Why A Dedicated Bookkeeper Is Essential

When it comes to manning your office it can be tempting to engage an office all-rounder to include bookkeeping as one of their many tasks. They’ve got their hands in every part of your business anyway. However, this may end up being more of a burden than saving for your business. Here’s why it’s essential to have a dedicated bookkeeper working on your accounts:

1. It will save your money

A bookkeeper specialises in understanding the filing and recording requirements for the finances. An office all-rounder is more likely to just have a general idea of bookkeeping.

While bookkeeping can seem like a straightforward task that anyone can handle, especially with the increasingly user-friendly bookkeeping software solutions being created, it’s really not that simple. Many people who jump in to figure out the books end up making things more of a mess. If things are set up incorrectly, badly coded, or otherwise poorly done, this exponentially creates more work for the accountant to correct. More work for the accountant means more costs to get expert help to get things sorted.

2. Your office all-rounder will be less stressed

Bookkeeping can be a cumbersome task that can end up overwhelming someone who already has a lot on their plate.

The nature of bookkeeping means that it requires special dedication and attention to get right. If you’ve got an office all-rounder who already does a lot of odd jobs, asking them to take large chunks of their time out to dedicate to bookkeeping can too easily push their task pile beyond what is reasonable.

3. The dedicated bookkeeper will have the necessary skills to get things right

Payroll, BAS and internal management reports take training and an educated understanding to get right.

Bookkeepers can range from basic data entry workers who pass on information to an accountant, to registered BAS agents, payroll officers, credit managers, and preparers of internal reports. The more skilled and efficient your bookkeeper is, the more effectively they can work for you. It takes training and experience to get to the point where bookkeeping serves as more than a simple data entry cruncher. An office all-rounder may know enough to get some basic data crunching done, but a dedicated bookkeeper should have the skills and qualifications to keep your day to day finances running smoothly, without having to constantly upskill, undertake more basic training, or pay for the extra help of an accountant.

Reference: Bookkeepers: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

4. They reduce the risk for your business

Bookkeepers undertake tasks that can put your business at risk if they’re done incorrectly.

A dedicated bookkeeper will have the knowledge to stay on top of legal requirements such as when superannuation is due, where GST is claimable, and what a tax invoice must look like. They will also be covered by appropriate insurance in the event that something does go wrong. An office all-rounder is less likely to be up to date with legal requirements, which increases the chance that your business makes a mistake or misses an obligation.

5. Your ability to make effective management decisions will be enhanced

When you have a dedicated bookkeeper on the job they should be capable of keeping the information clear and up to date, which in turn means you have access to up to date financial information to inform your management decisions.

A less skilled worker, or just a support worker whose focus is divided, is more likely to mean you are on the go information is less useful and less likely to be up to date. This makes it harder for you to make timely management decisions.

Overall your business will run more smoothly

It just makes sense to engage people whose focus and dedication are on a particular type of task, particularly when that task requires specialised knowledge. The more you have people working on what they do best, the more smoothly your business will run overall.

You save time, money, and stress!