Do accountants NEED to have good communication skills?

Absolutely !!!

In any role you need good communication skills, hence teamwork is a a major recruitment criteria. It's no longer can you do the job, but will you and do you fit in the team?

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Everyone who does anything has to deal with customers, clients, patients, etc. It is imperative to have good communication skills, and to replicate the message in verbal as well as written form. As an accountant, your clients, your boss, your co-workers will expect and demand that you keep them informed, not only of what you are doing, but what they need to do to become more profitable, save on taxes, keep out of legal trouble (with tax or employment laws), establish internal controls, etc and so on.

It's just not enough these days to beat around the bush, sometimes you have to mow that sucker down. Get in their face and tell them that if they don't straighten up and fix the problems, they'll be closed by the first of the year.

You can always tell them till you're blue in the face if you like, just remember, they don't have to listen to or act on what you tell them.

On the other hand, if something is communicated well and rejected, it doesn't take much when it becomes their idea a year later. :)

Depends on what they are doing. In some functions it helps in others it isn't necessary.

I've found an interesting behavior set among managers who are not functional listeners (or technically ignorant affirmative action placements at the head of accounting functions). They exhibit a destructive behavior of not attempting to correct their own shortcoming and project it on subordinates as not being able to communicate. The personnel departments seem to have bought this hook, line, and sinker.

No matter how good the accountant is at his job (or the scientist, historian, etc.), it doesn't do much good if the results of his work are not communicated to the people that were meant to benefit by it.

it depends on what you look like, nelly. if you look cute and blonde enough, you just have to know how to say "yes". your boss will take care of the rest.