Five Things You Need to Know about Outsourced Accounting Services

By: Dashboard Accountants Click author's name for more of his/her articles

Accounting isn’t what it used to be. The rules are the same – we still debit and credit like we did in yesteryear, but accountants aren’t paper pushers anymore, we’ve become digital. Businesses used to hire an in-house accountant or accounting team to service their financial needs. Today, the trend is to become lean, efficient, and automated. Those are not words that usually find themselves in the same sentence as “accounting”. We understand that. Accounting is laborious, time consuming, and anything but efficient – or at least it used to be. Today, accountants, software developers, and other industry leaders are thinking outside the box and the unthinkable is happening…accounting is becoming, dare we say, efficient. Outsourcing your books will put your business on the right track if you follow the rules outlined below. It's cost effective, simple, and comforting to know that your books are being attended to. However, there are a lot of outsourced bookkeeping solutions out there and if you are not careful, some of them could do more harm than good. Here some things to look for when you outsource:

1. Are they an overseas provider or a local provider? If your outsourced accounting team is overseas, you are going to get a very affordable bookkeeping solution because of cheap labor markets, but there is a greater price to be paid. Just because your bookkeeping is outsourced, that doesn’t mean that your accountant should be thousands of miles away. There is something to be said for having your accountant by your side. We suggest that you hire an accounting team that visits your location in person versus communicating strictly via the internet.

2. Know the experience level of your accounting team: Does the accounting team have experience in your industry? Ask them what type of clients they currently serve, request resumes, and look at credentials. You should treat the hiring of your outsourced bookkeeping service as a job interview. After all, they’ll be managing your finances.

3. Know the end result: Not all accounting services are created equal. Some accountants only report to you quarterly, others annually – some report to you monthly or even weekly like we do at Dashboard Accountants. Also, they reports you receive are going to be different from one bookkeeper to another. If you are only getting the standard accounting reports (i.e. Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Statement), you are missing out on managerial reports that will help you drive the future financial position of your company.

4. Do they have the staff to support your needs: Make sure that the accounting and bookkeeping company has the actual staff needed to dedicate the time required for your accounting system. The truth is that accountants are expensive and so bookkeeping companies often under hire and load their accountants up with too much work.

5. Do they think like business owners? This is important. We have found that our clients don’t like it when we think like accountants only. Instead, they like it when we think like small business owners and use our accounting tools to help develop the business.

Remember, if you want to save time and money, outsourcing your books is a great way to go. Just take your time to find the right provider. At Dashboard Accountants, we believe in providing the highest quality of accounting service possible. To do that, we ensure that your accounting team is local, experienced and educated, reports to you weekly, is staffed properly, and thinks like a small business owner. To learn more about our accounting services, you can call 801-336-5311 or visit our website http://www.dashboardaccountants.com

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About The Author:

Eddy Hood is author of this article on Outsourced Accounting Services. Find more information about 5 Things You Need to Know here.