A startup is an exciting world of creativity and innovation, and choosing the right accountant is almost like choosing a new business partner. They’ll become a trusted colleague who you can depend on to offer advice and guidance as your startup grows into the business you’re striving to achieve. Here are some tips to help you make this important decision, and make sure you find the right accountant for you and your business.
Does Location Still Matter?
In the past this would be a no-brainer as an accountant nearby would be the first port of call, but nowadays there are far more options and this needn’t be a limiting factor.
More and more companies are collaborating online by using cloud-based software, so you and your accountant could be viewing identical data simultaneously – allowing you to discuss and make changes together, potentially even if you’re on different continents! So if you’re happy for your relationship and bookkeeping to be primarily managed over the phone, email, video calls and online software then there’s really no need to consider location as a factor. This also means there’s no need to make compromises based on location, and so you can find an accountant that really understands the specifics of your business and specialises in your industry.
On the other hand, if you prefer face-to-face contact or want your accountant to go to meetings with you location will still be a major factor when deciding which accountant is right for you.
Relevant Expertise
You’ll need someone with experience preparing tax returns and financial documents for startups of a similar size and revenue to yours, but also one that will be able to grow with you and your business. To gauge this, at interview you could ask them about their other clients and how their businesses have grown and developed over time – that way you can be confident that they’ll be able to handle your changing needs. It’s even better if they’ve worked with companies in similar market sectors to yours, as that will help them understand the unique needs of your business – so again it might be worth searching further afield to achieve this.
You’ll also need to consider what exactly the role of your accountant will be and which tasks will be their domain. You can either choose to only delegate select tasks to your accountant and stay heavily involved, or accountancy firms such as Gibson Hewitt can handle every aspect of bookkeeping and small business accounting for you to make it as easy as possible, and so you can spend your time on actually running your startup. It’s up to you to decide what’s going to work best for you and your business.
Trust Your Intuition
The right accountant can help you to launch, develop and grow your startup so it’s really important to take time over choosing the right one for you. After you’ve considered all the candidates, let your intuition take charge and you’ll know what the right decision is.
Cover photo credit: Dennis Wong
