Throughout my personal life and professional career, I have come to know many proud, hardworking small business owners. The first individual that comes to mind is my father. Although he is retired now, he was once the owner of small-scale fuel and propane distribution company. I vividly remember, even from my youth, how many phone calls he would get when he was supposed to be off work. This is typically the nature of the beast that is being a small business owner.
One thing I know my father did not have time for was to be his own accountant. He had his own small team of accountants and CPAs to help make sure everything ran smoothly on that side of the business. Here are three key reasons having a CPA you trust is one of the best investments that a small business owner can truly make in their business.
Gaining Back Time
Even while artificial intelligence is making its way into the industry, financial record and bookkeeping can be time consuming and be a huge administrative burden. Having the ability to run your business without the time spent on basic accounting functions will pay dividends in scaling your business operations.
Compliance and Efficiency
The tax landscape for small business owners is always changing. Having someone able to decipher new rules and legislation and how to use them in your favor is key when it comes to minimizing business, or ultimately personal tax liabilities. This is also a way to reduce the likelihood of costly penalties or fines for non-compliance. Having an accountant that can take your business income and project it into your personal tax plan is another great benefit when it comes to planning for individual income taxes.
Financial Insight and Decision Making
This is the point that I believe to move the needle the most. While having a clean set of books to look at and being compliant with filings is a necessary component, being able to use it in your business may be the most important. Making big investment decisions about your business is difficult if you do not know where it stands financially at all times. A certified professional can assist you in decision making in budgeting for purchases, cash flow analysis, hiring, scaling and much more.
Maybe you are a business owner who is just starting out and do not know which entity selection is the best fit for your business model. Perhaps you are having a string of profitable years and are looking at expansion in the future. I know some self-employed business owners that are looking at retirement options specific to them such as a SEP IRA or Solo 401(k) or larger owners looking at insurance options for their employees. Whatever the case may be, having someone to be able to guide you through the choppy waters that are financial compliance and analysis of owning a small business can be a great value-add and investment in the business you hang your hat on.
Hayden Schilling, CPA is a staff accountant for Keller & Associates CPAs, PLLC.