Poor accounting services can quickly cause your business to spiral into financial disaster. Working with the right accountant is therefore critical for your business’s success. We have listed the eight warning signs which demonstrate that your in-house accountant or outsourced accounting service is no longer a valuable partnership for your business. Make the swap to SureBooks accounting services and allow us to take care of your business accounts efficiently.
Eight Warning Signs You Need a New Accounting Service:
We have listed the eight warning signs that your current accountant is no longer suitable to be a part of your business and shown how SureBooks accounting services are your ideal solution.
1) Lying About Qualifications:
Lying about accounting qualifications is a major warning sign that your in-house accountant or outsourced accounting service needs to be replaced. Leaving the financial health of your business in incapable hands can have dire effects on your business, therefore this warning sign should never be ignored.
Qualifications are critical for an accountant to be able to fully handle the numerous complex technical skills that come with accounting services. A qualified accountant will be trained in accounting, company and tax law, and financial reporting. These skills then enable the accountant to be an asset to a business and help the business grow and problem solve. An unqualified accountant will be ill-equipped to control your business costs or take your business to new heights.
One of the major qualities you need in your business accountant is honesty. If you discover they have lied about something as important as their qualifications, you have to start wondering what else they have lied about. You need an accounting service that you can trust.
SureBooks is a small business accountant that you can be sure of. The SureBooks team is comprised of fully qualified accountants with a diverse range of experience to ensure that you receive an accounting service that will only benefit your business.
2) Recommends Dishonest Practices:
If your accountant ever recommends dishonest accounting practices, you need to immediately consider a new accounting service.
There are various ways an accountant can recommend dishonest accounting practices. One example is recommending tax evasion, which is the act of willingly underpaying or refusing to pay your business taxes. This is done through falsifying documents, such as altering business expenses or the amount of income your business receives. Tax evasion is a criminal offense in South Africa and you and your business will be held accountable.
While it may be tempting initially as you will be saving money in various ways, eventually this decision will have a negative impact on your business. A good accountant should never condone dishonest accounting practices for the sake of quickly growing your bottom line.
Rather than turning to dishonest practices, SureBooks chooses to increase your revenue through efficient financial management. Increase the value of your business in a legal and honest way with SureBooks accounting services.
3) Missed Deadlines:
One important component of accounting services is observing and meeting deadlines. A warning sign you should pay attention to is when your in-house accountant or outsourced accounting service starts missing deadlines.
Missed deadlines can have effects that range from mild to significant for the financial health of your business. For example, your business accountant can miss the deadline for filing your tax return, which could result in penalties or interest charges.
It is important to have an accountant that stays up-to-date with accounting tasks so as to avoid too much work accumulating and then missing deadlines. You also need to ensure that your accountant stays on top of the technical, professional, and business accounting developments so as to make sure they can remain within important deadlines.
At SureBooks, we understand the importance of meeting deadlines. We are here to ensure that your business grows and thrives, and we understand meeting deadlines is an important factor within this. You can trust that we will take care of all your accounting needs in a timely and efficient manner.
4) Careless Mistakes:
Mistakes can happen, but you should never accept or ignore careless mistakes made by your business accountant.
There are numerous careless mistakes an accountant can make. Your business accountant can incorrectly record a transaction in your ledger, completely or partially omit to record a transaction in your ledger, duplicate recordings, or incorrectly balance your books. Careless mistakes can result in an inaccurate reflection of the current financial situation of your business.
Accountants who make small, careless mistakes are major red flags in a business. Careless mistakes demonstrate an overall lack of attention, disinterest in the finer details, and that they do not have the best interest of your business as their focus.
As the business owner, you have hired an accountant or outsourced accounting services for a reason. You may not have the knowledge or time to double-check their accounting work. You need an account you can trust to not make careless mistakes so that you can always have an accurate reflection of the financial state of your business.
SureBooks provides an accounting service with scrupulous attention to detail. By investing in SureBooks accounting services, you are investing in a company that is eager to help your business succeed to its full potential.
