved in accounting and financial reporting software implementations?
How to Answer
It is common for companies to change or upgrade their software every few years. A Finance Manager is heavily involved with all stages of the implementation. The implementation of these updates typically involves meetings with all stakeholders and user acceptance testing (UAT) to ensure proper implementation
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"Yes, at my current company we implemented new software two years ago. I was heavily involved with the process. First, we met with the IT consultants who were managing the implementation. In these meetings we discussed how we currently used our current software for financial reporting and analysis and what enhancements we would like to implement. Then, as the modules were built out I participated in user acceptance testing to make sure the modules were working properly. Finally, when modules were finalized I trained others on my team."
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Technical
18. What is your approach to budgeting, forecasting and other forward-looking projections?
How to Answer
Budgeting and forecasting are core responsibilities of the Finance Manager position. Forward looking projections are part art and part science, so this question is being asked to learn about your thought process when there is some gray area.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"As Financial Analyst, I was responsible for the annual budget for several divisions, as well as reforecasting results throughout the year. As a starting point, my approach is to always use last year as a benchmark. Then, I apply any changes that I am aware of. For example, are there changes in current trends that need to be taken into account? Knowing that budgeting and forecasting is partially subjective, I try to have sound reasoning behind my methodology so that I am able to support my projections."
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Technical
19. What are some benchmarks that you compare actual results to when completing monthly analysis?
How to Answer
When analyzing actual results, a Finance Manager should compare to benchmarks. Most commonly, comparisons will be to last year actuals, budget and prior forecast. Actual vs forecast should theoretically have the lowest variances, as it was built off the most recent information. Actuals vs last year may have some 'noise' - variances from big items that occurred last year but not in current year, or vice versa. The current year budget may or may not have accounted for this 'noise'.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"There are three benchmarks that I typically use to analyze actual results. The first benchmark is vs last year. Actuals vs last year will help explain growth and decline in various accounts vs the previous year. Many external parties, such as investors, are interested in performance vs last year. The second benchmark is vs budget. At the beginning of the year, we built the annual budget which essentially lays out targets for the year. Each month, we want to analyze how we are doing vs budget so that business practices can be adjusted in order to realize full year budget targets. The third benchmark is vs prior forecast. Each month we prepare a forecast for the remainder of the year, and we use this benchmark to analyze how close actuals came to our expectations."
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Technical
20. Do you have experience using data visualization software?
How to Answer
Data visualization software, such as Tableau, has been implemented at various companies in recent years. Depending on the role you are interviewing for, knowledge of data visualization software may either be a requirement or a 'plus'. Speak to what functions you can perform with the software.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"Yes, we use Tableau at my current company. I am able to build dashboards in Tableau for various analyses, including sales mix and free cash flow. These dashboards allow me to drill down to the detail as needed to research variances. I also utilize Tableau to create attractive tables and graphs that can be used in reporting decks for leadership."
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Technical
21. Give an example of a time when you took a manual process and made it automated.
How to Answer
Innovative companies are always looking for ways to improve their processes. Many times, financial processes have been carried over from previous years and could use a refresh. Give a specific example of a time when you took a clunky process and made it more efficient.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"In my previous role as Financial Analyst, I improved a process related to our forecast workbooks. The legacy method of updating our forecasts was very manual, and involved copying and pasting in Excel workbooks. I brought this up to our internal IT team, and together we created a process by which we could map financial data from our data warehouse to automated reports. This allowed us to create most of the workbook with a click of a button, which allowed more time for us to analyze each month."
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Technical
22. What ERP systems have you used?
How to Answer
ERP systems are robust software systems that combine accounting and reporting with other functionality such as inventory management, payroll, etc. Popular systems include SAP, Hyperion and Oracle. Being able to effectively use these systems are a must for a Finance Manager and their team.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"At my last company we used SAP. Specifically, I utilized SAP to generate financial reports, drill down to transaction level detail, and run custom queries to feed robust analysis reports. I have also used Hyperion and Oracle in previous roles, so I welcome the challenge of learning a new software and getting it to work for my needs."
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Technical
23. What is the difference between cash flow as presented on the Statement of Cash Flows and Free Cash Flow?
How to Answer
This is a technical question that tests whether you know the difference between two common measures of cash flow. The main difference is Free Cash Flow excludes cash from financing activities (loan proceeds, dividends paid) while the Statement of Cash Flows includes those inflows and outflows.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"Free Cash Flow is typically defined as cash that is available for financing and dividends to shareholders. Therefore, free cash flow excludes financing activities such as loan proceeds and repayments and dividends to shareholders, while the statement of cash flows includes those items in the calculation of cash flow generated."
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Technical
24. What tools do you use to perform the duties of a Finance Manager?
How to Answer
A Finance Manager will need several tools in order to perform the duties of their role. First, they need to be able to access accounting data. To this end, they will need access to accounting systems (such as SAP). Additionally, many large companies use reporting software, such as BPC, to run automated financial reports. Lastly, data visualization software is becoming more utilized across many companies (Tableau, for example).
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"In order to successfully do their job, a Finance Manager should use several tools. First and foremost, they will need to be able to view and export accounting records by having access to the company's accounting software. Next, they will need to be able to pull reports by utilizing a reporting add-on, such as BPC. Additionally, having access to Tableau or another data visualization software suite will help a Finance Manager analyze data and create tables and graphs for presentation decks."
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Technical
25. How have you managed the annual budget process in previous roles?
How to Answer
At most companies with December 31st year-ends, the budget process can kick off as early as summer and normally wraps up in December or January. Describe important parts of the process, such as where targets are obtained from, the budget build, and review process. It may be good dialogue to then ask the interviewer how the company's process differs from the one you described.
Written by Brian Schuchart on January 1st, 2021
Answer Example
"In my previous role, we began the budget process in September. Targets for the upcoming year were developed by the CEO and CFO based on acceptable growth rates. Then, each division built up their budgets based on the targets. Our approach was to use the current year forecast as a jumping off point, and then adjusted based on the top-down direction. In addition to building the detailed monthly budget, we developed budget decks which we reviewed with the CFO. There were several iterations of the budget before it was finalized in early January. How does that compare to the budget process at XYZ Corporation?"
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