The decision by a business to appoint a company accountant can be the beginning of a period of expansion and prosperity as the management delegate high level financial and strategic accounting responsibilities to the role. Until the business is ready for that step, using external accountants to perform tasks beyond their current capabilities is a sound tactic.http://www.charterpartners.com.au

1. When Business is Growing - Hire Someone to Handle the Business Account
At some point in the growth of a business, the necessity for employing a company accountant should
become obvious. The business transactions may have become more complex, the reporting
information needed by management to make forward business decisions may not be available from
current systems or the conclusions being drawn from the available income statements and balance
sheets may not be accurate. Any or all of these issues are indicators that the business has outgrown
whatever methods or systems currently being used. Even if the accounts are being prepared by a
competent bookkeeper, there are higher level functions that a growing business needs if it is to set
realistic, long-term goals.
There are several options a business might take when they reach this stage. The management could
elect to recruit a full-time accountant on staff if the size of the business can justify the cost. If they
are not quite at that stage, they may employ a part-time accountant, either on staff or under a
contract or they may continue with their current system, but arrange for their accounts to be
reviewed monthly by a firm of accountants Brisbane.
A company accountant would work with the existing office staff to streamline processes, look for
efficiencies, identify and eliminate wasteful practices and ensure that the day-to-day systems are
operating efficiently. The company accountant would also produce annual budgets and five year
rolling estimates, monthly and quarterly financial statements and ad-hoc reports requested by
management. Interpretation of all or any of these results would also be part of the role.
Having established a budget process, the company accountant would then monitor those budgets
against actual results to identify areas where expenditure could be better managed, and recommend
control measures. At the operational level, responsibility for the accuracy and maintenance of the
general ledger, account reconciliations, keeping debtors under control and approving new customer
accounts all fall under this area of responsibility.
No business can grow and prosper without clever strategic thinking, and the company accountant, in
conjunction with the management, would review the financial strategy, examine the use of profits
and reserves and make recommendations. Arranging the external audit, producing statutory
accounts and ensuring that tax and BAS returns are completed and lodged would also be expected of
the role.
Businesses that are not quite large enough for a staff accountant Brisbane frequently engage
external accountants under contract and payment arrangements negotiated prior to beginning work.
This model gives the business the additional expertise it needs to expand, while containing the
accounting costs until it is ready to make a permanent arrangement.
Using external accounting expertise is a clever tactic that provides for the introduction of new ideas
and knowledge into a business, without carrying the on-going staffing costs. When the time comes
for a permanent company accountant to be appointed, the external accountant can provide
assistance and information to help the new person settle into the role.
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