As the year comes to an end, you may be looking for a bookkeeping team or individual to do some clean-up and get you ready for next year. We have assembled eight questions to ask someone taking on your books to see if they are a good fit for you company, industry and needs. If you can enter an agreement with these questions confidently answered to your liking, you can feel good about closing out your year.
1) What is the scope of services you offer?
A bookkeeper, an accountant and an external CFO manage and can offer different things. Make sure you are using the right type of person or team so you are getting the results you need.
2) How familiar are you with my industry?
Sometimes it can be helpful to utilize a bookkeeper who has experience in your field of work. Maybe you are a nonprofit and need different records kept than a for profit company. If you’re a company that ships out of the country, or receives product from overseas, you may want to ask you bookkeeper if they have experience with such things to prevent problems down the road.
3) What is your communication style?
This is a great question to ask with whoever you work with, internally or externally. Are emails, phone calls or meetings preferred? How often would you like updates? These are all ways that you will feel more comfortable with who you choose long term.
4) What do you offer in terms of security?
Chances are this data and these numbers are your livelihood as a business owner. They have to be correct and secured for a multitude of reasons; from questions from your board all the way up to the IRS come tax time. It is absolutely essential that you partner with someone who takes security seriously.
5) What all do I need to provide to your firm?
Spreadsheets, ledgers, logins and even previous, older records can provide the insight your bookkeeper requires to have a well-rounded picture of your business’ needs. Depending on your agreement, this list can vary.
6) What software(s) do you use and what are you familiar with?
There’s nothing worse than a learning curve when you need to get something cranked out quickly and correctly. Any bookkeeper worth their salt will be familiar and fluent in most anything you use internally, but it’s still a good thing to ask.
7) What DON’T you do?
This goes back up to our first bullet point. Establish a clear line as to what you need and what a bookkeeper provides. If you need more than what they can offer, they likely work hand-in-hand with a variety of accountants, CPAs and more that they can refer you to.
8) What is your payment structure?
Last but not least, discuss how and when payment is needed and budget accordingly. Is the bookkeeper you’ve chosen in your budget? Are you getting what you pay for on the timeline you agreed to?
We hope these general questions get the wheels moving and help you determine what financial and organization help you need for your company or organization. We are happy to answer these eight and more if you would like to see if Better Bookkeepers is a good fit!