Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to your company’s accounting, bookkeeping and financial obligations. If you don’t have your eye on the finances, you could end up in a lot of trouble with the HMRC. They are getting tougher on late and non-payment, and the terms are not as generous as have been in previously. They mean business – and so should you.

Could outsourcing your cloud accounting, bookkeeping and finance support function be beneficial?

Let’s dive a little deeper into the benefits for you to consider employing a virtual finance team.

Benefit 1: Up-to-date, Qualified Finance, Bookkeeping and Cloud Accounting Expertise

The only function of an outsourced finance team is finance – They don’t have the inhouse distractions that someone in your offices would have. They will be up to date with the latest software and accounting processes. They will also be helping other companies so will be continually learning from other accounts which will mean you benefit from best of breed practices.

Cloud Accounting Support Services employ highly trained finance professionals and know what makes a good finance employee. This is reflected in staff’s AAT, Xero, QuickBooks and DEXT qualifications and that we are registered with the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers.

Inhouse you will have a fluctuating need for a bookkeeper, accountant, finance control, payroll and financial direction. If you hire all of these roles, it will cost you a lot in recruitment and retention and sometimes these employees will be idle through lack of daily workloads. So why not use a virtual team you have access to as if they were full time?

They will also have a firmer relationship with HMRC, making any conversations you have quicker and easier!

Benefit 2: Cost Savings

Another benefit is that you will save costs in both money and time. If you were to employee all the members of a full finance team, you’d have to consider recruitment, HR, salaries, benefits, pension, taxes, sick pay and holiday pay. You’d also have to pay for more office space and kit it out with all the tech and software and heat and light!

Look at outsourcing the accounting, bookkeeping and finance department to save money and time.

You won’t have to recruit additional member of the team, we will. You don’t have to pay for national insurance, pension, sick pay, holiday pay and general expenses, we will.

You just pay for what you need at a fixed monthly fee not an hourly rate. With Cloud Accounting Support Services virtual team, you get all the expertise of a full finance team all for the salary of an inhouse bookkeeper.

We all have busy lives. Many of our clients are focused on the marketing, sales, and operations of their companies. The outsourcing of accounting can free up time so that you don’t have to manage accounting, bookkeeping and finance employees. You don’t have to provide your employees with guidance. Our outsourced staff are experts and capable of helping both the company and themselves. This leads to a higher level of resource among you as an owner and other parts of your company.

They know what will have the most significant impact on you, and their goal will be to save you time by giving you the information that helps you make better choices to grow your business.

Benefit 3: Avoid staff turnover, any office politics, and time-off issues

Using a virtual finance team for your accounting, bookkeeping and finance processes will allow your company to avoid staff turnover problems and having to fill gaps when staff are ill or go on holiday.

If your nominated CASS colleague goes on holiday the rest of our team will always be there – No downtime. You never have the stress and anxiety to deal with. When you outsource your accounting, bookkeeping and finance that becomes our problem, not yours.

The cost of staff turnover is substantial when someone leaves your organisation. Sometimes you need to pay a recruiter fee, and it may take longer than usual to find the best candidate. Then you need to train them. If they turn out to not be the right person, or the right fit with the rest of your inhouse team you will need to start over again, which can be an unnecessary headache. #

Benefit 4: More Flexibility to Meet Your Business Needs

The fourth benefit of outsourcing your accounting, bookkeeping and finance is having more flexibility.

If your team has only 2 or 3 people, you need to ensure they are always busy. Though if they have too much to work on and not enough time, it can be problematic. They don’t have the flexibility to take on new things as your business grows or matures. It can be frustrating, and you’ve got to wait.

For example, recently and for some companies currently making tax digital was a need that increased accounting teams’ workloads to higher levels than they were often able to handle. Many had to seek external help to be compliant.

Business owners who outsource their accounting, bookkeeping and finance can flex, pivot, and plan nimbly.

We can increase the number of people working on your project with ease, and because we’re not bound by time or cost constraints, we’ll be able to deliver what you want when you need it. Flexibility is the reason why you should outsource your accounting, bookkeeping and finance function.

Benefit 5: Ability to Scale Down or Up Quickly

The fifth benefit of outsourcing your accounting, bookkeeping and finance is the ability to scale up or down quickly. Business growth can come in peaks and troughs, and if you’re growing a newer company, it can get ahead of you.

Businesses that have rapidly grown are often suffering complications with backend operations. This can slow down growth and cost the company money and impact on their reputation.

There have been times when the economy was on an upswing, but there have also been periods where it slumped. Just think about the recession in 2008 and the on-going impact of COVID-19 and Brexit.

In times like this, businesses may try to reduce staff, and try to become more efficient with money. But you don’t want good people to leave the company because employees are still difficult and expensive to replace.

Outsourcing to a virtual accounting, bookkeeping and finance team gives you the ability to scale up to handle a more significant workload when the business hits its peak.

