In Pursuit of Profit
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Recent data shows that on average employees change jobs every 15 months. Contributing to this turnover is a lack of employee satisfaction in the workplace. Globally, 85% of employees are unhappy at work, resulting in diminished productivity and increased employee churn. Furthermore, survey data shows that 40% of dissatisfied employees change jobs as a result of their dissatisfaction. Top employers understand that replacing employees is expensive and can thwart efforts to innovate and grow revenue. In fact, it can cost up to a third of an employee’s salary to find a replacement. And while employee turnover can cost a company greatly, employee retention can increase profits as well as provide a host of other benefits. Reducing costs and boosting revenue makes employee retention a win-win. Improve employee retention rates this year by investing in your employees in six critical ways: The IRS lays out a set of six best practices that tax professionals must abide by to protect taxpayer data, referred to as the “Security Six.” While the phrase Security Six applies specifically to tax accountants, tax preparers, and tax auditors, anyone can (and should) follow these same safeguards with sensitive data. Additionally, if you are outsourcing your financial functions to a third-party bookkeeper or accountant, they should be taking these precautions on your behalf as a component of your overall cyber security strategy. Ask yourself what kind of security measures you have in place to protect your financial information and your customers’ information. How many of these Security Six protections are you using right now? Since March, 62% of employed Americans have worked from home, which is more than double the previous figures from earlier in 2020. Furthermore, 59% of these employees want to continue to work remotely, moving forward even after public health restrictions are lifted. This sentiment has led businesses to examine the costs of maintaining a remote workforce closely. They are asking:
Cybersecurity is always vital, but in recent months it has become more critical than ever before. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, hackers and fraudsters have capitalized on the disruption and increased their efforts to steal personal and business data. According to Jeff Bathurst, cybercriminals have used this as an opportunity to prey on companies that were not fully prepared to work in a completely remote environment. The pandemic quickly magnified any cybersecurity weaknesses that businesses had, and immediately after the pandemic hit, there was a 40% increase in cyberattacks. In April alone, criminals stole a staggering 220 million company and personal records. But pandemic or not, cybersecurity should be a top priority for every company. Understanding where your business is vulnerable and what it can do to stay protected will help you avoid cybersecurity issues. The possibility of business fraud is the dirty little secret that business owners tend to ignore. Unfortunately, there will always be unscrupulous individuals that try to take what is not theirs, even during hard times. Recent reports of bookkeeper fraud serve as a reminder to business owners that fraud never stops, even when businesses are down on their luck. In fact, a global fraud study found that, on average, companies lose 5% of their yearly revenue to fraudulent activities. While it is easy to imagine fraud occurring by faceless cybercriminals or strangers sneaking in to rob your company of cash and valuable assets, most perpetrators have deep ties to the business, and many are first-time offenders. Many times, the people you least expect are the ones responsible for fraudulent activity – long-time employees, close friends, and even family. These bonds can make it difficult to spot the warning signs, causing fraud to go undetected far longer than it should. The word ‘downsizing’ is often accompanied by a cloud of negative connotations, but it is rarely the result of poor employee performance or leadership mismanagement. Instead, downsizing usually results from other factors like an economic slowdown, overcrowded market, plant closure, or manufacturing outsourcing. Downsizing is simply part of running a business, just like managing rapid growth, which means that leadership must plan, manage, and execute it correctly. At the most basic level, managing downsizing requires four steps: developing selection criteria, determining how much notice to give, providing outplacement support to employees that have been let go (where applicable), and protecting employee productivity and morale among retained workers. These activities are typically considered part of HR’s purview, but downsizing has implications that trickle down into other areas of the business. There are numerous bookkeeping implications during downsizing as well.
Remote work has always been an attractive proposition to employers because they can maintain productivity while cutting costs. Prior to 2020 having a remote workforce was an optional decision. Despite the benefits, many companies still chose to maintain employees in-house to foster a positive organizational culture and reduce technology needs. However, the recent pandemic has proven that external factors can influence the workforce at any time. This has necessitated organizations to be ready to manage the challenges that accompany virtual work even if they do not plan to have employees working remotely permanently. Managing a remote workforce creates numerous barriers to “business as usual.” Cultural shifts occur, technology demands increase, security risks arise, performance criteria change, and bookkeeping must keep up as well. |
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1/4/2021