Bookkeeping Workflow Management: 4 Best Practices and Solutions

You may have noticed you’re spending more of your time with bookkeeping since your startup has taken off. Sure, in the beginning, it was easy to manage your finances, and you may have wanted a more hands-on approach.

Now you don’t have the time, and you’re starting to get overwhelmed. When there are inefficiencies in your startup’s workflow, you risk missing important deadlines, achieving higher revenues, and meeting your customers' expectations. 

While hiring an in-house accounting team can sometimes be necessary, optimizing your bookkeeping workflow first can reduce inefficiencies. In the startup model, money is time, and an inefficient bookkeeping workflow can block you from hitting your goals.

In this article, you’ll learn how optimizing your bookkeeping workflow can make your business more efficient and what aspects of your workflow you should focus on improving.

What Is Bookkeeping Workflow Management?

Bookkeeping workflow management creates and maintains an efficient step-by-step accounting process for your startup. In a good system, every step, from data input to filing tax documents, should create as little work as possible for the startup founder and their employees.

4 Best Practices For Managing Bookkeeping Workflows

Below are some best practices you can follow to improve your bookkeeping workflow and ensure you are not wasting valuable employee time on tasks that can be delegated or automated.

1. Set Up Automated Workflows

Bookkeeping has progressed from the days of cash, paper-based systems, and simple Excel spreadsheets. Nowadays, you have access to a variety of advanced bookkeeping and accounting software solutions to automate repetitive tasks like data input and financial reporting.

To better understand what you can automate:

•  Look at which processes take you and your team the most time and find software that can support these tasks for you.Consider hiring a professional accountant to set up the initial rules for your accounting automation workflow. Automated systems are often only as good as the user running them, so hiring experienced professionals helps eliminate any human errors before they happen.

2. Effectively Delegate Tasks To Your Finance Team

Clear communication at all levels is key, especially if you’re managing your finances internally. This will help maintain accuracy and consistency in your financial records and prevent overlapping work and confusion among team members. You can do this by:

• Ensure everyone understands their roles and responsibilities
• Provide teams with the necessary resources to complete their tasks.
• Meet with teams regularly and with a pre-agreed-upon agenda

3. Track Time Spent On Individual Tasks

You can identify bottlenecks in your bookkeeping workflow by tracking the time spent on individual accounting tasks. Label tasks with detailed descriptors in your time-tracking software so you can monitor how long each one is and analyze the data to determine areas for improvement.

The expression time is money is especially relevant when you think about how much bookkeeping tasks cost you in employee hours. Even though it may seem counterintuitive, you may find it cheaper to hire specialized bookkeepers or a fractional CFO..

4. Customize Your Dashboard To Suit Your Business's Needs

When using bookkeeping software, customizing the experience to your business's needs can make your workflow faster and easier. Make sure to choose software with a KPI dashboard that connects all your financials in one place and can give you the customization you need to get that big-picture view.

From here, set up your dashboard to display the most relevant information upfront, such as key financial metrics, outstanding invoices, and expense tracking. This provides a clear overview of your startup's financial health and helps you make informed decisions more quickly.

Why Is Bookkeeping Workflow Management Important For Startups?

Effective bookkeeping workflow management is crucial for startups because it enables them to maintain accurate financial records, comply with tax regulations, and make data-driven business decisions. 

You can significantly improve your startup's efficiency by implementing best practices like automating accounting processes, delegating tasks effectively, tracking time spent on individual tasks, and customizing your dashboard.

An optimized workflow will help your startup save time and resources, allowing your team to focus on core business activities and drive growth. Remember, an efficient bookkeeping workflow can be the difference between a thriving startup and one that struggles to stay afloat.

Unified Solutions For Bookkeeping Workflow Management

Now that you know the best ways to manage your bookkeeping workflow, you need to decide if you’re going to set all of this up on your own or with the support of a financial advisor. 

Whichever you choose, make sure your software or financial operations platform streamlines your tasks, gives you a big-picture view of your finances, and is customizable to your business needs. 

If you need help getting going, we’re here to be an additional resource and make bookkeeping as stress-free as possible. 

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