The complex accounting needs of your venture-backed startup may be giving you headaches. Whether or not you’ve made up your mind to outsource your accounting to a team of experts, you may wonder what the next steps are.

To help you find an expert who will have the background your venture-backed startup company requires to be successful, here are the first questions you should answer to ensure you find an expert who will help you be successful with your fractional outsourced accounting.

How do you know if outsourced accounting is a good choice for your company?

Venture-backed startup companies like yours that have used an expert, outsourced accounting team have stated the following benefits:

• • Potentially huge cost savings: In many cases, an outsourced fractional accounting company’s fees are more cost-effective than paying a full-time employee’s salary plus benefits, etc. One frequently forgotten cost is the expense associated with finding, vetting, hiring, and onboarding new full-time employees. And you can also add resources with an outsourced accounting vendor even if you have no more room in your headcount.

• • Get to be more strategic: Outsourcing the day-to-day tasks gives you time to focus on strategic initiatives focused on growing the business.
  • Compliance you can count on: When the time comes to raise money or file tax returns, you know your books will be compliant, complete, and ready to audit easily.

• • Scale if and when you need it: As your company and accounting complexity grows, your outsourced accounting team can help you scale functions more easily than finding, training, and seating new in-house employees. Outsourced fractional accounting enables you to adjust your service as your business needs evolve.

What type of work does a fractional accounting provide?

A fractional accounting service can typically handle a dizzying array of functions and services. The best way to find the best one for you is to understand and document your own requirements. But to give you some idea of where to start, here are just a few things a typical firm should offer:

• • Day-to-day accounting and bookkeeping: This includes importing your financial information from your bank or credit card statements, payroll service, AP and AR, etc., then reconciling and/or categorizing your transactions to ensure everything’s accounted for.
  • Ensuring you’re always accurate and up-to-date: This usually includes a month-ending financial statement including a balance sheet, statements of cash flows, and Profit & Loss Statements with a synopsis you can understand.

How much can I expect outsourced accounting will cost?

Unfortunately, it isn’t possible to answer this question broadly. What we can tell you is your fractional accounting fees should be based on your specific accounting needs and financial requirements. Here are some tips on the elements that can impact your fees:

• • The number of financial accounts you need to pull data from
  • The frequency you need financial statements, typically monthly or quarterly
  • The volume of your transactions and expenses by transaction count or dollar amount
  • The overall complexity of your financial situation includes multiple currencies, multiple entities, etc.
  • The requirement for cash- or accrual-basis outsourced accounting
  • The need for support with accounts payable and receivable or inventory and asset management

Find an Expert Who Understands Your Needs

Launch Finance’s mission is to help startups with the financial support they need to be successful. Working inside venture capital firms, the team at Launch Finance recognized the unique needs of startups to access fractional finance teams who could provide turnkey finance and HR solutions to startups. They bring a breadth of experience and knowledge to their startups by offering a practical, proven approach steeped in experience. Contact us today!