Screening Questions To Ask When Outsourcing Bookkeeping Services

By Aaliyah Hunter


In order for a business owner to make know whether their business is profitable they need comprehensive accounting. There are two ways to meet this requirement, the entrepreneur could do it internally or engage the services of a firm that provided these bookkeeping services. It is possible to outsource these facilities provided there is adequate due diligence performed on the companies.

The internet now lets business from around the world offer these bookkeeping facilities. There are businesses that offer accounting services from all over the world the onus is on the entrepreneur to screen these organizations to make sure they are ethical and professional. It is only possible to move forward with the sourcing process when the firms have been adequately vetted.

Industry experts have indicated that entrepreneurs should only deal with bookkeepers that have been operating for a minimum of five years but preferable ten or more years. The reasoning for this request is the companies that have more experience should be able to provide better service and results. Now that the firms with experience have been identified it is time to further scrutinize them.

Look into the academic qualifications of the bookkeepers very closely. These individuals are not accountants but they are providing an accounting service that is vital for the operation of the company. If the bookkeeper does not have relevant academic qualifications or is not up to date on their certification it could lead to mistakes being made, these mistakes could be detrimental to a company.

While reviewing these businesses find out whether they are licensed to provide the service. On top of licensing find out whether the organization is bonded to provide these facilities. Bonding is essential since it provides an assurance that no criminals are employed with the bookkeeper. Since the financial information being dealt with is very sensitive keeping criminals away from it is a high priority.

Cost is a concern that all business owners have when it comes to outsourcing these facilities. Each of these bookkeepers are going to have their own respective pricing model but there are two common formats. One format is based on an hourly model where the entrepreneur is billed based on the number of hours that are spent on the doing the actual accounting. The second model is where the firm charges a flat rate that is disclosed upfront so there is no ambiguity in the decision making process.

After the pricing has been addressed there is a need to ask for testimonials from each of the prospective bookkeepers. The testimonials are from former clients who have hired the bookkeeper in the past or is still using their service. Contact the testimonial and find out from them directly what type of experience they had with the organization, this is the means of gauging the suitability of the company prior to hiring them.

It is possible to outsource bookkeeping services provided there is sufficient research conducted. After the suitability of the service provider has been established the entrepreneur can make a decision on who to hire. Now that this issue has been dealt with the business owner can focus their energy on growing their business.




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