Are you looking for accounting services? Well the truth is you will probably need to be a little more specific in what you are searching for. Contrary to popular opinion, there are a lot of different types of services that accountants perform. Most people think that all accountants hold a pencil, wear a funny visor and use a huge calculator. This post will attempt to outline some of the accountant services that are available and give other useful information
Accounting Tax Services
If you know next to nothing about accounting, then you probably believe that the only service accountants offer is taxes. Some accountants do specialize in tax, but fewer than you might think. In other words, if you are looking for a tax accountant, make sure to ask the accountant if they do/specialize in taxes. It can be offensive to those of us who aren’t in taxes if you ask us to do your taxes at the end of the year!
Another item to focus on when you are looking for accounting services that deal with taxes is to ask the accountant if he/she specializes in individual taxes or corporate taxes or both. Some accountants may be experts in individual taxes, and they may not have the foggiest idea about corporate taxes and vice versa. Make sure you know what you need, when hiring/looking for tax accounting services.
Accounting Audit Services
Contrary to popular belief, accountants do something besides tax. In fact, brace yourself; the auditing field of accounting is probably larger than the tax field. Accounting services in this field consist of making sure that the financial information that a public company releases is in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Note that private companies often want their financial information audited as well.
Why would anyone want to be audited?
For public companies (companies that trade stock publicly) this is a required accounting service. These companies release financial statements and believe it or not, they are not always honest. A lot of people use these statements to decide which stock to buy and sell. In fact, people who don’t use and understand these statements are at a huge disadvantage. If the company is not honest, then a lot of people’s livelihoods suffer. Hence the need for auditing accounting services. The auditor/accountant comes in and does his/her best to ensure that the financial statements are for the most part accurate.
Are you a private company looking for this type of accounting service? A lot of private companies need auditing services as well. Banks will often require the private company’s financial information to be audited before they feel good about lending money. In addition, potential purchasers of a company will often want the financials to be audited.
Accounting Bookkeeping Services
A lot of people who are searching for “accounting services” are often looking for someone to take care of their “books.” This type of service usually consists of the accountant keeping track of purchases, sales, investments, cash, etc. These services can be performed with a pencil and paper or they can be performed with accounting software (more common nowadays). Not trying to slight bookkeepers, but it doesn’t require a lot of effort to do this type of work because the software keeps track of everything for you. If you are looking to hire an accountant for this type of service, don’t offer to pay too much and consider doing it yourself if you are really on a tight budget.
Managerial Accounting Services
This type of service provides a lot of value, but it is often overlooked. Management accountants work within the company trying to track important information that will help upper-management make key decisions on how to run the company. After years of staring at financial information, it turns out that accountants are pretty good at dissecting the information and making good decisions for the company. This type of accountant can often offer consulting services that may spice up your business.
Internal Auditors
These accountants offer a lot of different types of services for the company. Their roles may include bookkeeping, decision-making, taxes, and more. However one of their main roles is to work with the auditors that come in to make sure that your company’s financial information is correct. They try to keep the company honest all year and they work with the Board of Directors and the external auditors to ensure that the financials are presented fairly.
I’m sure that there are more accounting services out there, but that should get you a pretty good idea of what to look for when searching for accountants. Remember that not all accountants perform the same services and not all accountants are alike.
