Regards
Nikki
A5. Accounting
It is in your own best interests, if you are not a bookkeeper or an Accountant, to have one or the other or both, to do the books for your business. Not everyone can handle the figures and if you don’t know what you are doing, be assured – you will mess up and when you mess up it is going to cost you money. So be proactive on this one – get the services of a qualified bookkeeper, or if you have an idea of what you are doing, then just get an Accountant. Make sure that he/she is an accredited Accountant and that they come from a reputable company. DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES GIVE THEM SIGNING POWERS ON YOUR ACCOUNTS!!!!!! If you obtained the Accountant’s name from the yellow pages or somewhere similar, get references and phone all of them. Do the research. If you would like someone who comes recommended please feel free to use our Accountants. You can get the name and number from me.
Your books should be balanced and written up on a monthly basis. How else can you keep control of what your income and expenses are! Make sure that the records are kept neat and tidy and that they are legible. You are not going to remember what you wrote down 6 months from now – take that extra time, it is worth it in the long run. Put everything in files. I would suggest that everything pertaining to income (invoices sent out etc) be put into one file. Your expenses should also be filed, but a little differently – all you constants, such as telephone bills, rentals, etc should go into individual files and the rest can go into one file in alphabetical numerical order. When you are starting out, the constant bills can be filed in one file, but in their individual sections and then moved as they accumulate and as you grow. Petty cash should be kept separately but together with their reconciliations. A check list should be made for things that need to be paid monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, semi annually and annually – in this way bills will not be forgotten, will be paid timeously and will not attract penalties and interest.
If you are going to do the bookkeeping yourself, or even if you hire someone to do them for you, it is recommended that you get a good, simple but reasonable, in terms of cost, software package to assist you and make life much easier. I would suggest something like ‘Turbo Cash”, which is one of the most simplest systems around, but it is also one of the most effective as it encompasses everything and also allows your business to grow. Again do the research – it is in your own best interests at the end of the day to be comfortable with what you are doing. The more complicated it is the less likely you’ll want to work with it, so KEEP IT SIMPLE!!!!
Even if you have a bookkeeper and/or Accountant, remember that at the end of the day, you are responsible for what does or doesn’t happen in your business. Make sure that the VAT is paid across every second month. Make sure that you haven’t spent the money – if you are inclined to be a bit of a spendthrift, remove the temptation – transfer the money into an interest bearing account or even into your bond account. Make the money work for you – why must you always work for the money!
In the instances where your business is a business unit or a franchisee, make sure that the Head Office has copies of your VAT, UIF, SDL, RCS and PAYE for their record purposes. Even though your unit is owned by you, it is still a part of the bigger picture and this information may be required by the Receiver or by Auditors.
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