In Pursuit of Profit
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Your accountant just gave notice, what do you do now? Hopefully, your accountant gave you more than the obligatory two weeks, but regardless of what the timeframe looks like, the steps are the same:
Time is of the essence in this situation, especially if it coincides with a closing period or tax season, so you should get started immediately! Many business owners worry that their accountant may not be up to par. This is especially true when business owners do not have strong financial acumen themselves. They wonder if their accountant is truly acting with the company’s best interests in mind and whether they have the skillset needed to do the job well. But without significant financial expertise, business owners often do not know what to look for to quell their concerns. Instead, many just focus on the day-to-day needs of the business and hope the financial leadership of their company is being handled effectively. This is a big mistake. A lack of connection to the company’s financial operations can land a business owner in trouble quickly if an accountant has misrepresented their experience or lacks key financial knowledge. In other instances, an accountant may have all the requisite qualifications, but lacks the work ethic or integrity to do excellent work for their employer. So, how does a business owner know if their accountant is doing a good job? Do you know how much time your company is spending on bookkeeping activities like accounts receivable (AR), accounts payable (AP), bank reconciliations, financial reporting, and reimbursements? Or are you of the opinion that it doesn’t matter as long as it is getting done? In many small companies these responsibilities fall to the business owners, adding another hat to the stack that they are already wearing. In these instances, it can be difficult to determine how much time is truly being spent on bookkeeping because it is being squeezed in throughout the day and week where there is room. However, until you know how much time you and your employees are spending on bookkeeping and accounting functions, you will not be able to do an effective cost-benefit analysis to determine if it makes more sense to outsource these activities. Additionally, knowing where you are spending your time means you will better be able to define the role you are looking to hire or outsource to get the right fit for your company, which works to improve employee retention – not just among financial staff, but among all employees. This kind of information can help determine whether you need a bookkeeper or an accountant and whether the role should be part-time or full-time. The solution is to use time tracking software to keep a log of which activities are being done when and how much time it takes to do them. There are plenty of resources about the benefits of outsourcing, yet many business owners are still resistant to outsource their bookkeeping. Even businesses that outsource other activities tend to keep a tight grasp on their financial functions. Because cash flow is so important to small businesses, bookkeeping and accounting tend to be some of the last functions that business owners are willing to relinquish control of when they formulate strategic growth plans. But why? Why are some business owners still against outsourcing their bookkeeping? Cloud accounting is accounting software that allows you to keep the books online for your business. Financial data is encrypted and then hosted on a remote server instead of in-house for greater accessibility. With cloud accounting software (sometimes referred to as “online accounting software” or “web-based accounting software”) data is saved to the cloud and accessed by users on demand. In a nutshell, Users subscribe to an online accounting software solution and move their books to the cloud. From then on, they can access their accounts from any web browser, or from an app on their phone. Most users connect the software to their business bank account, so that banking transactions flow automatically from the bank to the books. This saves them from a lot of data entry. Some accounting software companies, like QuickBooks, have both desktop and online versions, while other companies offer only cloud-based options. The QuickBooks cloud-based software, QuickBooks Online, remains one of the most widely used accounting platforms year after year. However, companies like Xero, Zoho, Wave, FreshBooks, GoDaddy, 17hats have been growing in popularity recently.
While widespread accessibility is the primary reason companies choose to use cloud accounting software, there are many benefits to consider when determining whether cloud accounting is right for you. How is your bookkeeper doing right now? Is your bookkeeper focused and able to do high-quality work, or stuck in the weeds and struggling to keep up with business demands? Bookkeeper burnout is extremely common because bookkeepers are often asked to do more than their job description would indicate that they should be handling. This is especially true at small businesses, where everything including the kitchen sink is often thrown at bookkeepers because there are just not enough employees to do everything. Professional burnout leads to carelessness and poor-quality work, which is especially dangerous when the work is managing the company’s finances. Burnout among bookkeepers can lead to errors, sloppy work, and missed deadlines that can jeopardize ongoing cash flow and future profitability. The best way to avoid overwhelming your bookkeeper is to have a strictly defined role and stick to it, hiring additional personnel to handle other tasks where needed. So, what should be included in your bookkeeper’s duties and what should not? Cost cutting is the benefit most often associated with outsourcing. Subsequently, business leaders looking to reduce expenses may jump at the opportunity to move costly functions to third-party vendors without regard to the numerous ways that outsourcing can be advantageous to other areas of the company. However, it is important to recognize that while cost savings may occur, this is not the only benefit of business outsourcing. In fact, cost cutting may not even be the biggest benefit. 2020 has been a year of disruptions and reactions. Companies have reacted to supply chain interruptions, new regulations, shifting market demand, and staffing issues, among other challenges with some faring better than others. Marcus Wagner explains, “Because of COVID-19, businesses and their accounting departments are going through a cycle of shock (and maybe some denial), survival, learning and adaptation. For those of you who haven’t done so yet, it’s critical to begin the shift into the learning and adaptation phases as quickly as possible so we emerge stronger as a result." Adapting has been critical thus far and will continue to be as we move into 2021. An adaptation mindset allows your business to respond to current challenges and anticipate future disruptions to generate better financial outcomes. Companies with accounting teams that adapt quickly can minimize revenue loss during a downturn and capitalize on revenue opportunities faster during a recovery period. Outsourcing is not a new concept. In fact, according to survey data, 37% of small businesses outsource at least one business process already. More technical tasks like accounting, IT services, and digital marketing are the most likely to be outsourced, but any business process can be handled by a third-party.
With less than 15% of business owners and managers reporting that they “feel like they are spending their time on the right activities,” outsourcing provides a huge opportunity to reprioritize your activities and drive the business forward. As Matthew Grattan explains, “As costs and competition increase, it’s time to ditch the ‘I can do it all myself’ mentality and offload those onerous back-office tasks.” While outsourcing can certainly be used to offload tedious activities, it can also be used strategically to obtain professional expertise in critical areas. Outsourcing frees up more time for selling and merchandising, which is especially important during times of significant growth. Many companies rely heavily on outsourced activities to scale up operations as new business opportunities become available. But what should small businesses outsource exactly? Do you need to hire a bookkeeper? If you are asking the question, the answer is yes! Most commonly bookkeepers are brought in due to lack of time, lack of financial expertise, or growing business complexities. Whether a bookkeeper is freeing up time for an owner to engage in revenue driving activities or providing deeper financial knowledge, this professional role can be a crucial hire at a growing business. When you are looking to hire a bookkeeper for your small business, will any bookkeeper do? Or do you need a bookkeeper that specifically works with small businesses? And, what can a small business bookkeeper offer that you cannot do yourself with QuickBooks or another accounting software? |
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4/19/2021