Guessing is not a strategy: How to build decision velocity with AI and real-time data
June 10, 2026 | Live Webinar
Money Talk
Treat your business unit accountants like any other subject matter expert, and learn to speak their language. You will not only have a better working relationship with the bean counters; you’ll be able to serve as translator for your team’s non-technical members, leading to a smoother-running, on-budget project.
Accountants are a special breed of people. They live in their own world of debits, credits and balance sheets, and thrive on precision and decimals. And since money is one of the biggest constraints of any project, you can expect them to review your work with a fine-tooth comb — and you can expect them to find the occasional problem. After all, who among us has never seen a project with a budget that’s too optimistic?
Bear in mind that when accountants do this, they’re only doing their job. It won’t help matters to bitch and moan and play the enemy. Instead, as a good project manager, you should partner with your friendly bean counter and learn to speak their language. It won’t hurt you to take a course or two in the basics of finance. (In fact, it may even help. Good project managers are always looking to expand their skills.)
Remember that accountants plan for the long term — not in hours, days or weeks, but in months, quarters and years. Why? Because the job has a cyclical schedule. Once a month, the books must be balanced and closed, after which all kinds of…
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"Life is to be lived. If you have to support yourself, you had bloody well better find some way that is going to be interesting. And you don't do that by sitting around wondering about yourself." - Katharine Hepburn |