Bookkeepers are responsible for documenting and maintaining accurate records of financial information or transactions for a business. They often assist in creating financial statements for businesses or accounting firms. Bookkeepers are a jack of all trades type of role. They can help with various accounting-related tasks such as bank reconciliations, payroll processing, BAS (Business Activity Statement) preparation and reporting and accounts payable and receivable activities.

The bookkeeping profession sits within the accounting industry, which is expected to reach $735.94 billion in 2025 with a compound annual growth rate of 6%1. This is largely driven by the effects of the global pandemic and the introduction of rules and standards to combat the resulting operational challenges.

A common challenge for businesses in any industry, including accounting, is sourcing quality staff. The same can be said for hiring quality bookkeepers. A solution; outsourcing.

A large number of bookkeeping tasks can be completed online, which makes them well-suited to being performed in an offshore environment. As long as your business is offshore ready, outsourcing bookkeepers to the Philippines is simple and cost-effective.

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What are the benefits of outsourcing bookkeeper tasks?

  • Cost savings: 

    By hiring an offshore bookkeeper(s) to support your local team with repetitive and time-consuming tasks for a fraction of the price, due to the lower living costs in the Philippines, you can save up to 70% when compared to hiring locally.

  • Increase in output efficiency and quality levels: 

    Sending routine bookkeeping tasks to an offshore team in the Philippines means your onshore team will have more time to take on higher value, strategic work. Your business will notice a drastic increase in productivity levels across your department.

  • Business growth and scaling opportunities: 

    When you send your time-consuming tasks to an offshore bookkeeper in the Philippines, your local team will have more time to focus on increasing profits and business growth and development opportunities. The additional capacity that your onshore team gets from your offshore team's support means you can grow your business sustainably.

What qualifications, skills and experience make a successful bookkeeper?

Bookkeepers are always organizing, handling and reporting on the financial information of a business that they then analyze and collate to present to management, accountants or governing accounting bodies. Bookkeepers should be methodical and have high attention to detail to record financial information accurately. Possessing strong problem-solving skills and an affinity for mathematics and numbers is a must. The accounting industry is becoming more and more digital. So bookkeepers need to have some technical capabilities and familiarity with popular accounting software (Xero, MYOB) to ensure they can provide efficient services to businesses or their clients. 

In terms of qualifications and education, it depends on the financial reporting requirements of an organization. It is normal to train a bookkeeper from the ground up with no previous accounting experience. However, experienced bookkeepers often have certificates in bookkeeping or a relevant higher education behind them, such as an accounting degree.  

Bookkeeper roles can be categorized by years of working experience:

  • Entry-level or junior: less than 2 years of bookkeeping experience, supervised. Tasks completed could include processing purchases, sales, receipts and payments, record keeping and accounts payable or receivable duties.

  • Intermediate: 2-4 years of bookkeeping experience. Tasks completed could include bank reconciliations, payroll processing and maintaining entitlements and employee records, general ledger and journal entries and checking financial records for accuracy and completeness.

  • Senior: 4+ years of experience in bookkeeping. Tasks completed could include training junior bookkeepers, generating taxable payment reports and preparing or presenting monthly management and accounting reports to senior management or accountants.

What tools and systems do bookkeepers need to be successful in their roles?

Bookkeepers often rely on software that is universally used across the accounting industry. Examples include:

Xero
MYOB
quickbooks
Reckon
freshbooks
sage
wave
sunrise
zoho books
Xero
MYOB
quickbooks
Reckon
freshbooks
sage
wave
sunrise
zoho books

Tips for employing Filipino bookkeepers

    • Your bookkeepers must know your business's systems and software to provide the best level of support.

    • It’s key to communicate effectively with your talent acquisition team in the Philippines, making sure to let them know the job requirements, skills and qualifications you require of your ideal bookkeeper(s). This will help the team to source the right talent and streamline the recruitment process.

    • You can recruit as many bookkeepers as required from project to project and can even hire senior bookkeepers in the Philippines to manage your offshore teams. If/when you grow your offshore team, having one team lead can ensure streamlined communication and project updates are effectively delivered to your onshore team.

Reference:
1 Outlook on the Accounting Services Global Market to 2030 - Identify Growth Segments for Investment

Interested in recruiting team(s) in the Philippines?

Since our inception in 2006, MicroSourcing has become one of the biggest providers of offshoring solutions in the Philippines. We can help you build a dedicated team in the Philippines, regardless of the roles and level of specialization you require. MicroSourcing is backed by our parent company, Probe CX, one of Australia’s fastest-growing offshoring solution and customer engagement firms. So, it’s safe to say we’re experts in outsourcing to the Philippines.

Call +1 888-731-0023 today or send us an email to discuss your company’s offshoring needs.

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