Key areas to consider when spending on your accounting team


Successful companies understand that the finance and accounting department delivers a core function that keeps operations running smoothly. Apart from keeping the organisation’s finances in check and filing tax returns on time, the accounting department can also facilitate the sustained growth and profitability of the company. Thus, it’s important to allocate enough resources for accounting services in Singapore.

So how much should be allocated to the accounting team? Well, there’s no magic formula for deciding how much an organisation should allocate for its accounting functions. Expenses may be a result of history and may be fixed with a merger of modern technology and amended internal and external structures. That said, there are several areas that you need to review in your accounting department for cost considerations. This article seeks to highlight those key areas. Read on.

Accounting Technology Costs

To justify the outlay of purchasing new accounting technology, a company should look at the technology from the perspective of firm efficiency and better data. The accounting industry is fast transforming partly because of productivity optimisation courtesy of new accounting technologies.

Of course, there are numerous accounting technologies that accountants could do with. For example, A.I. driven automation transforms the day-to-day tasks of an accountant from the computerisation of tedious administration tasks to the formation of fully integrated accounts receivable and payable systems. Automation leads the move away from transactional functions like a ledger to more advanced roles like financial analysis, business analysis, and financial planning.

OCR technology is another key technology that has taken the accounting world by storm. Accounting services in Singapore employ this technology to convert scanned papers, images or PDF files captured by a digital camera into revisable and searchable data. As a result, the archiving process has been streamlined immensely given that documents are now searchable, classifiable, and transferable.

Salaries

In a salary survey, participants were asked to identify what the top motivator their respective employers provided them this year was? Among the ranked responses included remote work options, flexible hours, and professional growth opportunities. However, the top motivator was undoubtedly increased compensation.

If a firm has advanced accounting needs, they will need a team of accounting professionals with a greater degree of expertise. As a result, the firm will have to pay competitive salaries for that level of skill set and experience. However, for simply straightforward monthly reconciliations, your accounting staff salaries will be much lower.

Offering a competitive salary package to your accounting department gives your firm a unique advantage in recruiting and staff retention. Prior to determining how much to offer accountants, consider parameters such as the accounting industry, the location and size of your company. You don’t want your accounting team to feel underappreciated, and that is why you should know your staff expertise and their value in the industry.

Job Training

The skill set you use every day is built inside and outside the classroom setting. With further accounting training, accountants can develop their functional plus soft skills.

Of course, how much a company invests in employee training varies depending on its specific training needs. However, generally, 2 per cent of the firm’s budget is assigned to employee training. A firm can decide to sponsor its accounting team to undertake a certification course. A certification is a proof of expertise in a certain area of accounting. For example, the CPA (certified public accountant) certification is a highly regarded accreditation among accountants. To obtain this designation, applicants have show proof of accounting experience in a work environment, complete relevant coursework, and pass a comprehensive exam test.

Another way to gain accounting job training is through cross-training at your workplace. Cross training involves learning the job skills and roles of fellow employees in your department. This ultimately keeps the accounting department functioning effectively even when one employee is absent due to sickness or any other excuse. This is because someone else in the accounting team can jump in and assume the reins of leadership since they can deliver and understand the responsibilities associated with the given position.

Conclusion

There’s no cap to the amount that a firm should channel to its accounting department. What’s more important is to focus on the above-mentioned areas in order to boost the motivation of your accounting team to give their utmost best.

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