Improving your accounting processes leads to less time wasted by accountants. It can also result in increased loss prevention and improved revenue flow.

It’s no secret that the Finance department delivers a major function in any business. As a result, there’s no room for inefficiency, careless mistakes, or delays. The Finance department helps keep all other departments operational, and proper accounting procedures help keep your company’s reputation intact.

Whether you run a small startup or a large enterprise, a streamlined accounting process is needed. Small businesses often assume incorrectly, that because of their size, they are less susceptible to fraud. Bigger companies, on the other hand, have so many expenses that it’s often hard to keep track, even with an arsenal of software and specialists ensuring that the business stays afloat.

If you’re looking for ways to maximize your Finance department’s productivity while minimizing errors and delays, take a look at these tips that can improve your accounting process.

1. Automate Repetitive Tasks

Technology is amazing! And that’s quite an understatement. Every department in any business can benefit from technology—including the Finance department. Technology can provide more data access and security. For example, cloud storage allows you to protect sensitive data while being able to access it from anywhere.

Another side of technology is automation. Automation allows you to complete repetitive tasks quickly and efficiently. This is especially the case in accounting where programs and applications like Microsoft Excel and other such programs are common. Automating these simple tasks can save your company hundreds of hours in labor. This time can be spent on more revenue-generating activities.

2. Outsource

One of the best ways to improve your accounting process is to outsource. Firstly, outsourcing gives you access to highly-skilled F&A experts with solid & deep experience in a variety of industries. Also, outsourcing means you save valuable capital that would otherwise be spent training an in-house team.

The Finance department usually has a lot of activities going on to ensure the revenue flow. Some of these tasks are non-core functions, such as data entry. Outsourcing such non-core functions free up time for your in-house staff, allowing them to focus on larger tasks that drive business growth.

Be sure to look for a F&A solutions partner that can help you build a team of experts with a strong background in business trends that will make your business grow and maintain operations. An ideal partner has the right processes that can match yours, in any stage of growth, and also has the right technology to properly monitor and evaluate your revenue and expenditures.

3. Invest in Training and Development

Training is necessary for any field if employees want to stay abreast of industry changes. This can be expensive but is usually well worth the expense. Training your staff builds their knowledge and confidence in their field of work. This, in turn, allows them to work smarter and more efficiently. This is especially true if they receive training on how to use new technology, learn about updated compliances and regulations, and other issues they should know about to move forward in their respective careers.

But what if you don’t have the time and budget to train your newly-recruited team members? The alternative to this is to outsource your workforce. There’s no going around it—training your staff is a huge expense. When you outsource to a trustworthy partner, you can rest assured that they will provide well-trained staff for the job. And you don’t have to bear the cost of the training. Win-win.

4. Consider Batch Processing

Finance and Accounting is all about revenue and expenditure. As a result, there’s a lot of receipts and invoices to be dealt with on a regular basis. Just imagine trying to process hundreds of individual invoices a week. Very tedious.

To get past this, aim to batch process. Group invoices and process them at a set time every day or week.

The Finance department is the backbone of your business. So it is in your best interest to ensure that this department is functioning optimally. Consider teaming up with a finance solutions company that can help you focus on core competencies and achieving optimal business growth.

Key Takeaways

• You Will Need Extra Help: Whether it’s using third-party software or outsourcing an F&A team to work on your financial tasks, you can count on different ways to streamline your activities easier and faster.
• Ask What is Worth Investing In: While investing in your in-house staff will make them feel more like a valuable asset to your company, you can also invest on an outsourced F&A team that can help you ease up on your day-to-day tasks as well as give you insights on the latest financial trends through the use of up-to-date software and strategic reporting.

Infinit-O is the trusted customer-centric and sustainable leader in Business Process Optimization to Small and Medium businesses in the Financial Services, Healthcare and Technology sectors by delivering continuous improvement through technology, data and people.

When you’re ready to grow, think Infinit-O!

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