Lawyers first considering whether they should hire a bookkeeper may be wondering if there are any practices they should avoid. Those who’ve had a bookkeeper for some time may have fallen into some bad habits. Whatever your situation is, this article is all about those things that you shouldn’t do when you’re dealing with your bookkeeper.
Overreliance
A bookkeeper has a very specific job. They keep your books. (Surprising, right?) And just because this particular job has a huge impact on your firm and your life doesn’t mean that it’s any less specific.
Because a firm’s financials have a lot of knock-on effects in the life of a lawyer, many firms are tempted to ask their bookkeeper to perform tasks that are outside of their wheelhouse. For example, knowing that the bookkeeper is well acquainted with the firm’s profitability, a lawyer might ask the bookkeeper for advice about which clients to take on to maximize profit.
While the question is understandable, and the bookkeeper may even have an answer, it’s unfair to expect the bookkeeper to address issues of business strategy. Ultimately, questions of strategy and business planning are the responsibility of the business owner. While your bookkeeper might have valuable input on strategic issues, don’t rely entirely on their say-so when it comes to strategy.
Lack of Communication
On the flip side of that coin is a total lack of communication. Good bookkeepers will insist that lines of communication between them and their clients remain open and healthy. But every now and then a firm might fall into the habit of just letting the bookkeeper do their job without talking to them.
This is a mistake, given that your bookkeeper has a tremendous amount of knowledge about your firm’s financials. With that knowledge comes insight. And while bookkeepers aren’t accountants, their understanding of the day-to-day operations of your firm can lead them to ideas that may not have occurred to you.
Lack of Supervision
Good bookkeepers can make life significantly easier. In fact, they can make life so easy that it’s tempting to just let them do their thing and keep your mind off of your books. This would be a mistake.
At the end of the day, as a lawyer and business owner, it’s your job to ensure the health and integrity of your firm. As with everything else that has to do with the operation of your business, you must keep an eye on your books to confirm that everything is in order.
Now, this is made much easier with the help of a bookkeeper since they’ll have done 98% of the work for you. But you still need to check in to supervise them from time to time to make sure things are going as they should be.
Final Thoughts
Life can be pretty great with a solid bookkeeper at your side. As long as you don’t ask them to do anything that isn’t in their wheelhouse, stay in close communication, and supervise their activities from time to time, you’ll likely stay on top of your firm’s financials.