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Finding The Right Bookkeeper
Article Summary:
When it comes to hiring a bookkeeper, you can either hire one yourself or use
the services of an established bookkeeping company. This article lists the 7
most important things you need to know when hiring a bookkeeper, the gatekeeper
of your money!
Article:
In today’s transient and fast paced world, it’s getting harder and harder to
find qualified, competent people who not only know their stuff but can be
trusted to handle your business’s monies. All too often you hear stories about
inexperienced so called bookkeepers who either messed up someone’s books or
stuck their hand in the cookie jar and helped themselves to thousands or
millions of dollars.
Exact Accounting Services has listed 7 of the most important things you need to
know when making a decision to hire the right bookkeeper, permanent or contract.
Like everything else in life, there are no guarantees but by following our
guide, you can help reduce the odds of inviting the elephant to come sit on you.
Our goal is to keep this list short and sweet and not to make this sound like a
Jerry McGuire movie mission statement. Here are the 7 things you need to know in
order to find the right bookkeeper. Good luck!
- The Experience Factor - Do they really know their
stuff? There is an awful lot of competition out there, given that, people will
say the darndest things to land that job. The objective here is to not be a
guinea pig for someone who needs to improve their accounting skills. If you
want to reduce your chances of hiring a dud, go with a reputable firm. They’ve
done all the work for you plus they have a track record but if you want to go
it alone, here are some questions to ask:
How long have they been doing bookkeeping? Do they have an accounting
background? What accounting software programs have they worked with? Are they
tech savvy? What type of companies have they performed bookkeeping services
for in the past? Can they provide references? References are extremely
important. Try to get at least 3 references.
- Trust - Can you trust them? Always know who
you’re dealing with! This could not be said enough. Do they come across as
honest and sincere? Whether you’re using an outside firm to hire your
bookkeeper or going it alone, always perform a thorough background check, even
if they were referred to you by someone you know. When having a background
check performed, you want to check criminal, social security number and credit
information along with drug testing. After all, this person is going to be
controlling the future of your company by handling all your monies. Scary
thought isn’t it?
Understand this, even if that person passes
the background check with flying colors does not guarantee theft and
wrongdoing due to the fact that people change and their lives change. The best
way to stay in check is to become educated and always keep tabs on what
they’re doing. There are certain things you can do to keep an honest person
honest by having checks and balances in place.
- Reliability - Are they reliable, dependable and
responsible? Did they call when they said they would call? Did they show up
when they said they are going to show up? Do they return your calls in a
timely manner? You’d be surprised how many people fall through the cracks on
this one. If they fail anyone of the above, you can be assured the same types
of problems will apply to your books.
- Personality – This is very important! Do you feel
comfortable with them? Are they easy to work with? Do you feel there might be
personality clashes? All the skills in the world will not make up for a
temperamental artist. No one wants to be working with the Soup Nazi. You need
to be able to approach them no matter what.
- Communication Skills - Like anything else in life,
business involves people skills. People skills involves communication skills.
Money is the life line of your business. Anyone handling your business’s
monies must be able to communicate with you 100%. If there is a problem, you
need to know ASAP! No ifs, ands or buts. If they have a better way of doing
things, they need to be able to let you know.
- Integrity and Character – You want someone who is not
only loyal and passionate about what they do, you want someone who has high
moral values and standards. As mentioned above, accounting can make or break
your business so it is crucial to have the right person handling your books.
- Trust Your Gut – You know that feeling deep down
inside. If something doesn’t seem right, trust your instinct. Sometimes that’s
all you have to go on. It’s amazing how many people do not trust their
instincts and go against their better judgment. The bottom line is, if it
doesn’t feel right, don’t do it!
Remember, you can always outsource your bookkeeping to a
bookkeeping service but just because someone else is managing your books for you
doesn’t exclude you from understanding accounting basics.
Checks and balances
also need to be put in place to help keep honest people honest. One of the
greatest advantages of having someone else manage your books is that you now
have more time to focus on growing your business.
About Exact Accounting Services, Inc.
Exact Accounting is a group of dedicated accountants specializing in helping
companies (profit and non-profit) clean up and balance problem QuickBooks,
personalized training to teach users how to efficiently and
effectively operate QuickBooks and customized QuickBooks installation and
setups. All services are provided here in the US!
Exact Accounting specializes in servicing the following
QuickBooks programs: QuickBooks Pro, Premier,
Enterprise Solutions and QuickBooks Online.
770-475-6302
www.ExactAccounting.com
Exact Accounting
Services, Inc.
Voice: 770-475-6302 Fax: 770-475-6307
10945 State Bridge Rd., Suite 401-110 • Johns Creek, GA 30022
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