Bookkeeping is a part of every business. Whereas many do it on their own while they are still starting, at some point you will decide to hire a professional accountant to manage your company’s finances. Even if you are only at the planning stage, you can consider hiring an accountant to help you start your business. However, hiring a professional in a field you are not coming from can seem daunting. We’ve come up with a list of tips to follow in this important process.
What can an accountant do for you?
Accounting is a career that is connected to finance management. It includes managing budgets, ensuring that the financial documents comply with laws and regulations, managing taxes, writing financial reports, assessing risks, and offering guidance for financial planning, cost reduction, and further investments. These are only some of their responsibilities, that come after getting a degree in Finance or Accounting and getting legally certified to become a licensed public accountant.
Advisory – this is a role that is connected to the most known role of an accountant, which is bookkeeping. However, the most important role is knowing your financial documents and your tax situation and giving you professional guidance about your next steps in insurance, business expansion, cost reduction, and taxes.
Record keeping – the contemporary business financial data have mostly been done electronically, and the earlier books in bookkeeping are now records. These are made to track money in and out of your company and predict the trends or costs that you will benefit from.
Auditing – auditing services include business financial statements construction from scratch or audit of the existing ones. Auditing is best done by accountants that have had experience in the public sector so they know how to follow the records and do the problem-thinking before sending official reports.
Determine what are your needs
As accountants have many different roles, you ought to have a list of your needs for one. Outsourcing is either way done when you and your employees realize you have a need for a certain role fulfilled or, especially in accounting, when you need a piece of advice from an experienced professional.
Each year you will definitely benefit from the business evaluation from the accountant’s perspective. Bookkeeping, taxes, financial report, and other reports can be done from scratch by an outsourced accounting service, or they can be audited on demand. Also, it makes a difference if your business is based on service or wholesale, as different business products can make a difference in measuring trends and needs for financial investments and an inexperienced accountant can take a longer explanation of your vision for your business.
Check their experience thoroughly
The most important thing when considering hiring an accountant is their experience. When looking for an accountant be certain to check if their certificate and preparer tax ID is valid. Some experienced accountants can actually be old-fashioned with their computer skills so if that doesn’t work for your company pay close attention to their experience with accounting programs. They might also have credentials for working with some big associations. This is proof that they are investing in their knowledge further and you can trust their efficiency. This is also why it is a great idea to consider accounting companies like Tax Accounting Group. A company that has a team of experienced accountants will be able to resolve any issues no matter their complexity, and they will be able to do it fast. Additionally, their transparency is easier to check which will definitely make you, an employer, feel safe.
Look for recommendations
One of the best ways to find a trustworthy accountant is to look through the people you know. These people might have even less knowledge about business than you, but you will be quick to see how do they feel about their finances and investment. It is important to see their commitment in a real-life example, and that would be their other clients. Check for how long they have worked with their other clients and what has changed for their clients since working for them.
Your best match should be an accountant that has experience in the same industry, that will prove their experience further and from which you will be able to know what to expect from the start of the cooperation as there is no new information about work processes that go into records.
Curate questions for possible accountants
The interview process should be the deciding part for you. You should ask about their education, certifications, membership in relevant associations, and their experience with your specific industry. Check how they stay informed and their plans for additional learning if there is a need for it. It is of the utmost importance to check their previous experience with having in mind the size of companies. Big companies need a different scope of work than small businesses. Additionally, small businesses might need more advice and guidance than any other service your accountant could provide. If you are a small business, ask to get some basic explanation to check how you understand each other.
Go with your gut
No matter the interviewee’s experience, if you don’t feel safe about showing them your data and entrusting them with your money, don’t go for that accountant. It is important to note that your accountant will be in charge of maybe the most sensitive documents that allow your business to work. If there are mistakes they might not be easy to find until it is too late. This person should also be good with your existing employees, especially people who will work directly with them. Don’t forget that you already have a loyal team behind you. Don’t go for the first accountant that comes through your door and choose the person you will want to grow with as a business owner.