Benefit 6: Better Accounting, Bookkeeping and Financial Tools and Proven Processes

The sixth benefit about sourcing your accounting, bookkeeping and finance functions are proven processes and tools.

A small organisation is trying to keep overhead costs minimal. By outsourcing finance, you can save money on more advanced tools to improve your business. The cost of each tool is spread amongst many clients. You get the benefits and access to the same level of financial data a much larger corporate would get.

Cloud Accounting Support Services team will use these tools and data to bring proven processes into your organisation. This is just one way of building efficiency in both your business and team.

Benefit 7: Business Intelligence and Data

I love football (having played professionally many moons ago!) and although I know the score and the stats are important, they don’t win the game for you.

Let’s be honest; it’s not easy out there now, all you hear is doom and gloom on the news. There are a lot of solid competitors competing with you for business. You are not competing against a single opponent like you would in sports.

This is where the business intelligence and data we can provide you with comes in handy. Having a coach on the field helps you win. It’s like that when you have business information to help you make big decisions. Business intelligence and data makes a difference.

You’re not going to get it from your bookkeeper. You are unlikely to get it from your credit controller or payroll staff. With our support, you’re able to analyse what happened and why and how you are going to make future adjustments and reach your goals. Business intelligence and data (and knowing how to interpret it) is often overlooked when considering the benefits of outsourcing your accounting, bookkeeping and finance.

If you’re interested in learning more about how Cloud Accounting Support Services Virtual Finance Team can support you and your company, please schedule a call with me. 

Many thanks, Paul

CASS is Recruiting

CASS is looking to recruit a Cloud Accounting Specialist Trainee (Apprentice) we provide outsources accounting and book keeping services to small and medium sized businesses.

To apply check out the details below and send a copy of your C.V. and a ‘letter’ to info@cassonline.co.uk telling us why you will be great at this post.

JOB SPEC

About us…
Cloud Accounting Support Services provide outsourced accounting and bookkeeping services to small and
medium sized businesses and are based in Amington, Tamworth. We’re on 2 bus routes and just 10 minutes
drive from the M42 Junction 10. We are a growing business, in our 4th year of trading with a current team of
6 (a mixture of full and part time staff) including the business owner.

We’re a Xero Platinum partner, the highest accolade we can receive (One of only 175 in the UK) and also a
Quickbooks Online Gold Pro-advisor and we pride ourselves in the quality of the servies we provide. We’re
passionate about looking after our staff as they look after our clients.

About you…

You’ll be a self-motivated, good with numbers individual with a commitment to always do your best.

You must have…

• G.C.S.E’s in English and Maths at Grade 4 or above
• A desire to work in an accounts office based environment
• Want to study AAT (Association of Accounting Technicians)
• Knowledge of Office 365 applications (Outlook, Word, Excel, Sharepoint)
• And it would help if you have…
• A G.C.S.E in Business Studies or Accounting at Grade 4 or above
• Knowledge of cloud based accounting software such as Xero or Quickbooks

Specifics

You’ll be working with and learning from our team of excellent Cloud Accounting Specialists. You’ll learn
loads of different accounting tasks with the aim of eventually managing your own portfolio of clients as your
progress through your studies and gain knowledge and confidence.

Benefits

• A competitive salary package
• 35 hours per week with half day finish on a Friday
• 31 Days holiday (including Bank Holidays / Christmas closure)
• Contributory pension scheme (After 3 months)
• Private Medical Scheme (After 3 months)
• Branded Workwear
• A fantastic working environment at our offices in Tamworth
• Free tea & coffee
• Free parking

Some business owners prefer to do bookkeeping themselves, but DIY bookkeeping is often easier said than done. Not all business owners are professional bookkeepers, but somehow they manage and power through it. It might seem to go easy in the beginning, but you will only realise the consequences when you face errors when your accountant comes to complete the compliance tasks such as filing your year-end.

Why Bookkeeping is Significant?

Accounting is a serious part of any business. All your accounting greatly relies upon your books.  If the books are not accurate, it directly affects the credibility of your records. Inaccurate records may pull up lots of tax penalties. You need to maintain good records to get your accounts signed off.

Hopefully, you will be using accounting software like Xero to keep tabs on your accounting already. However, these software tools work with the numbers you feed in them. If your books are not organised, you cannot expect the automation tool to do accounting accurately. To avoid tax penalties – clean and organised books are the only way. So, to keep forward and to improve margins, you must take bookkeeping seriously and work on it.

If you are a frustrated DIY bookkeeper business owner this article is right for you. There are some bits of bookkeeping basics to help. Below are five proven bookkeeping tips to help keep your books on sound footing.

Tip #1 – Get things done easier with automation

Some years back, automation was only reserved for big companies. But today, over half of all businesses have automated workflows from customer management, marketing to collaboration tools to use within teams. In such a scenario, you can automate your bookkeeping, so that your numbers flow intact into your accounting software.

