Success doesn’t mean you have to spend all your time working on the tools, when instead, you should be off the tools, working on your business and your dreams! In our last blog, we have mentioned the formula for success for all businesses.
Formula For A Successful Business
Successful Business = More Money + More Time + Less Stress
So what can you do to achieve success?
Well, the short answer is to delegate, delegate and delegate. Not everyone is good at everything, it is impossible to be so. If you think you are, then “GOOD LUCK” as the simple fact is there are only a limited number of hours in a day to do work.
THE BIG QUESTION WHEN IT COMES TO OUTSOURCING IS,
"Will it be OK to delegate our compliance and bookkeeping work to a team outside of our office and even more, outside of Australia?"
I have outlined 5 tips that will help you outsource your processes. This will not only give you peace of mind but also increase your business's chance of success.
1. Data Security
Data security is paramount in today's business. It is even more important than profit, budget, revenue and anything else. If you don’t have it right the damage can be irreversible, and your clients' trust in you may be jeopardised.
Make sure you choose an outsourced partner that has a high level of security measures to ensure your data is safe.
2. Assign A Manager From Your Practice
Many Accounting practices fail to outsource when they do not have the correct in-house staff overseeing the whole outsourcing process. It can lead to mistakes and affect your reputation in the market. My suggestion is to choose an in-house staff member to oversee your outsourced work. It is best to choose someone who has knowledge about the jobs being outsourced, so they are able to support the outsourced team by providing more accurate and reliable information.
3. Check If The Outsource Provider Has Local Knowledge And Support
The cost of not having a local contact for your outsourced team to perform your jobs could be expensive. If a mistake is made, there may be an adverse impact on the growth of your practice.
Therefore, it is important for you to be able to communicate with your outsource team. Being able pick up the phone and talk to the local support person provides you with the peace of mind, of talking to a local member who understands your business and your concerns. Not having access to a local support member increase the chances of receiving an unsatisfying response from someone who may not understand your questions and concerns.
4. Ensure Your Outsource Team Have A Workflow Management System
In order to outsource your bookkeeping and compliance in the most seamless and organised manner possible, it is important that your outsourced team use a real-time workflow management system. This will allow your team to easily access and monitor outsourced jobs. It can be stressful not knowing the status of jobs. Any questions should be easily accessible from the tips of your fingers. In addition to a workflow system, having the ability to pick of the phone and contact a local member also helps.
5. Request To Talk To A Reference
Being new outsourcing is not uncommon and the idea of outsourcing is not new. That is why it is recommended that before signing on a contract, it is important that you talk to a reference who has used an outsource service before. This will help gain better insight into the industry, and help you compare providers based on their quality of work, performance and professionalism. Speaking to your peers will help you gain the peace of mind to take the step forward into the world of outsourcing.
When you have the right outsourced team, they will not only help you achieve better results but also build stronger support foundations to; assist with your existing clients, attract new clients, acquiring new opportunities and expand your service offering. You are sure to be the way to success if you are able embrace the 5 tips above and leverage the right outsourced team to help you to grow your firm.
Written By Kevin Dinh