The rapport you share with an accounting outsourcing firm can be a pivotal factor affecting the ultimate growth trajectory of your business and overall financial health. If you fail to convey your expectations, then it might lead to major inefficiencies and missed growth opportunities. Herein lays the importance of choosing the perfect outsourced accounting services whether your business is a start-up, medium scale or large enterprise.
A massive demand is being felt for high degree of accuracy in finance and accounting. This is why a large number of businesses are partnering with outsourcing firms for taking care of their unique requirements ranging from statutory audits to GST compliance. Today we will take a look at factors that should be considered while scanning through accounting outsourcing companies.
Understand The Requirements Of Your Business
The first step before choosing among accounting outsourcing companies is to evaluate the accounting needs of your business. You might be requiring professional guidance for tax preparation, bookkeeping, financial analysis, payroll processing or any other avenue. Once you gauge your specific needs, you can filter out experts and a service model based on the same.
Search For Industry-Specific Expertise
The accounting norms vary across the different sectors of Indian market. While a manufacturing unit requires detailed inventory accounting, a start-up might need valuation and MIS reports to present to its investors. Every industry has a different set of audit requirements, strategic opportunities and regulatory bodies to report to. This is why it becomes necessary to enquire about the past experience of an outsourcing accounting company in your line of work. Your aim here should be to look for experts having a proven track record in excelling in the services you require.
Check Out Certifications
Accounting outsourcing companies which have been accredited by professional organizations like ACCA are always a better bet than the ones without any accreditations. You can also check out the experts working with the outsourcing firm and holding certifications like CIMA, CPA, etc.
Examine Software Usage
Having the right technological support can have a big role to play in the highly digitalised Indian economy. Businesses that are planning to outsource their finance and accounting departments need to verify whether the outsourcing companies are well versed in using accounting tools like Zoho Books, Tally Prime and Marg ERP. Adopting advanced tech helps bring down chances of manual errors and thus it’s crucial to choose an accounting outsourcing firm possessing knowledge of up-to-date technology. Businesses should verify whether the technologies offered by outsourcing firms can sync with their existing systems.
Verify Regulatory Compliance
Amidst the growing number of data threats, businesses around the globe are waking up to the dire need of data privacy. When collaborating with outsourced accounting services, businesses have to share their sensitive data with the former. This is why it’s necessary to check first whether the outsourcing firms have NDAs in place. It should also be enquired if the companies follow certain standards for data security and whether they comply with relevant RBI guidelines and Information Technology Act.
Easy Communication Channels
Fields like finance and accounting call for time-sensitive filings for Income tax and GST returns. Hence, it’s crucial to ensure that the accounting outsourcing companies provide a readily accessible point of contact. They should be quick to respond to WhatsApp messages and emails so that businesses can share their queries and get fast solutions.
Check Out Client References
Word of mouth goes a long way in either making or breaking the reputation of any accounting outsourcing firm. The internet is the first place to check out reviews of outsourcing agencies before appointing them to carry out finance and accounting tasks. Usually, the website of an outsourcing firm will carry user testimonials. If you aren’t satisfied with these, then you can check out nonbiased reviews from Google and similar search engines.
Understanding Pricing In Detail
Businesses need to ask the outsourcing companies regarding whether they will charge a fixed money fee or a variable one that fluctuates with the number of transactions. Its pivotal to be cautious about hidden charges like audit support. Entrepreneurs and management also need to verify whether the service fees are inclusive of GST.
Go For A Trial Run
Its best to let the accounting outsourcing companies carry out a pilot assignment before entrusting them with a full-scale project. This can help businesses gauge their level of accuracy, speed and quality.
Whenever a business associates with outsourcing accounting services, the entrepreneurs and management can focus more on the core areas of growth while the professionals take care of the rest. Choosing the perfect outsourcing firm is extremely crucial to enhance the productivity of a business and today we have shared the guideline for finding an accounting outsourcing firm that’s in sync with your specific requirements.