Manual bookkeeping is however prone to errors and eats up a lot of time and energy.  But automation tools can keep tabs on your books and maintain the records with unrivalled accuracy and speed. If you are using Xero for your business accounting, you must have a look at Dext, an intuitive automation tool that can sync your online and hardcopy paper receipts into Xero automatically.

Tips #2 – Follow up on Money owed to you and due to your suppliers

Whatever done or undone, you must always stay on top of your payables and receivables and take required actions accordingly. You will get a better overview of your business finances and the near future cash flow status of your business. With this analysis at hand, you can foresee your cash flow and correct any trends before they glide out of your hand.

Payables – Accounts Payable is also a type of short-term debt. It is the money you owe to the suppliers who keep your business running. Delinquent payables can affect your credit rating and restrict your access to bank loans and credit from suppliers. So, prioritise paying off your APs as soon as you can to produce an accurate balance sheet and keep your credit score up.

Receivables – Sending an invoice to a customer does not mean that you will be paid right away. There are some late-paying customers who need a constant nudge to respond to your invoice. If they can’t pay your invoice on the whole at a time, you can even get partial payment at regular intervals. Cloud accounting software can help set up automatic payment options, reminders and chasing emails to your clients to support your healthy cash flow.

Tip #3 – Give your books a weekly and quarterly review

Don’t let it mount up! No matter if you are a DIY bookkeeper, or you have an automation tool for bookkeeping, or you may even have a bookkeeper, you must always invest some time reviewing the numbers. This greatly helps you to know what is actually going on with your money. And weekly reports can always keep you on track, even when things are getting messy. With weekly reports, you will know the status of your cash flow almost immediately and so you can plan accordingly. Reports and reviews at regular intervals keep you organised and informed.

Tip #4 – Keep your business and personal expenses separate

Mingling your personal expenses with that of business is the most common mistake business owners makes. This might seem trivial in the beginning, but it will pull up huge headaches during reconciliations and tax filing. Whether you have a start-up or you are a freelancer, getting a business card as soon as you plan for setting up a business is important. This will also help you with credit lines.

Most business owners usually have a business card. The mess arises when you start using your personal card for business expenses, assuming to compensate later. The same happens vice versa at times. That is not the way it should work. Always carry both your business and personal cards wherever you go and never interchange the expenses. Separate expenses make your bookkeeping task way easier and with de-cluttered books, you will not have to over-exert on the reconciliation part.

Tip #5 – Avoid Cash

People now prefer paying online and are more comfortable and you can’t use cash online. Online transactions make your bookkeeping easier. You need not chase your receipts and invoices. With online payments, you will know the exact amount and even the place and time of payment. With these, there are no chances of losing records of purchase.

Bottom Line

Keeping your financial records straight simply makes sense.

If you need support with your bookkeeping give us a call – We will NEVER subcontract your bookkeeping out of our dedicated in-house team. All of our staff are trained and dedicated bookkeepers and we are proud to be certified by the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers.

We are pleased to announce that we are now recognised as Platinum Xero Partners, which is the very highest status level for our knowledge and expertise in Xero.

Xero is a simplified, cloud-based accounting and book keeping system that enables company owners to run their business finances on the go anytime, from anywhere, using any electronic device. Xero allows businesses to raise invoices, track expenses, access payroll and manage their finances in real time and on the go. It helps businesses to work more closely with their accountants who can also access the financial information online to give real-time help and advice. Xero is also compatible with Making Tax Digital for VAT purposes.

How we can help you with Xero?

We have been rewarded with Platinum Xero status because we have a great number of clients on Xero and a team of certificated users.

Why should you care? This means we now have access to extra value options and expertise to pass on to all of our clients. We can offer you the highest possible level of discount and optional extras as well as giving you the reassurance that we have over 1,000 successful, bespoke Xero implementations under our belts with businesses just like yours.

Need any help or assistance with Xero?

We enjoy partnering with Xero for a number of reasons, one of which being it’s easy access in the cloud, but also because of its many other excellent services such as a choice of pricing, integration with over 700 applications and being Making Tax Digital VAT compliant.

“I am so proud of the team being recognised for their dedication, hard work, and attention to detail,” said Paul Barnes, MD at CASS, “I’m also excited for our customers to continue reaping the rewards of working with our team of certified Xero professionals. It is a high honour to be recognised by Xero as one of their fastest growing and highest ranking Xero providers in the UK.”

The Cloud Accounting Support Services Team is continuing to grow with the very best accredited advisors that can offer you services such as Xero Training, help with Implementation and Migration, bookkeeping and ongoing support.

If you know you need to move to cloud based accounting but not sure what system is best for you why not review a copy of our free Xero vs. Quickbooks Online: Our Ultimate ‘Which is Best’ Guide.

As well as being Xero Platinum Partners, we are also partners with Quickbooks and Receipt Bank, so we can also offer competitive prices on these.

Contact Paul and the expert team at Cloud Accounting Support Services on 01827 780550 or info@cassonline.co.uk

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