Is Your Bookkeeping Contractor Taking Too Long? Here’s How to Find Out
Running a Bookkeeping business is no small feat, especially when you’ve grown to your full capacity in just a year and a half. As demand increased, you wisely chose to expand your team by bringing a contract bookkeeper on board. This decision, driven by the goal of maintaining high service standards and accommodating more clients, seemed promising at the outset.
After a year of collaborating with your contract bookkeeper, however, you’ve noticed a troubling pattern: work is progressing at a glacial pace. Initially, you attributed this to the natural learning curve, valuing accuracy over speed as a hallmark of quality service. Still, the prolonged timelines have sparked your concern—especially when a single annual file is consuming upwards of 80 hours to complete.
This situation begs the question: How do you determine the appropriate time frame for Bookkeeping tasks? And when is it time to consider parting ways if efficiency doesn’t improve?
Here are some factors to consider in evaluating your contractor’s performance:
1. Industry Standards and Benchmarks
Familiarize yourself with typical timeframes for bookkeeping tasks in your industry. Compare these benchmarks with your contractor’s outputs to assess any discrepancies.
2. Nature of Tasks
Understand that complex files will naturally require more time, but make sure to distinguish between legitimate challenges and inefficiency.
3. Quality Versus Quantity
Although speed is essential, precision is paramount in bookkeeping. Evaluate whether the quality of work compromises the extended time frames.
4. Communication and Feedback
Have an open dialogue with your contractor about your expectations and the workload. Supply constructive feedback and resources for skill improvement if needed.
5. Trial Periods and Evaluation
Consider setting up trial projects with set deadlines. Regular evaluations can help track improvement and inform your decision-making process.
Balancing empathy with business needs is key. While you want to provide a fair opportunity for adjustment, it’s crucial to recognize when inefficiency starts affecting your business growth. If after reasonable time and support, no tangible progress is made, it might be worth reconsidering the collaboration.
Your instincts brought you success in a short period. Trust them alongside these guidelines to navigate your current challenges and propel your business forward.
One response
It’s understandable that you’re concerned about the time your contract bookkeeper is taking to complete tasks, especially when this might be impacting your ability to manage client expectations and grow your business. To assess whether your bookkeeper is genuinely taking too long and to address this issue effectively, consider the following steps:
Benchmarking and Industry Standards: Start by gathering data on standard completion times for the tasks you’re assigning. Industry benchmarks can be useful, although they can vary widely based on the complexity of the accounts, the software used, and the level of experience. For example, a typical experienced bookkeeper might take between 5 to 10 hours for monthly Bookkeeping for a small business, depending on the transaction volume. Use these benchmarks as a guide to understand where your bookkeeper stands.
Documentation and Processes: Make sure there are clear, documented processes for your bookkeeper to follow. Sometimes the lack of standardized processes can lead to inefficiencies. Providing detailed guides or checklists can help streamline their work and reduce the time spent figuring out the steps for each task, thus improving efficiency.
Training and Skill Assessment: Evaluate whether your bookkeeper might need additional training. It’s possible that a knowledge gap, not just inefficiency, is causing delays. Since he seems to have a hard time remembering procedures, consider investing in targeted training sessions or providing him with easy access to resources or tools that can aid his work.
Performance Metrics and Monitoring: Implement performance metrics that consider both efficiency and accuracy. Set realistic time goals for completing types of tasks and establish a system to monitor progress. Regular check-ins can be a constructive way to discuss his workload, understand challenges, and provide support where needed.
Time Tracking and Tools: Ensure that there’s an effective time-tracking tool in place. This will not only help you keep track of how much time is spent on various tasks but will allow the bookkeeper to assess his productivity. Tools like Toggl, Clockify, or even functionality from your existing Bookkeeping software might offer insight into where there’s room for improvement.
Feedback and Communication: Have an open and supportive discussion with your bookkeeper. Listen to his perspective on why tasks are taking longer and collaboratively explore solutions. Open communication can also help identify any external barriers he might be facing, such as technical issues or lack of resources.
Cost-Benefit Analysis: Finally, conduct a cost-benefit analysis. Consider