8 Questions to Ask When Interviewing a Bookkeeper

So you made the decision to outsource your bookkeeping to one of the pros, congrats!! What a huge freaking step in your biz, girlfriend.

We know that you have much more important CEO business to get back to, so let’s dive into questions you should ask when searching for the perfect bookkeeper for you and your biz.

1. Ask about their education and experience.

When it comes to bookkeeping, it's important that you engage with someone who has the knowledge and expertise to not only prepare your books accurately, but be able to identify issues or errors and fix them before they become bigger problems. 

While a bachelor’s degree is totally not required to be a bookkeeper, education and experience is. Have they taken any classes or courses? What brought them into the world of biz finances? How many businesses have they served (past and present)?

You probably aren’t an expert in biz finances, so it can be difficult to determine the level of expertise one might have. Don’t be afraid to ask to talk to their clients! They can give you a ton of insight.

2. What is their scope of service?

In other words, what do their packages include (or don’t include)? What comes standard and what add-on services are available? Aside from monthly bookkeeping services, you might be interested in visual reporting (my personal fav), payroll management, budgeting, forecasting, one-on-one calls, sales tax returns, etc. and it’s important to know what you are paying for and what add-ons you might want to consider down the road!

3. What can you expect around delivery and response times?

Accountants tend to have a bad rep when it comes to communication, response times, and delivery times. When interviewing a bookkeeper, ask when you can expect to receive your reports each month, their preferred method of communication, and office hours.

4. What bookkeeping software do they use?

 It’s safe to say that all bookkeepers use bookkeeping software. It allows us to accurately reconcile accounts and run super powerful reports in the blink of an eye. Make sure to ask your future bookkeeper what their preferred software is and if the price of their software is included with the package, or if that’s something you are required to pay in addition to the service.

5. How do they price their services?

Do they charge by the hour or a fixed fee? If it’s a fixed fee, make sure you go back to #2 and understand what the fixed fee includes.

6. Are they familiar with your industry?

It’s always a good idea to ask your potential future bookkeeper if they have clients in the industry you are in. Although it’s not a deal breaker if they don’t, they should be transparent about that and be willing to do research (if necessary) to get themselves up to speed.

7. Will they personally be doing the bookkeeping, or do they have a team who assists them?

If they have a team, who will be working on your books specifically? What does the review process look like?

If they don’t have a team, what is their back-up plan if they get sick or there is an accident? How will they ensure that your bookkeeping will still be completed each month?

8. What about taxes?

Another great question to ask is, are they willing to communicate with your CPA? What does this relationship typically look like? Us at Born to Roam Bookkeeping prefer to communicate directly with our clients CPAs and make sure that they have everything they need to prepare our clients tax returns accurately and on time. Together we are your solid financial team and ongoing communication is key.