When should you hire an accountant?

Grant Anderson for Xero writes: Research we did in the small business community showed that many small businesses are unsure about when to hire an accountant and about the value they can bring. Xero’s latest Small Business Guide ‘When to hire an accountant’ provides all the top tips you need to know.

If you’re a small business owner, the chances are pretty high that you didn’t start your own business to be swamped in the financials. This is where it makes sense to get a professional to take care of the numbers so you can focus on what you do best – running the business.

Growing small businesses need well-managed finances

Small business owners are always looking to save money, so an accountant can often be considered an unnecessary expense. But certain tasks (such as filing taxes) can be very time consuming for someone without experience  – and even then the tax return can be riddled with errors. The best accountants and bookkeepers will be looking for ways that your business can make money. They are coaches, always encouraging and training you for better results.

Add value to your business

With the help of a seasoned professional, small businesses can create more opportunities for themselves. Some of these include:

• increasing revenue
• reducing expenses
• planning cashflow
• growing the business
• business planning
• identifying new market opportunities.

If your small business uses a financial advisor they are also less likely to have compliance issues or errors in their data – which may cause major problems down the track. With the use of cloud software, an accountant doesn’t need be a full-time employee as there is so much flexibility to work remotely using the same data.

Make running your company easier

From helping with the legal structure of your company, applying for a business loan or overdraft, or helping with the finances, an accountant is there to make running a business easier. A common problem is engaging an accountant too late, when a business has a problem. Accountants can identify the root cause of business problems and help business owners correct the cause. It’s always best to have your financial advisor on board as part of the team before you need them, rather than afterwards.

Xero’s latest small business guide ‘When you should hire an accountant’ highlights the stages where a professional will add the most value.

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We’d love to hear what you have to say about this guide or any of the others in this section. So if there’s a topic on small business you’d like us to write about, drop us a line in the comments below.