Preparing to Hire a Bookkeeper: A Comprehensive Checklist
There’s a reason why there are nearly two million bookkeepers found in the United States.
These professionals are essential for maintaining business accounts and ledgers.
If you run a high-volume business that’s growing rapidly, you likely need a permanent bookkeeper to keep things organized.
However, how do you find someone who’s a good fit for your business?
When preparing to hire a bookkeeper, you need to know exactly what to look for.
That’s why we made this guide.
In it, we’ll go over a comprehensive checklist you should consider for these new accounting hires in Arizona and California.
That way, you don’t waste anyone’s time or money.
Know Your Bookkeeping Options
The first thing you need to consider is your options when it comes to bookkeeping.
There are three main choices you can go with: full-time, freelance, or a bookkeeping firm.
The first option is a full-time, permanent bookkeeper for your business.
Most of the time, we don’t recommend this option.
If you don’t have over thirty employees or a million dollars in annual revenue, it just doesn’t make sense.
You’ll waste money or time.
Your other options involve outsourcing.
For many businesses, this makes a lot more sense.
That’s why four out of ten companies outsource their accounting services.
If you think outsourcing is right for you, you can either go freelance or work with a professional bookkeeping firm.
Freelance is certainly the cheaper option.
However, finding a qualified business bookkeeper this way can be a challenge.
You also need to be prepared for them to not be available every day.
With a bookkeeping firm, you get access to a whole team of qualified bookkeepers who are much more available.
However, expect to pay a little more for continuous access to their expertise.
Make Sure They Can Perform the Tasks You Need
At a bare minimum, bookkeepers will need to maintain the accuracy of transactions in your accounts and ledgers.
However, many growing businesses quickly develop other bookkeeping needs that extend beyond this baseline.
As such, when hiring a bookkeeper you should make sure they have a wide range of services and experience.
For example, here at Master Accounting and Tax Service, we offer the following bookkeeping services:
- Recording and organizing any financial transactions
- Reconciliations with bank and credit card statements
- Management of accounts payable and receivable
- Payroll processing
- Preparing your financial statements
- Tax compliance
If you want to learn more about the bookkeeping services we provide, you can check out this resource here.
Best Bookkeeping Traits Checklist
You might think that a professional bookkeeper depends entirely on skills.
Certain skills are indeed vital for dependable bookkeepers.
Things like proficiency in QuickBooks, account management skills, and statement literacy are all vital.
However, they’re not the only things you should be looking for.
What you can’t teach when it comes to bookkeeping are helpful traits.
Here are some things you should look out for here preparing to hire a bookkeeper.
They’re Good Communicators
Good bookkeeping doesn’t happen in a box.
It can sometimes require a detective’s mindset to trace where a transaction was approved.
That means asking your staff questions about where certain bills came from and who signed off on them.
If your bookkeeper is a socially-anxious numbers specialist, they might feel uncomfortable asking your team these questions.
So make sure they’re not afraid to communicate with your staff to flag down potential entries that need more context.
They’re Innovative
The bookkeeping industry is changing rapidly.
New technology, particularly in the areas of artificial intelligence, is automating many of the routine processes involved in bookkeeping.
If your bookkeeper is innovative, they won’t lament this new wave of automation.
Instead, they’ll embrace the good aspects of the change.
That way, they can implement any of the new best practices into your accounting practices.
If a bookkeeper refuses to change their practices, there’s a good chance they’ll be stuck in the past for a few years.
They’re Good Problem Solvers
Bookkeeping often involves rabbit holes of different problems.
Numbers not reconciling can lead down huge trails that reveal bigger problems within the business.
It’s not enough for a bookkeeper to discover these problems.
They also need to be able to analyze and offer informed solutions on how to fix them for your business.
So make sure your bookkeeper isn’t sweeping any problems under the rug because they’re too hard to solve.
How Do You Determine These Traits in an Interview?
We’ve covered some of the ideal traits that can be found in quality bookkeepers.
But how do you determine if the professional has these traits in an interview?
It’s not enough to ask them point blank, “Are you a good communicator?” You need to have them show you.
One good way to do this is to ask them situational questions.
These include things like:
- Give an example of when you had to communicate complex ideas to an employee. How did you handle it?
- What would you do if you experienced [a type of problem you’ve encountered]?
- What did you do when this type of situation occurred?
Make sure you interrogate the answers.
Don’t settle with simple statements.
Ask follow-up questions that give more light on the situation and how the person handled it.
This can lead to more intensive interviews, but in the end, it’s worth it.
You’ll be left with candidates that aren’t just skilled, but also fit the professional expectations that you expect.
Preparing to Hire a Bookkeeper? Contact Master Accounting and Tax Service
We hope this guide helps you learn what to look for when preparing to hire a bookkeeper.
If you want to simplify the process of finding this type of qualified professional, look no further than Master Accounting and Tax Service, LLC (MATS).
For over twenty-five years we’ve been providing our clients with quality accounting services.
Not only are our bookkeeping services affordable, but they come with a level of personal attention that you won’t find elsewhere.
If you’re ready to find the bookkeeper you deserve, contact us today.
Seeking top-notch bookkeeping services in Tempe, AZ? Simplify your search with Master Accounting and Tax Service. At Master Accounting and Tax Service, we specialize in providing top-tier accounting, tax, bookkeeping, and fractional CFO / controller services at an affordable cost and with the utmost integrity. Call (480) 456-4999 or Contact us today!
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