Finding and then hiring a good bookkeeper or outsourced bookkeeping service can be a challenging task.  It can be especially difficult to hire a bookkeeper if you don't need or can't afford a full-time person.  If you are a small business chances are that your bookkeeping only takes a few hours per week or even per month.  It is also very possible that you can handle all of the bookkeeping tasks by yourself.  My question is not only do you really want to, but also can you afford to?  Here is a quick guide to figure out if you need to hire a part-time bookkeeper and how to go about it.

Identify the Need:

Do you really need a bookkeeper?  First question: do you actually enjoy doing the bookkeeping or do you dread it?  Personally I can relate this to home repair tasks.  Can I do them?  Sure, some of them.  Do I like doing home repairs?  For the most part no.  Are there other things I am better at that I would rather be doing?  Yes, at the moment getting out and riding my bike.  If you don't like handling the bookkeeping find a professional that does.  Second question: Is handling your businesses bookkeeping holding you back from moving your business forward?  Are you no longer performing the business tasks you enjoy and are good at?  If you answered yes then I would ask: can you really afford not to outsource your bookkeeping?  Typically a business owner's time is much more valuable if spent running the business and not wasting it on an administrative task such as bookkeeping.  As an example if you bill between $100-$200 an hour for your services you should focus on selling, and you should outsource your bookkeeping.   

Find a bookkeeper or bookkeeping service:

I would be terrified to be hiring a bookkeeper, especially on a part-time basis.  I can picture myself stewing around my office thinking "this guy or gal better impress me right away and say all the right things."  I mean think about it, if you do hire someone to handle your bookkeeping you are handing over some very sensitive information.  You better find someone you can trust and is reputable.  If it were me I would definitely start with asking my trusted associates in my business network who they use for their bookkeeping.  When I need something I always start with asking someone I trust for a referral.  I would also look around for a few bookkeeping services that specialize specifically in your industry or business size.

Interviewing and hiring a bookkeeper:

So you have identified that you need or want to outsource your bookkeeping.  You found some good potential candidates to interview for the position.  Now how do you decide who to hire?  I would try and ask all the right questions.  If I were hiring someone part-time I would ask why a part-time position would work for them.  Do you have questions about the security of your financial information?  Are you worried about giving your new bookkeeper access to your financial life?  You should be.  I would ask how they plan to keep your information secure.  Also, how do you know that your bookkeeper won't steal from you?  Ask the tough questions that you are actually concerned about.  And finally ask them something about themselves outside of the business world.  I prefer to work with people that have similar interests and a similar lifestyle to me, or at the very least have a life outside of work. 

Have you ever thought of outsourcing part of your business?  What concerns do you have? 

If you are thinking of outsourcing your bookkeeping to someone and have any concerns feel free to reach out to me.  

As a small business bookkeeper I deal with all sorts of businesses and different types of business owners.  That is what makes my job interesting and fun.  Typically when a new business owner starts out they either can’t afford a bookkeeper or think they can do the bookkeeping on their own.  I DO think that it is a good idea for a business owner to do the bookkeeping in the early stages of the business so that they understand the financial aspect of their business.  This will prove invaluable when analyzing your financial reports later on in the life of the business.  Usually once a business owner gets overwhelmed by their bookkeeping I get a call, and more often than not the books are a mess.  So to help out these owners and hopefully help myself I would like to offer six simple steps to keep your business financials organized. 

  1.  Get some type of accounting software – I will highly recommend Xero Cloud Based Accounting Solutions.  I tell people that Xero is accounting software for those that don’t necessarily understand accounting.  It is very user friendly and is gaining popularity amongst the Tech savvy in the business world.  It has great online help and training videos.

 
2.  Enter everything and reconcile - if you enter each transaction that hits your bank account, credit card accounts etc. you can’t go wrong.  Use the reconciliation function in your accounting software to balance back to your bank statements every month.

 
3.  Approved format Tax Invoices – all of your sales invoices issued should contain the necessary information as prescribed by the ATO (must be called a Tax Invoice; contain your ABN; list the items supplied including quantity and price; date of issue; show the extent to which supplies are taxable; total GST payable; for supplies over $1K the recipients ABN or identity).  Ensure that you receive and file all purchases tax invoices from your suppliers and that they meet the above Tax Invoice criteria.

  4.  Don’t mix business and personal expenses – Don’t intermingle personal expenses!  Got it?  It’s easy - just don’t do it.  Get a separate bank account, credit card etc. for yourself and your business.  If you are in the very beginning stages and you don't have a business bank account set up go ahead and pay for everything with your personal money.  Later on when you do get a business account set up you can cut a reimbursement cheque to yourself to keep things clean.  There is no need to ever bring your personal accounts into your business bookkeeping system. 

  5.  Develop a filing system - a good filing system is not a box full of receipts.  Use some file folders with the letters of the alphabet on it (I know ingenious huh?).  Maybe if you pay a vendor often make a separate folder just for them. 

  6.  Sometimes doing nothing is better than doing anything – the worst thing you can do is doing half of the job.  Entering some stuff, but not everything.  Entering invoices, bills etc. even though you don’t know what you are doing.  If you are confused or lost, hire a bookkeeper.  The bill to clean up the mess that you created will be motivation enough to just outsource it from the beginning.  

These simple steps will keep you organized financially.  Eventually you will become too busy and notice that you are spending too much time doing your bookkeeping and not enough time doing what you love - running your business. 

When that time comes feel free to email me.