Why Outsource Accounting Services?

There are a lot of benefits to outsourcing your accounting services. Having a quarterback to take some back-office tasks off your “to-do” list is a great way to free up time for what you do best. You may think you can’t work with outsourced accounting services if you have a less popular software. That isn’t true! The outsourced accounting team at Chortek is used to jumping in with a client’s software. We can get to know the ins and outs of your software. We have even used our knowledge of a more obscure tool in the past to help other clients who use the same accounting software. If you’re still wondering, “Why outsource accounting services?”, allow us to tell you the story of how we helped Denco streamline their monthly processes.

Why outsource accounting services? You can make your bank happier.

If you use your own accounting software in-house, you may be wondering why you would want to outsource. If your company has a monthly reporting covenant with the bank, this might be a great route for you. Sometimes, reporting internally results in unexpected adjustments. Outsourcing your accounting to a firm can help give your bank peace of mind.

Learning E2 For Denco Manufacturing

Denco Manufacturing, Inc. uses the cloud-based E2 Shop System for their accounting software. When we work with clients to set up accounting software, we usually get them set up on a software like QuickBooks, NetSuite, or Sage. Taking on a new software like E2 did require some extra learning on our part.

When we start working with a new accounting software, we learn as much as we can upfront and take a lot of notes. The good news is that there are similarities between all types of accounting software. You just need to know where to find the things you’re trying to use. The functionality between them is mostly the same. Sometimes, a software does come with its own quirks, so we need to learn those as well. When we started working with Denco, for example, we learned quickly that E2 only allowed us to have a few months after year-end before we were forced to close down. To avoid manually overriding software settings or making adjustments over what the software provides, it’s important for us to learn the individual quirks of a new accounting software so we can be adequately prepared.

The easiest way for us to get up to speed on a new accounting software involves learning how internal employees are currently using it, exploring in the tool to find where certain important pieces are located, and watching training videos. Once we get a routine down with the client, we don’t change much to start. We begin by getting a handle of the tool and working on reports that clients are already used to seeing.

Outsourced accounting on a monthly basis can help make for a cleaner year-end

When we work with clients on outsourced accounting, it also helps us build cleaner year-end reporting. Checking in on a monthly basis means we’re adjusting fewer journal entries. Plus, we help the company gain a better understanding of their financial statements on a regular basis. Imagine being able to review your finances monthly and have confidence that everything is correct.

Once we were able to jump in with Denco and got used to E2, we started to bring in more efficiencies over time. We worked with their internal controller to figure out how to split up tasks and made the process more streamlined for everyone. For example, Denco started by using both QuickBooks and E2. They used QuickBooks primarily to write checks. After we learned more about how E2 worked, we were able to help them phase out QuickBooks altogether. Denco now has a more accurate idea of where they stand on a more up-to-date basis.

Not only does it benefit the client for us to learn their accounting software, it also helps us in the long-run. After we spent time in E2, we were able to see how things work and can be done in the software, which better prepared us to make recommendations for future clients. Since we started working with Denco, we have also worked with another client who has E2 as their accounting software. We were able to get in on the ground floor of beta testing the cloud version of E2 as well. Because of this, we’ve been able to preview potential improvements for other clients on cloud.

Chortek’s approach for outsourced accounting with a new software

To summarize, when we work with your existing software for outsourced accounting, we:
  • Take time to learn the tool from internal employees, training documentation, and exploration
  • Document the best process for monthly reporting that keeps in mind the software’s individual quirks
  • Improve upon the process over time by identifying efficiencies
  • Work with the client’s internal team to figure out the best way to divide responsibilities
  • Make notes of how one client is doing things in the software to benefit another potential client down the line

We don’t rely on what’s “always been done”

One thing you won’t get from Chortek with any of our services is resting on the idea of “that’s the way we’ve always done things.” We pride ourselves on our ability to improve processes in a way that works for everyone.

If this all sounds great, and you’d like to talk with us about our outsourced accounting services, we recommend getting work papers from your current accountant to see what process is currently in place. We can then work on making our process transparent and revamping as we go. With Chortek, you also have a team on your side. While I handle the monthly processes for Denco, if I happen to be out, someone else can step in because our process is well-documented.

In Denco’s own words

Since we’ve started working with Denco on improving their processes in E2, they’ve appreciated how seamless the process has been, even while we helped them transition to the cloud version of E2. “Chortek has been patient with us,” said Karen Cooper, part owner of Denco. Instead of changing everything at once, we’ve helped the team slowly improve their processes over time, and that has made all the difference. “They’ve made sure Mark has reliable historical data throughout the process, and didn’t change what he was used to viewing from a production standpoint.”

Karen also appreciated that we took on the learning ourselves and are helping train Denco on the changes we’ve made to E2. Chortek is helping Denco “be more efficient on a monthly basis.” We don’t just want to do everything for our clients without their input or insight. We like to work alongside them as partners and learn and grow together.

If you’re holding back on contacting Chortek because you feel like we’ll make you change your software, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We love a challenge, and we’ll help you improve your systems slowly and wisely.