I have recently had number of encounters with small business owners where they are doing their books themselves. Most of them focussed on two reasons for not hiring someone else to do the job; cost saving and keeping a close eye on the numbers.

Instead of saving money, this is costing them more in lost opportunities and potential.

The cost for a business owner to do the books is far more than paying someone else to do the hard work. This time can be better spent on core business activities – growing the business, analysing the figures, networking, and bringing in more revenue. This is a more valuable use of time than saving a few pounds.

This brings up the key point: should you outsource or hire someone in house?

Hiring someone doesn’t always solve the problem, and it is not always easy for a small business owner to find the right candidate. After recruiting, training and development and time spent on nurturing the right candidate, outsourcing externally to a pre trained specifically skilled workforce can actually be quicker and a more cost effective solution – both in time and money.

Outsourcing can help refine your business’ productivity by focussing strength in the right areas.

That – plus no sick days.

With the right out sourced company, you will most probably benefit from better reports, quicker information, and better technologies as they are likely to focus more on companies in the same industry. In terms of hospitality, the speed in which reports are generated can literally mean the difference of thousands of pounds.

Risks must also be taken into consideration. The penalties for mistakes on payroll, VAT and income taxes are significant. Letting trained professionals deal with these kinds of responsibilities will limit the risk of errors.

Let’s also be quite clear – bookkeeping is relatively boring.

Inputting, dealing with suppliers and statements, credit control – all of these do not inspire most with glee. In my opinion – outsource the boring tasks and keep the interesting one close – growing your business.