Running a bookkeeping or accountancy practice is hard work. Growing and scaling your business should be a priority. One of the foundations of growth is ensuring you are getting the most from your operations.
Did you know that companies lose 30% of their revenue due to internal efficiencies annually? So your efficiency is not just the partner of productivity but a money-generating metric.
Take the time to work on improving the efficiency of your bookkeeping organization by identifying any areas of concern. Here are some general efficiency tips for improving the way you operate.
Top 9 Tips For Bookkeeping Practices
1. Improve Transparency
Create a culture of transparency within your company. Transparency is a given in every industry, but you have the responsibility of dealing with the finances of others. Employees and clients must know the details of every step of the bookkeeping process.
Secretive companies suffer from confused employees and a poor reputation. However, approximately 94% of customers prefer companies that practice transparency.
You damage your brand by offering poor communication and hidden fees in your contracts. But, on the other hand, there’s no reason to be secretive about your operations with your team or clients, so open up the doors and break down the siloes.
2. Weed Out Unprofitable Clients
Over time, you will need to prioritize your time and resources. Older clients that pay the lowest rates and take up the most time are a liability to your company.
If you have reached this point, you need to increase your rates in accordance with your value. Whether those clients recognize that or not is irrelevant in planning for the future. Maintaining a significant portion of your client base that pays meager rates is an obstacle to growing your company.
Efficiency means booking profitable clients that are worth your time. Make room for the most profitable clients.
3. Implement Automation Software
Automation has taken the world by storm. No industry has been unaffected by the growth of automation.
Purchasing accounting project management software allows you to revolutionize your workflow and make adjustments to improve efficiency.
Some of the benefits of automation software include the following:
- Spend less time on manual, repetitive tasks.
- Revamp your filing system.
- Improve your security through the cloud.
- Allow your staff to work remotely.
- Keep track of your business’s operations.
Automation software is designed to streamline your workflow from top to bottom. It’s one of the best ways to improve your bookkeeping efficiency while providing a better service to your clientele.
4. Incentivize Your Employees
No employee will ever care about your company as much as you do. It’s a given because they receive a salary, not a share of the profit. Motivating your workers means thinking outside the box.
Incentivize your team by offering rewards for hard workers. Competitive compensation will empower you to attract and retain high-quality employees willing to go the extra mile.
Employees can get a paycheck at any bookkeeping firm in the country. So how are you going to offer them something more?
5. Join the Remote Working Revolution
Remote working became mainstream during the COVID-19 pandemic out of necessity, but it was already growing long before the pandemic.
Companies discovered how efficient their teams were when they could work from home. According to a survey, 77% of people who worked remotely a few times per month demonstrated increased productivity, with 30% doing more work in less time.
The benefits of remote work are undeniable. Additionally, more top talent than ever is making remote working opportunities a condition of signing an employment contract with a company.
6. Outsource Your Workload
Growing bookkeeping companies will reach a point where they need help to maintain their core services because of other obligations.
If this sounds like you, your efficiency is suffering. Outsourcing is an opportunity to slash the burden on your existing team.
For example, if your team spends more of their time on content marketing to attract new clients than providing bookkeeping services, outsourcing to a skilled professional elsewhere can give them back all that time.
It also works for upgrading the skill level of your team. Maintaining a freelancer on retainer can be far more affordable and efficient than trying to keep that function in-house.
7. Roll Out Dedicated Training Programs
Bookkeeping practices and tax laws change all the time. Offering continuing professional development for your employees enables them to stay up to date on the goings on of your industry.
Companies that fail to plan for these changes experience large-scale lag when new regulations require them to alter their practices on the fly.
Moreover, having a team that’s evolving with the changes in the bookkeeping ecosystem is always a valuable asset for your company.
8. Reduce Office Interruptions
Distractions are a natural aspect of working in an office. However, even the slightest distraction can reduce efficiency.
Implement new systems like allowing employees to listen to music while they work or position all the desks away from high-traffic areas. Simple changes like these can make a massive difference in efficiency.
As always, switching to remote work for part of the working week can further eliminate unnecessary distractions. In addition, keeping your team comfortable while you work enables you to get more out of them.
9. Adjust with the Times
Keeping your bookkeeping company efficient isn’t a one-time process. Your company is a living, breathing entity that has to evolve with the times.
One-man operations operate differently from small businesses. Likewise, small businesses operate differently from mid-size bookkeeping firms.
Make sure you set up a time to review and reflect on your current makeup. Letting your bookkeeping brand become outdated means falling behind the competition and watching the quality of your services degrade.
Conclusion
The bookkeeping business is highly competitive. Your clients can choose from bookkeeping services across the country due to the globalization of the world economy. Fail to meet their standards, and they will go elsewhere.
Efficiency is a crucial metric for managing the effectiveness and timeliness of your services. Orientate your company toward improving efficiency and establish buy-in from your team through incentives.
What are you doing to improve the efficiency of your firm?
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