BAS Help

How to find a super Sunshine Coast Bookkeeper

You don’t just want any bookkeeper to help you with your business you want the best bookkeeper you can find in your area.   One who is flexible and understands your business needs.   Trust, the right qualifications and someone who can provide you with the information you need in plain English is what you are looking for.  So how do you find the right bookkeeping fit for your business?

I’ve been a Sunshine Coast bookkeeper helping businesses like you with their bookkeeping needs for the past 16 years and this is what I think makes for a super bookkeeper.

Qualifications, accreditation and experience.

Your bookkeeper should be qualified and be part of a recognised bookkeeping organisation like AAT (Australian Accounting Technicians) They should be a BAS Agent registered with the Tax Practitioners Board so you can be satisfied that your bookkeeper has the required skills, qualifications and experience to correctly code your accounts for GST and prepare your BAS. Use this link to check if your bookkeeper is registered.

Price sometimes relates to experience but if you are simply comparing hourly rates, a more experienced bookkeeper may seem expensive but they are most likely to work significantly faster and smarter.  From my own experience I can get done in a couple of hours what may take a less experienced bookkeeper a full day.

Understand your business needs.

Taking the time to get to understand how you and your business work and adapting the bookkeeping process and software to work as simply and efficiently as possible avoiding time spent on unnecessary processes.

Asks you lots of annoying questions.

This may not seem like a plus but it is.  Bookkeepers are more hands on and are able to ask questions to ensure transactions are correctly allocated, it is better that your bookkeeper ask questions rather than guess.

 Knowing their limits.

Good bookkeepers know when to get advice from accountants and are not afraid to say “I don’t know’.  Bookkeepers have a role and Accountants have a role.

Up to date and well informed.

As I write this I’m on the train home from a day in Brisbane learning all about the new features and the future of Reckon Accounts the accounting software I use and love.    It is important that your bookkeeper is up to date with what is happening in the bookkeeping, accounting and technology spaces. The bookkeeping and accounting industries have evolved considerably over the past few years due to changing technologies.

Your bookkeeper should be keeping you up to date with technology to save time and money by automating processes with cloud accounting packages such as Reckon One or Reckon Hosted the latest offerings in cloud software.

Likable and trust worthy.

If I was asked what was the most important thing in my business I would have to say it was the relationships I have built with my clients.  The trust that my clients put in me sharing their financial detail and lives is something I will never take lightly.

Bookkeeping is not fun but necessary so it helps if like your bookkeeper and feel comfortable discussing your business honestly and openly with them. Your bookkeeper needs this transparency to help you get the most out of your accounting software and bookkeeping.