Bookkeeper Job Description, Skills, Experience and Education
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- April 26, 2024
- Bookkeeping
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It involves recording transactions and storing financial documentation to manage the overall financial health of an organization. Most businesses use an electronic method for their bookkeeping, whether it’s a simple spreadsheet or more advanced, specialized software. Bookkeeping is the process of keeping track of a business’s financial transactions. These services include recording what money comes into and flows out of a business, such as payments from customers and payments made to vendors. While bookkeepers used to keep track of this information in physical books, much of the process is now done on digital software. The advent of accounting software significantly lessened the tediousness of bookkeeping by handling debits and credits for you in the background.
Kelly is an SMB Editor specializing in starting and marketing new ventures. Before joining the team, she was a Content Producer at Fit Small Business where she served as an editor and strategist covering small business marketing content. She is a former Google Tech Entrepreneur and she holds an MSc in International Marketing from Edinburgh Napier University. Access Xero features for 30 days, then decide which plan best suits your business. Take our free career test to find out if bookkeeper is one of your top career matches.
Components of Bookkeeping
Additionally, there may be other responsibilities based on the unique needs of your business. For example, a bookkeeper may be required to learn a specific accounting software system or participate in certain meetings. Also called “balancing the books,” reconciliation is the practice of tallying credits and debits to make sure they add up. If they don’t add up, you’ll need to go back and figure out where the debits and credits don’t match up. The good news is that most accounting software will do this for you—all you need to do is review the reconciled figures.
Bookkeepers work in a variety of settings, depending on the nature and size of the organization they serve. They may work in an office environment, in a retail store, or even from home. In most cases, bookkeepers work full-time during regular business hours, although part-time and flexible schedules are also common.
Why should you hire a bookkeeper?
Christina is a freelance editor and contributor with Newsweek’s small business team. With a passion for small business optimization and strategy, Christina has successfully launched her own business and now works to help others do the same. She has studied extensively at Arizona State University on the pre-medical track, and is now an entrepreneur, author, strategist and editor.
As a company grows, bookkeepers can add on an additional approvers to give the thumbs up for payments. Properly managing your accounts payable is important for maintaining relationships with suppliers and keeping positive trade credit terms. Many accountants are tax preparers, so as a bookkeeper, I always partner with my client’s accountant at tax time. During tax time, I will send the accountant a year-end profit and loss statement, a balance sheet, and any other information that the accountant needs. Sometimes the accountant has special requests, such as large purchases that need to be depreciated.
A bookkeeping app
The most common report in QuickBooks is the profit and loss report, which will first list all the income coming in, next all the expenses going out, and lastly the business owner’s net profit. Bookkeepers and accountants work hand what exactly does a bookkeeper do in hand to keep your business running smoothly. They are like business doctors constantly checking to make sure that your finances are healthy. At Keeper, we’re on a mission to help people overcome the complexity of taxes.
Bookkeepers are responsible for managing financial records, and one of their core skills is attention to detail. This skill is crucial in ensuring accuracy and minimizing errors in complex data sets. Bookkeepers must be diligent and meticulous when recording transactions, as even minor mistakes can have significant implications for a company’s finances. Typically, single entry bookkeeping is suitable for keeping track of cash, taxable income, and tax deductible expenses.