5) Accounting Technology is Not Up-to-Date:
You should be concerned if your accountant or outsourced accounting service is using an outdated accounting system.
The accounting software used by your business accountant needs to have the capabilities to suit your current business accounting needs as well as your future business accounting needs. Outdated accounting software can be inefficient, lower your profitability, and stunt your business growth.
SureBooks only uses the latest accounting software for our accounting services. We use Xero, which has unbeatable data capturing features and accessibility. We use Xero to ensure that your accounting is done accurately, efficiently, and to allow you to focus on the other important aspects of running your business.
6) Poor Communication:
Great communication is one of the most important skills your in-house accountant or outsourced accounting services needs to possess. We have listed a few of the ways an accountant can communicate in an unacceptable way.
Unsubstantial Answers: If your accountant is leaving out information, refusing to provide you with relevant information that you have asked for, or is struggling to explain the terms they are using, then you need a new accountant.
Slow Responses: If your accountant takes an unnecessary amount of time to respond to your calls or emails, they are demonstrating a general disregard for you and your business. Your accountant is providing you with a service, and therefore it is their responsibility to be available to respond to you in a timely manner.
You Do Not Understand: Every business owner cannot be proficient in the complexities of running a business and the nitty-gritty of accounting services. If your accountant is describing your financial health with difficult accounting jargon or not explaining your business accounts in a way you understand, then you need to consider finding a new account.
Your accountant is going to be the one guiding you on the decisions you make for the financial health of your business. If you cannot get a hold of your accountant or do not understand how they are explaining your financial situation, how can you make the best decisions for your business? A great accountant needs to be easily reached and communicate clearly.
SureBooks is always readily available to answer any of your questions. We will always discuss your financial health in a clear, open, and easy-to-understand way to ensure that you can feel confident with our accounting services.
7) Does Not Understand Your Business or Industry:
A major warning sign for your business accountant is if they do not understand your business or have lied about their understanding.
Your business accountant may be fully qualified, but they may have lied about their experience handling accounts for a business in your industry. Industry experience is important as it helps the accountant understand how to correctly direct your business decisions so that your business can be the best it can be.
Industry experience is also critical as there may be specific accounting practices for specific industries. There also may be industry changes that your accountant will need to be aware of. You need an accountant who fully understands your industry that they will be able to save money as much as possible so that your business’s bottom line can grow.
Your business needs an accountant that is fully experienced and has adequate knowledge of your particular industry. SureBooks is here to give you reliable accounting advice that is relevant to your business or industry so that you can make the best decisions.
8) Indiscreet Accountants:
If your business accountant is indiscreet about other company’s information, then this is a major warning sign that they are not the right accountant for your business.
Accountants can be indiscreet in numerous ways. They may boast about other clients the have to demonstrate their accounting skills or experiences, or they may divulge snippets of financial information about other clients over their lunch break.
Accountants who are not discreet raise the red flag that they may in turn be doing the same thing about your business. The last thing you need is your business’s financial information being flippantly discussed over a bagel in another office’s canteen.
The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), which is in line with the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), requires all professional accountants to comply with these fundamental principles of accounting ethics.
- Confidentiality.
- Integrity.
- Objectivity.
- Professional Competence and Due Care.
- Professional Behaviour.
Accountants are expected to uphold confidentiality and integrity in their accounting practices. Therefore, not only is being indiscreet a concerning quality for your business accountant but being indiscreet is also against the SAICA code of ethics for accountants.
SureBooks is here to give you peace of mind when it comes to our accounting services. This includes keeping your financial information protected so that we can have a valued and trusted relationship with your business.
Make the Swap to SureBooks Accounting Services:
If any of our warning signs have created red flags on your current accounting services, it is time to make the swap to SureBooks. SureBooks is a reputable small business accountant that you can trust as an accounting partner for your business.
To make the swap, simply contact SureBooks. One of our staff members will call you back and discuss with you our payroll and accounting services. You can then begin the journey of accounting services that are legal, trusted, and help you grow your business.
Do not ignore warning signs when it comes to your business accounting and rather make the swap to SureBooks for reliable accounting services.
