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Accounting is taking tons of time...HELP!

LittletonFaacLittletonFaac subscriber Posts: 2 Member
I've been small enough so far that quickbooks and a little elbow grease have gotten me through, but now, I need help. I have an accountant, but I feel like I'm doing a LOT of work to keep track of everything from accounts receivable to paying business loans to paying employees.

It's just a bit much to track and I feel like I'm over my head.

So, I guess what I'm asking is: What tools does everyone use? Am I doing it wrong with Quickbooks? Should I have my accountant be more involved?

Comments

  • LamelaCPALamelaCPA subscriber Posts: 0
    Your accountant should be more involved and alleviate alot of these responsibilities in order to allow you to focus on what you do best, which is work on your business and not for it.

    Also, make the most of technology and automate as many tasks as possible.

    Feel free to email me with any questions, mlamela@lamelacpa.com. I am happy to help!

    Mike Lamela, CPA
  • LesBahrLesBahr subscriber Posts: 0
    Help is available. It is exactly for business owners in your situation that I use the accounting business model I describe in my information.
  • houngiehoungie subscriber Posts: 0
    How many employees do you have? Maybe you need to hire a part time bookkeeper/accounts management to keep track of your books
    Try easystreetusa.com . It's free, simple to use, best of all, you can also monitor your spendings easily..
  • harryventharryvent subscriber Posts: 48 Bronze Level Member
    If you need tools to manage all your accounts, plenty of vendors available in outside. We manage and keep track our business accounts using Apptivo accounting software. After using this software many unwanted expense reduced and many problem solved. Try to reach out them.
  • Jeff MarlonJeff Marlon subscriber Posts: 71 Bronze Level Member
    Yes you should involve accountant more in activities so that your burden is divided among both of you.Because there are some rules and practices important to follow in accounting, else those records will never ever be accepted.
  • Business ConsultantsBusiness Consultants subscriber Posts: 45 Bronze Level Member
    edited November 2016
    You can ask for professional help sometimes and save precious time which can be used to improve your business


    Auditors and Accountants in Qatar http://www.hlbqatar.com/
  • GcrawfordGcrawford subscriber Posts: 5
    You can ask for professional help sometimes and save precious time which can be used to improve your business

    Well i agree to this, if you can't somewhat handle your accounting tasks and we all know that accounting is not that easy. You can just ask help from accounting outsourcing firms so that they can help you with the tasks. You can save money and time when you outsource it.

    Axiem Corporation Accounting Services in the Philippines (Check Here)
  • PZagottiPZagotti subscriber Posts: 23 Bronze Level Member
    Hi there,
    I agree with most of the others on the string about doing things more efficiently.
    With the small business accounting systems out there today much of the heavy lifting can be automated.
    While it is not 100% perfect the reality is that a properly setup system should significantly reduce the time and labor involved vs the old manual entry way.
    So the first thing I would do is make sure you are ringing every ounce of efficiency from your current accounting system.

    Now you stated that AR was taking up some time.
    Unless the billings are recurring every month you will either need to hire someone in-house who is close to the daily business operations or do it yourself because an outside bookkeeper generally are not close enough to your business to do your billing.
    Further AR is so client facing that you could ruffle some feather very quickly.

    Now maybe your AR system needs a review by an accountant / bookkeeper in your area to look for efficiencies.

    As for payments and payroll, again if its setup correctly it should not take you that much time.

    If you are on QuickBooks then you might want to go to the Intuit ProAdvisor website and search for a ProAdvisor in your area.
    Maybe bring them in explain what you do and what your current business and accounting processes are and let them make some recommendations.

    But be aware that when all you have is a hammer everything looks like a nail. So just be aware that if QB is not a good fit for your business and the only software package that ProAdvisor represents is Intuit QB then you may not get the best advise.
    So maybe also look for someone who represents multiple software systems so you get a unbiased answer.

    As for outsourcing please be careful about outsourcing to someone in India.
    This is a real thing now but unfortunately most people are finding that it takes them as long to scan papers over to the people in India or China as it would have taken if they had just entered the billing or AP themselves and then they still have to pay someone else to do it.

    Good luck!
    Phillip Zagotti
    Partner
    Zagotti & Burdette CPA, LLC
    ZnBcpa.com
  • GordonGordon subscriber Posts: 8 Member
    The best things that you can do in the situation is hire an external accounting service provider. That way you can have the experts in accounting keep an eye on your finances and you may not have to spend as much time paying extra attention to your accounting function. For more information, you can check www.tempcfo.com for help.
  • dodolatozdodolatoz subscriber Posts: 8 Member
    edited July 2017
    u need a software that can go along with your business, try erp software such as acumatica cloud erp.
  • BootstrapFinancialBootstrapFinancial subscriber Posts: 3 Member
    Hello all, I'm new to the community and am in the process of exploring the possibility creating my own startup aimed at eliminating this exact pain point for small businesses and startups. I'm currently performing market research in order to find the best way to aim my efforts and would really appreciate the insight of any entrepreneur of a current small business/ start up. If you're interested in taking a short survey or discussing solutions you've found to help alleviate your accounting/ finance issues, please contact me at adam@bootstrapfinancial.com

    I am not trying to sell my services, I am just in the process of working out the kinks in my business plan and looking for input from the entrepreneurs that I would be looking to help in the future!
  • AcobloomAcobloom subscriber Posts: 3 Member

    Use accounting models. Plan your accounting tasks with your accountant. Use more cloud based softwares to make your work streamline. Also, you can connect for a free consultation with accounting experts.

    Hope it helps!!

    AcoBloom International

  • bisinfocusbisinfocus subscriber Posts: 2 Member

    I agreed with most comments that outsourced accounting is the best way to go. Some services can do your accounting without purchasing an accounting application and yet, you still will have your financial reports. All you need just supply your data and this should not take your time.

  • kehalcpakehalcpa subscriber Posts: 1 Member

    As tax laws are complicated and being expert accountants will work as per current tax laws and maximize the tax saving of their client. Working with significant plans of our accounts will let firms and organizations in reducing the taxes.

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