Top Five Pointers To Keep In Mind When Planning Work With A Bookkeeper

The pandemic was challenging for most, and getting through processes like balancing accounts books and sorting out bank statements was the last thing on anyone’s mind. While everyone has to work on accounts, individuals and businesses found it challenging to get through processes. Many companies could not keep up with the changes, and they had to let go of large divisions.

There were a lot of people who were looking to run their businesses through the pandemic. Small businesses need a lot of help when it comes to bookkeeping because they are unsure about the tax rules when it comes to running a business. Most get through the process of running their business and do not know about the rules and paperwork that they would have to get through.

We learned that many were making these errors, and we were working on making sure that we could get them through processes. They were unsure about why one company was better than the other, and they would pick the most convenient one, which is not the best way to make any decision. Here are some of the pointers we created to assist people when they pick a good bookkeeper.

1. Experience
You need to make sure they understand the accounting cycle: The accounting cycle is the holistic process of recording and processing all financial transactions of a company, from when the transaction occurs, to its representation on the financial statements, to closing the accounts. One of the primary duties of a bookkeeper is to keep track of the complete accounting cycle from start to finish. If your software is QuickBooks, then ensure the bookkeeper is QuickBooks Advisor certified.

2. Excellent communication skills
When hiring a bookkeeper, seek out their communication behavior, which helps eliminate any confusion or errors in the day-to-day duties they will perform for your company, including listening skills. A key is to ask if they explain what they need from the service they provide you, which helps with clarification of their duties and responsibilities.

3. Detail-oriented 
You need to make sure the bookkeeper can drill down into the transactions to understand the ins and outs. An example is for researching a payment from a customer. They should be able to connect with customers, the amounts, and when they receive payments along with the terms of the invoice. By being detail-oriented, a bookkeeper can enhance their problem-solving skills, which is beneficial for your company so you can focus on building your business.

4. Basic financial statement skills and ability to run reports
A bookkeeper should identify basic financial statements such as a balance sheet and profit and loss statement. They should be able to run reports for you to determine if you are profitable. They should also be able to run aging reports for both accounts when talking about their receivables and accounts payable to ensure you are receiving payments from customers on time along with paying your vendors on time. If you are applying for a loan, you want your bookkeeper to run the necessary reports required for getting funding.

5. Problem-solving skills 
As stated above, when a bookkeeper can be a problem-solver, they give you your time back so you focus on building and expanding your business. A good bookkeeper will be able to be self-sufficient by resolving issues without constantly seeking a solution by contacting you. Please note there are exceptions, where it is necessary to reach out to you for perhaps more management-level issues. Many of these skills come with experience, and if they were in the same line of work for some time, they would have had more of these instances that they might have navigated through.

If you are looking for assistance with taxes, Bookkeeping, CFO Services, and Financial Coaching, connect with us at Galacey Tax & Financial Services, LLC. As a company, we assist with finding a financial coach, tax preparer, or bookkeeper in Houston, Texas. We work on understanding the requirements of our clients and work with integrity and honestly to meet what they are looking for. Other than offering a wide range of services, we work with clients to create packages to assist them in getting through processes. If you want a better understanding of the services that we provide, please click here. If you want to get in touch with us or think that we can assist with your requirements, please click here.