When it comes to keeping your financial books running smoothly, the quality of the bookkeeper for hire will play a major role in determining the accuracy of your books. Whether as a startup on tight budgets or a growing business looking for scaling up, choosing to hire a bookkeeper who knows what you are looking for can help you plan long term growth for your business.
But the question arises: do you need an in-house bookkeeper or should you hire a remote bookkeeper? Hiring the right one can make or break your business. The Fino Partners fills this gap with custom bookkeeping services that meet the unique needs of your business.
Freelance vs. In-House: How to Hire a Bookkeeper That Is Right for Your Business
The following are some tips for selecting the right bookkeeper for your business:
1. Cost Effectiveness
Where budget is the main issue, hiring a freelance bookkeeper is usually the cheaper alternative. In-house bookkeepers need a complete salary, benefits, office area, and perhaps hardware or software, all of which contribute to your overhead.
On the other hand, when you hire remote bookkeeper, they typically get paid on an hourly or project-by-project basis. For a startup or small business, the arrangement frees up capital for other growth aspects without having to worry about financial management capabilities.
2. Scalability and Flexibility
Freelance bookkeeping enables scalability according to your company's needs. When you hire remote bookkeeper, you're not locked into a set number of hours or bound by a multi-year agreement. If you see seasonally driven spikes, that is, tax time or quarter-cycles, you can just choose some bookkeeper to hire for some extra resources.
Also if you want to dial back or even shut down in months that are typically off-peak, you can do that, too easily. This flexibility is wonderful for businesses in the process of finding their financial rhythm or battling out-of-control cash flow.
3. Communication and Supervision
There are a couple of advantages to having someone on staff for immediate communication and moment-by-moment work. When you employ a bookkeeper to work from your office, he or she is at your fingertips for ad-hoc meetings, instant financial discussion, or swift document examination.
This allows for quick decision-making, especially in fast-changing situations. For complex or multi-faceted financial transactions, the ability to have someone on-site allows for more intensive monitoring and quicker resolution of any anomalies.
4. Access to Expertise
Due to the high level of freelance providers, one of the greatest benefits of freelance bookkeepers is the vast pool of global talent. You can search for specialist experts within certain verticals such as eCommerce, property, or health or products such as QuickBooks Online, Sage, or Xero.
It makes it simple to fit your needs with the correct expertise without the requirement to train from scratch. It is particularly useful for small businesses that do not have time to train or mentor a junior staff member.
5. Technological Awareness
Most freelancers these days are likely to be conversant with cloud accounting software and remote team collaboration tools. When you hire remote bookkeeper services, these professionals will typically use their own technology such as secure file transfer tools, bookkeeping tools, and project management tools.
This means quicker onboarding, efficient processes, and minimal IT investment for you. Also they're likely current on the most recent accounting software developments, so you get tech-wise ideas from top professional experts.
6. Control and Security of Data
Data security is essential to any company, and it's even more of a problem when books that contain financial information are being altered off-site. When you hire an in-house bookkeeper, you have the ability to keep tight control of who sees sensitive information through in-house systems, employee agreements, and network security with monitoring.
But freelance bookkeepers have best practices for data security too. When hiring a bookkeeper, make sure they employ encrypted sharing tools, sign NDAs, and adhere to GDPR or other compliance regulations. Establishing boundaries and parameters from the beginning can avoid risks later on.
Freelance vs In-house Bookkeepers: What You Need To Know
Below are the key differences between a freelancer and In-house Bookkeepers:
1. Hiring Cost
When you hire a bookkeeper, cost is most often the concern. A freelance bookkeeper would charge per job or per hour, so they are an inexpensive solution for small companies or startups with very limited requirements.
An in-house bookkeeper, however, has fixed pay, employment benefits, and overheads such as office space, which would drive your overall expenses very high.
2. Flexibility and Availability
If flexibility is your biggest concern, then contracting a freelance bookkeeper may be your best bet. Freelancers are hired as needed, so you can use their hours as needed, especially during the busiest hours of tax season or audits.
On the other hand, an in-house bookkeeper has a set schedule, which grants around-the-clock access but gets limited flexibility during off-season.
3. Degree of Control
If you employ an in-house bookkeeper, you maintain complete control over the space they occupy, their priorities, and procedures. They are part of your day-to-day operations, and it is simple to communicate and track their work .
If you employed a remote bookkeeper, you would have less control without proper strategy but they are more independent and accomplish what they do with minimal supervision.
4. Specialisation and Expertise
A freelance bookkeeper will typically be working for a number of different clients within various businesses, giving them access to a broader set of skills and current compliance and software knowledge.
By having an in-house bookkeeper, you'll have them learn more about your specific business over time, but they won't necessarily have as much exposure to various financial scenarios or best practices from other companies.
5. Scalability
Hiring a remote bookkeeper provides your business space to expand without having to expand your in-house staff. It's simple to change their schedule or add more help if your accounting needs spike.
Growth with an in-house bookkeeper tends to mean hiring more people, something that is time-consuming and costs money over the long haul.
6. Technology and Tools
Most freelance bookkeepers already have experience with most cloud-based accounting systems like QuickBooks, Xero, or Zoho Books.
This means quicker onboarding and lower training expenses. An in-house bookkeeper will require setup time and training but will integrate seamlessly with your in-house systems once onboarded.
How to Choose Between a Freelance and In-House Bookkeeper for Your Business
Here are some things to consider before hiring a bookkeeper:
1. Evaluate the Volumetric Scale of Transactions
If your company encounters heavy daily volumes of transactions and ongoing financial tracking, an internal bookkeeper may be ideal for immediate feedback and first-hand control.
If, however, your transactions are infrequent and small volumes, it is cost-effective to hire a freelancer bookkeeper as needed.
2. Consider Your Budget
Tight budget? A contracted remote or independent bookkeeper offers flexibility at a lower price with no recurring cash expenses.
If you can handle a steady salary and perks, and you see uninterrupted full-time bookkeeping needs forever, your own in-house bookkeeper may provide higher continuity.
3. Define Your Need for Control and Management
Do you prefer to have daily interaction and monitoring? Then, you should hire an in-house employee.
But if you are comfortable with computer software and occasional check-ins, you can hire a remote bookkeeper to get the job done without micromanaging.
4. Think About How Complicated Your Finances are
Basic bookkeeping such as invoicing, tracking expenses, and reconciliations? An in-house bookkeeper should suffice.
But in case your business is involved in numerous sources of revenue, payroll, compliance, or audit preparations, a freelance bookkeeper can provide expert care and deeper insight into your operations with their vast knowledge and experience.
Related Article
- Where to Get the Top Bookkeeper Professional for Your Small Business
- Top 5 Pros and Cons of Hiring a Virtual Bookkeeper for Accounting Firms
- Bookkeeping Services for Freelancers: What You Need to Know
The choice to hire a bookkeeper in-house or freelance completely depends on factors such as your business goals, budget and type of control and work type you require for your business. Freelancer offers more cost effective budget friendly options with flexibility, while in-house bookkeeper brings more consistent, dedicated support.
The Fino Partners offers custom offshore bookkeeping services for your business. Partner with The Fino Partners today to simplify your bookkeeping duties.
