As a business owner, it’s natural to be hesitant to hand over the reins of your accounting processes and financial reporting to an outsourced bookkeeping firm. You trust your in-house bookkeeper to file the taxes, get the bills out on time and do a reasonable job of collections. Reports may lack detail, but the control is comfortable and supports a steady pace.
However, when you want to take the business further and faster, you need more. Upping the pace of the business, taking on the competition and driving to expand requires decisive action based on clear, current information. By handing the reins to experienced accounting and finance professionals, you get the guidance of a practiced hand to help you identify and focus on the metrics that will help you navigate the challenges that accompany growth.
LESS CONTROL THAN YOU THINK
Whether your bookkeeping is managed by full-time controller or a part-time bookkeeper, you probably have less control than you think. When you are not tracking business indicators designed to call attention to the specific drivers of your business, it’s easy to be complacent, missing important warning signs. A few examples include:
Do you really know if invoices are going out as quickly and accurately as possible? If your business services have changed, but the way the billing is done hasn’t, you may have slower collections than necessary—tying up cash that could be put to work. When was the last time you did an invoice audit to spot check invoice accuracy?
Are all the product and service lines delivering their full potential to the bottom line? Your current reports may not be delivering full visibility into margins. Without well-designed reports, factors like allocation of shared costs, timing of collections and more may not be reflected to provide a true picture of results.
Do you have the internal controls in place to catch errors and detect employee fraud? Everyone makes mistakes, but without the checks and balances in place, they can catch you by surprise—and have a devastating effect on the business.
FOCUSING ON THE MOST IMPORTANT INDICATORS OF YOUR BUSINESS DIRECTION
In business, greater control comes with greater visibility. But that visibility needs to be directed at the right performance indicators. Without experience, and an objective eye, it’s often difficult to know exactly which measurements are most important to watch. With guidance from a financial professional, you can achieve tighter control of the business. An outsourced bookkeeping service can help you:
Evaluate your financial processes to reduce risks and identify opportunities to improve operations. For example, you may be able to offer customers more payment options which can accelerate cash flow and reduce bad debt.
Identify the metrics that will allow you keep your finger on pulse of business—allowing you to focus on and monitor the numbers that are most important to your bottom line.
Provide a professional, objective perspective during monthly financial reviews to help you recognize potential opportunities and avoid missteps.
When you started the business, it was important to be in control of every aspect. But as the company grows, professionals can help you expand your perspective to improve operations and the bottom line. With objective financial guidance, you can put the processes in place and identify the metrics that will help you control and direct growth with confidence.
MY CFO PARTNER: OUTSOURCED BOOKKEEPING & MORE
At My CFO Partner, we help business owners achieve more through better insight. All bookkeepers are supervised by an experienced CFO. Collectively, our bookkeepers and controllers are charged with much more than simply “doing the books”—they take the time to understand your unique business challenges and provide financial information that will support decisive action. With a full understanding of your objectives, we will help you define the metrics and analysis you need in monthly reports and/or even real-time dashboards.
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