If you own a small business and haven't kept up your bookkeeping, don't worry. We can help you. We'll prepare your bookkeeping for the year, as well as your personal and business income tax return. Then we'll help you set up an easy system that allows you to keep your books in tip-top shape next year.
Small Business Accounting
As a small business owner you have more important things to do than to keep your own books. We take care of your books for you, so you can get back to the job of running your business and generating profits! Each month or quarter we'll do the following things for you...
These tasks form the solid foundation of your small business accounting system. You can customize the package of services you receive by adding payroll, tax planning, tax preparation, or any of our other services.
Bank Reconciliation
Reconciling your business checking account each month allow us to keep your bank account, accounting, and taxes up-to-date.
Having us reconcile your account each month allows you to...
Identify lost checks, lost deposits and unauthorized wire transactions.
Detect and prevent excess/unjustified bank charges and ensures transactions are posted correctly by your bank.
Detect and prevent embezzlement of funds from within your company.
Know how your business is doing? You can't really know unless all accounts are reconciled and properly accounted for on your financial statement.
Manage your cash more effectively. Proper management of funds not only saves money, it makes money for you.
Protect yourself. By timely reconciling and promptly objecting to your bank about any unauthorized, fraudulent or forged checks presented to your bank and paid by that bank, you can relieve your agency of responsibility for the shortfall and transfer the risk to the bank. This reason to reconcile alone should be enough. Crime exists.
Sleep Better. You will sleep more peacefully at night knowing your bank accounts are reconciled, in balance and that all escrow funds, accounts, checks and disbursed funds are properly accounted for.
Income Statement
An income statement, otherwise known as a profit and loss statement, basically adds an itemized list of all your revenues and subtracts an itemized list of all your expenses to come up with a profit or loss for the period.
An income statement allows you to...
Track revenues and expenses so that you can determine the operating performance of your business.
Determine what areas of your business are over-budget or under-budget.
Identify specific items that are causing unexpected expenditures. Like phone, fax, mail, or supply expenses.
Track dramatic increases in product returns or cost of goods sold as a percentage of sales.
Determine your income tax liability.
Balance Sheet
A balance sheet gives you a snapshot of your business' financial condition at a specific moment in time.
A balance sheet helps you...
Quickly get a handle on the financial strength and capabilities of your business.
Identify and analyze trends, particularly in the area of receivables and payables. For example, if your receivables cycle is lengthening, maybe you can collect your receivables more aggressively.
Determine if your business is in a position to expand.
Determine if your business can easily handle the normal financial ebbs and flows of revenues and expenses?
Determine if you need to take immediate steps to bolster cash reserves?
Determine if your business has been slowing down payables to forestall an inevitable cash shortage?
Balance sheets, along with income statements, are the most basic elements in providing financial reporting to potential lenders such as banks, investors, and vendors who are considering how much credit to grant you.
Maintaining a Clean General Ledger
The general ledger is the core of your company's financial records. These records constitute the central "books" of your system. Since every transaction flows through the general ledger, a problem with your general ledger throws off all your books.
Having us review your general ledger system each month allows us to hunt down any discrepancies such as double billings or any unrecorded payments. Then we'll fix the discrepancies so your books are always accurate and kept in tip top shape.
New Business Formation
Thinking of owning your own business?Opening your own business is exciting and thrilling. It's everything that comes after the excitement and thrill has worn off that dictates whether a small business will make it or not. It's up to you to maintain and stretch out the "thrill and excitement" period forever.
A methodical plan of action is needed to fulfill your dream or goal of being your own boss and running a successful business. Success lies in the approach you choose to take. We help you avoid the common pitfalls that many new small business owners make when starting their new venture.
We help you...
Prepare an initial business plan to clarify your marketing, management, and financial plans.
Determine your start-up capital needs.
Identify sources of start-up capital and backup sources if needed.
Evaluate and quantify your borrowing power so you know how much money you can get your hands on if needed.
Select a business structure that best fits your needs by evaluating tax advantages, legal exposure, ease of operation and portability should you need to relocate.
Select the right accounting software by evaluating your budget, needs and hardware.
Prepare a Cash Flow Budget so you know exactly how much money you need to keep the business alive each month for the first few years. Unplanned cash requirements are always emotionally painful.
Establish billing and collection procedures to maximize your cash flow.
Establish procedures to monitor and control costs.
Setup a home office so you can maximize your tax deductions.
Prepare and file all required state and local licenses and permits.
Prepare and file your application for your Federal Employer Identification Number.
Provide payroll and payroll tax filing when you bring on your first employee.
Comply with employment laws so you don't get hit with fines and unhappy employees.
Identify your business insurance needs.
Develop a solid Partnership Agreement. This is an extremely important document for all new partnerships and will help prevent a tremendous amount of financial and emotional problems down the road.
Let us help you succeed by getting your new business off to a good strong start. Please complete the form below to learn more about our New Business Formation Services.
Tax Problems
At times you may need a trained outside professional to evaluate your company's operations to determine if the appropriate controls are in place to ensure proper handling of resources and to protect yourself from employee theft. We assess your internal control systems to determine the efficiency and effectiveness of your operating procedures. Then we make recommendations that help your company become stronger and more profitable by correcting any inefficient or ineffective operating procedures we find.
What we do for you...
Implement segregation of duties so that duties are divided, or segregated, among different people to reduce risk of error or inappropriate actions. No one person has control over all aspects of any financial transaction.
Make sure transactions are authorized by a person delegated approval authority when the transactions are consistent with policy and funds are available.
Ensure records are routinely reviewed and reconciled, by someone other than the preparer or transactor, to determine that transactions have been properly processed.
Make certain that equipment, inventories, cash and other property are secured physically, counted periodically, and compared with item descriptions shown on control records.
Provide employees with appropriate training and guidance to ensure they have the knowledge necessary to carry out their job duties, are provided with an appropriate level of direction and supervision, and are aware of the proper channels for reporting suspected improprieties.
Document policies and procedures and making them accessible to employees. The documented policies and procedures provide day-to-day guidance to your staff and continuation of duties in the event of prolonged employee absences or turnover.
Review operations to ascertain whether results are consistent with established objectives and goals and whether the operations are being carried out as planned.