By Steve Marsten
Procrastination is part of human nature, it’s amazing how mundane things like housework become super important when you have a project on the go or deadline that should be tackled. Cleaning my house always gains more attention when I am putting something off. As small business owners, one of your new year’s resolutions may have been to convert to a new accounting software in the new financial year or atleast consider what else is out there.
Many SME’s still find the task of doing their bookwork and their BAS let alone payroll and stock takes, arduous. Consider updating your software or look at what else is on the market. Many clients in the past year have switched to Xero. This has allowed them to easily implement budgets, a cash flow forecast and a plan to reduce their overdrafts especially while interest rates are low.
Though there are still many of us who have reached the new 2020/2021 financial year and are a little bit behind on our new year’s resolutions. I want to assure you that you haven’t missed the boat.
Many don’t want to make a change to their current systems immediately and that’s fine. We understand that. We recommend taking that first important step of reaching out to our specialists who can help you with your business requirements. Planning any systems change should be carried out carefully and in advance of the “Live” date. Often running both systems concurrently for a month or two provides a better understanding of how a new system will work for you.
The two best times for changeover are the End of March and the End of June. The quarter ended 31st March allows for a clean cut-off especially for BAS and of course the end of June is a natural financial year end cut-off.
When implementing new software and processes we need a line in the sand for items such as Stock on hand, Open Sales invoices and Open purchase invoices. These are handled quite easily and smoothly by Xero.
The other benefit of changing software – it’s a bit like moving to a new house – you get to clean up a lot of old stuff and do away with things you always meant to deal with “later”. After being in business for years it is common to grow the chart of accounts and end up with legacy codes as well as many contacts (some of which you have contacted in years!). Implementing new software and systems is a great time to have a clean up.
For more information feel free to contact our team at Appleby Chartered Accountants on 07 3876 6211 or info@applebyaccountants.com.