Bookkeepers and accountants are not the same

Accountants and bookkeepers have different jobs and responsibilities.

An accountant’s main focus is:

• the preparation and lodgment of statutory returns
• advising on legal entity structures
• giving general business and financial advice.

Accountants are usually members of a statutory association. Qualified and registered accountants might call themselves CPAs (Certified Public Accountants), CAs (Chartered Accountants) or other titles, depending on the country they're working in.

Bookkeepers can manage lots of different responsibilities within a small business. But the main focus is the organization, recording and reporting of financial transactions as part of the operational life of a small business. In more recent times, some bookkeepers have extended their range of duties to include:

• training clients to use accounting software
• implementation of document management and inventory control processes to create efficiencies within the business
• implementation of POS (point of sale) systems that capture the daily transactions in a retail environment.
• Develop, implement maintain and review internal business processes.
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• Keeping track of daily transactions
• Sending out invoices and managing the accounts receivable ledger
• Handling the accounts payable ledger
• Keeping an eye on cashflow
• Preparing the books for the accountant

It's the bookkeeper who does the day-to-day work so that the accountant can concentrate on strategic financial operations.

Courtesy of Xero

For more information contact Neikirk, Mahoney and Smith at 502-896-2999