A popular choice with many small businesses is a small business accountant who charges a set fee every month for his or her services. It is simple to budget for, and often it can cost much less than an hourly personal accountant for the same level of service. Many small business owners find that they spend more time on their day-to-day business activities than when they had a full-time accountant. There are also benefits to hiring a small business accountant rather than an individual one.
Small business accounting systems require a great deal of computer knowledge. Accountants must use spreadsheets and computer programs to create and manipulate financial documents and understand various types of journals and other financial documents. The accounts will also need to be regularly audited to ensure that all of the money and assets are recorded correctly. The general duties of a small business accountant include:
Managing the accounts payable and accounts receivable. This includes developing an accurate cash flow model to show the difference between the total of money that is collected and spent and creating reports that allow you to account for the money paid in and money that is received. Most small business accounting services will prepare these accounts receivable/debt reports monthly, quarterly, or yearly. They may also provide investment estimates and bond prices.
Creating and managing the payroll system. Most accountants maintain payroll records using the current payroll procedures that are in place at the company. These records include information about employees, including their wages and tips. The accountants then add this information to the sales and inventory records. Accounting software can be used to create custom-made templates for all of the transactions that must be entered into the company's payroll system. If payroll tasks are too complex for a small business accountant, outsourcing this task is possible.
Managing the data entry tasks associated with filing income taxes. All individuals who file income tax returns will need to enter data into the appropriate forms. A small business accounting software program can be programmed to perform the data entry related to filing federal, state, or local tax returns. A good accountant will be able to customize data entry tasks to meet clients' individual requirements best.
Preparing the payroll records. All of the employees in a corporation must be paid, including sales tax, hours worked, and salaries. Accounting professionals will often prepare all of the required payroll records using the most comfortable accounting software. These records are then ready to be processed by the corporate management office when it comes time to deposit the payroll taxes.
Determining whether a corporation needs help with its financial data entry needs. Some small business owners are not equipped with the knowledge or expertise necessary to determine if a corporation needs assistance with entering financial data. Most accountants are familiar with a wide variety of formats and can create appropriate reports to make financial decisions. A typical accountant may not perform this task.
Performing routine accounting functions. Every business needs to access financial data related to cash flow, profit and loss analysis, and investment and business planning. A small corporation may not have the available resources to access this information through accounting software. An accountant would be the best individual to perform this task since an accountant would have extensive knowledge of internal corporate policies and the regulations that require reporting about the financial data.
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