Businesses can’t survive without accounting. Not only does the IRS frown on businesses that don’t keep appropriate records come tax time, you won’t even be able to know how your business is doing without knowing the health of your cash flow or what your margin is.
So what have we done in the past to make sure we’re abiding by the rules and completely aware of our financial picture? We hire an in-house bookkeeper. Unfortunately, for many small businesses and law firms with a limited staff and resources, this can cause more problems than it fixes.
In February of 2015, we talked to entrepreneur and attorney Lee Rosen. Lee stated that the problem with finding the right bookkeeper for a small business or law practice, even outside of cost, has to do with management. “So, many law firms have a bookkeeper, who is of course not managed, because ‘we don’t do that.’ And so the bookkeeper does whatever the bookkeeper is going to do on whatever schedule the bookkeeper is going to do it,” said Rosen. The lack of accountability and direct management in these situations leads to poorly motivated or poorly trained bookkeepers; who, to be fair, aren’t being properly guided to provide bookkeeping that helps a small business or law firm grow. “If you’re not going to manage your employee, then you shouldn’t have an employee,” continued Rosen.
But can outsourcing really be a better choice?
While outsourcing can’t be the option for every aspect of your business, because you can’t Skype in closing arguments (yet), it is an option for administrative tasks – like accounting and bookkeeping. When you outsource a part of your business, the company you pay to solve this problem is responsible for hiring, training, and managing employees – not you. They also specialize in what you’re paying them for and know that if they aren’t getting the job done, you’ll leave. You don’t have to fire and retrain, you simply need to hire a different company, who has trained employees ready to help day one.
At Kahuna Accounting, we provide virtual bookkeeping and accounting services because we want to help take this task off of the plate of entrepreneurs. ”Part of what you’re buying when you outsource for that is their expertise,” said Rosen. We’ve been able to hire, train, and manage an incredible bookkeeping team. Our team is focused on the accounting and bookkeeping of firms and doesn’t have the added pressure or stress that comes from worrying about finding additional billable hours.
Are you interested in getting rid of the pain bookkeeping and accounting has put on you and your business? Kahuna Accounting works with entrepreneurs and attorneys to manage their financials while helping them use their numbers to get ahead. Learn more by visiting KahunaAccounting.com.