How to Clean Up a Bookkeeping Mess

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Bookkeeping

Bookkeeping in the world of accounting is the task that represents the most fundamental bread and butter of tracking financial transactions in a business or organization. The process is not new; it’s been around for centuries, first on paper and pencil and now on computers and spreadsheets. However, it’s also a task that needs to be maintained regularly. Without consistent application, bookkeeping can turn into a nightmare of delay and headaches very quickly. It also leaves room for fraud to take place too. This happens frequently when bookkeeping has been stalled, ignored or outright skipped. It turns into bad financial statements, which in turn ends up delaying money decisions as well as financing support.

How to Turn Around a Delayed Mess

In instances where serious bookkeeping delays have occurred, a business or organization needs a full team to come in speedily and clean things up. That involves a full review and multiple hands on deck to process thousands of transactions in a timely manner. Doing so, records can be restored for every missing cycle, and corrected financial statements can then be produced with complete ledgers. The difference is huge in terms of ramifications. This also requires that the team operates securely, with efficiency and accuracy of product.

Don’t forget, bookkeeping also includes reconciling bank account statements. Inputting transactions is just the first step. Each of them has to be matched to a transaction on the respective account statement for the same month. Only then are the transactions cleared as valid. No surprise, delays can result in double-work which compounds quickly.

Getting Going Again on the Right Foot

With the bookkeeping restored, the business or organization can then focus on keeping receipts in order and staying on top of each new cycle that develops. 

Bookkeeping is a bit like a well-orchestrated song. Stay on top of the music, tempo and beat, and the music comes out beautifully. Miss a beat, and problems start to happen. And because each beat comes right after the one before it, the problems compound. What starts small becomes a big Gordian knot very quickly. Fortunately, the song can be reset again, with the right approach for that correction.

Bring in the Right Help

Playing catch-up is never where anyone wants to be with their accounting, but sometimes it is a necessary challenge that has to be dealt with. If your business finds itself in this situation, don’t panic. Set up a plan of attack, bring in the right help to bull through the workload, and keep a consistent pressure until the delay gap is closed. Your leadership may need to play multiple fronts, one managing the solution with another playing defense to hold of demands for information until ready. However, don’t ignore the bookkeeping problem; stay on top of it with expert help for the processing, being willing to outsource as needed to provide a scalable response.