Modern bookkeepers and accountants share the benefits they and their clients recognised from monitoring how they spent their day. By tracking what they did, they were able to increase productivity, access key performance indicators, identify tasks for outsourcing, and keep clients happy.
Increase Productivity
Time tracking increases productivity by making it clear where time is being spent throughout the day.
Before time tracking, Michele Grisdale, BAS Agent and Director of Rainforest Bookkeeping, in NSW, said her business was “unproductive”.
Sarah-Jane Bishop, BAS Agent at EMB Solutions, in NSW, noted that “we thought we knew what parts of the business were taking up the bulk of our time. But after tracking time, it was clear that the tasks without much value were taking longer than we realised.”
Access Key Performance Indicators
Key performance indicators in the bookkeeping and accounting industry include meeting deadlines, making sure all hours are billed, and identifying profitable service areas.
Jane Noller, the accountant at Jane L. Noller & Co., in NSW, says that thanks to time tracking, she now has “a close handle on the profitability of each client and each area of the business”.
Tamara-Lee Beveridge, BAS Agent at BizCore 360, in Tasmania, said her business saw an increase in cash flow by capturing time for invoicing. “Being able to run a report on what area of service offering the business makes more income from assisted in refocusing and readjusting the service offering.”
Identify Tasks for Outsourcing
The identification of time spent on non-billable work is valuable for determining what tasks can be outsourced.
Among the most popular tasks for outsourcing include administrative tasks and marketing. Neethu Stephen, Founder of Evalua8 Corp Limited, and Paula Byers, Founder and Director of Lime Cloud Limited, both based in the UK, noted they would outsource some of their marketing efforts as a result of tracking their time.
Keep clients happy
Tracking time makes it easy to show clients how their bill is calculated. Sarah-Jane Bishop stated that tracking time “has made us more efficient”, and one of Paula Byers’s clients added £50,000 to their bottom line by tracking time.
Della Hudson, author of The Numbers Business: How to Grow a Successful Cloud Practice, has a nice twist on why she tracks time: “I always track my hours to ensure that my flexible working doesn’t become overworking.”
Whether you’d like to be able to show clients the particulars of their bill, increase productivity, and potentially the bottom line of your practice, or embrace your desired work-life balance, there are many benefits to tracking your time.
Heather Smith produces a bi-weekly Accounting Apps newsletter. Learn more and subscribe on her website.