There are several types of functions fulfilled by the accounting department within a business. These accounting functions are noted below.

Financial Accounting

The financial accounting group records accounting transactions and converts the resulting information into financial statements. Its primary responsibility is to generate financial statements and the related disclosures that fairly reflect the financial results and condition of the organization. Its primary beneficiary is outsiders, such as investors, creditors, and lenders.

Management Accounting

The management accounting group examines the financial and operational results of a business, looking for opportunities to enhance the results and financial position of the entity. They can also advise management in regard to the setting of prices. Their primary beneficiary is the management team. This group may participate in cost analysis projects throughout an organization.

Tax Accounting

The tax accounting group ensures that the business complies with the applicable tax regulations, which usually means ensuring that tax returns are completed correctly and filed in a timely manner. The group can also engage in tax planning, with the intent of deferring or eliminating tax payments. Their primary beneficiary is the management team. In addition, the work of the tax accounting staff can defer tax payments, which increases the reported cash flows of a business, which in turn may enhance its share price. Consequently, an indirect beneficiary of the tax accounting group is investors.

Internal Auditing

The internal auditing group examines company processes and controls to spot control weaknesses, fraud, waste, and mismanagement. They can also advise on the best control systems to apply to different processes, or how to alter existing controls. Their work benefits both the management team (by eliminating excessive expenditures) and investors (by reducing the risk of loss).

Social Accounting

Social accounting measures the environmental and social impact of an organization. This approach goes beyond the normal formulation of financial statements to also measure a firm's impact on stakeholders. Thus, social accounting can be used to determine the accountability of an organization. This approach is an especially useful tool for nonprofits and government entities, since their missions are more targeted at improving socially and environmentally relevant activities. The active measurement and use of social accounting allows managers to focus on those actions that are especially important to stakeholders, thereby improving the acceptance of the organization over the long term.

Some positions within the department may be involved in several of these functions, though internal auditing personnel usually have no other duties, in order to be perceived as independent from the functions that they are reviewing.