How Can a Virtual Assistant Help an Accountant?
Accountants have long been integral to the financial health of businesses. They handle tasks like bookkeeping and tax compliance, which can be tedious yet highly important for companies in every industry.
Even in today’s digital age, the profession is still as vital as ever. Of course, the ways accountants work have evolved, integrating technology with every step of the accounting process. Digital tools for managing financial records, data analytics, and other routine accounting tasks are available to allow accountants to expand their services and increase their productivity. It has also allowed them to enlist the help of remote talents like an accounting virtual assistant (VA) to check more tasks off their list and put more focus on their high-level responsibilities.
So, how can a virtual assistant help an accountant? And how can accounting experts find the right talents to support them? Keep reading to find out!
Why hire a virtual assistant?
A virtual assistant or VA is a remote talent who provides support to clients, from solopreneurs to organizations. Because they work remotely, VAs can come from any part of the world, as long as they have a stable internet connection and the right equipment like a personal computer and noise-canceling headphones.
With remote staffing, clients can reap plenty of benefits. First, they have access to a wider pool of talents, a global talent pool, in fact. Hiring VAs means clients are no longer confined to hiring applicants within a certain city or state. They can focus instead on screening based on relevant work experience and skills.
The cost-effectiveness of this solution makes it a great staffing alternative to hiring in-office staff. By hiring VAs, clients can increase productivity and improve operational efficiency without overshooting their labor costs.
Want to explore the benefits of remote staffing for small businesses? Book a free consultation call with our Growth Experts to see what hiring a VA can do for you.
What is a virtual assistant for accountants?
VAs can work on a wide variety of tasks and support clients from just about any industry. There are VAs with various niches, from real estate to e-commerce and, yes, even accounting.
A virtual accounting assistant can help accountants grow their business by taking on tasks that can be done online, from administrative support responsibilities to client management. They handle routine yet time-consuming tasks, allowing accounting clients to focus on their expertise and grow their accounting services business.
Here’s a list of the tasks virtual assistants for accountants can work on:
- Administrative support
- Calendar management
- Appointment setting
- Email management
- File management
- Personal assistance
- Back-office tasks
- Receptionist duties
- Customer liaison
- Client invoicing
- Supplier payments
- Customer support
- Finance and accounting tasks
- Data entry using accounting software
- Bookkeeping
- Financial report generation
- Financial analysis
- Tax preparation and compliance
- Researching on industry trends and new regulations
- And more!
Before starting on the search for a VA, an accountant must first identify the list of tasks they plan to delegate. They can choose from the above list or customize their own, depending on their business needs.
How accountants can benefit from remote staffing
Hiring an accounting virtual assistant or a VA team is an excellent move for accountants. From reducing staffing costs to becoming more productive, VA staffing is highly beneficial for accounting experts trying to grow their agencies and compete in today’s modern and highly digital accounting world.
Save money by hiring remote talents
“Accountants know that keeping costs low whenever possible is a must to stay financially healthy,” advises Zaeem Aslam, 20four7VA’s resident finance expert. Remote staffing allows accounting experts to find the help they need without overspending on their labor costs.
There are global talents across the world with a wide variety of skills and expertise. Potential clients can find a remote talent to work on just about any task, as long as it can be done online. What’s even better is that working with these top-notch talents can also mean slashing overhead costs!
Accountants can hire VAs from various parts of the world. They can also hire VAs on a part-time or project-based setup. This means the accounting VAs will only work (and get paid) for the hours their clients need them to. Working with remote talents also eliminates costs related to traditional hiring. Clients won’t need to invest in additional office equipment, uniforms, allowances, and other costs related to new hires.
20four7VA has helped businesses reduce up to 80% of labor costs. Learn more about this cost-efficient staffing solution by booking a free consultation call with us!
Add experts to the team
There are times when a certain skill is not readily available in an accounting business workforce. It can also be challenging to find the right person for the job within a talent pool that’s limited by state or city lines.
If an accountant wants to add subject matter experts, they have a better chance of finding the most suitable talents from a global candidate pool. By removing geographical limitations, businesses will not only save money but also be able to hire exactly who they need and when they need them.
Gain more room to grow
Remote staffing allows for more room for growth. With a virtual assistant, accounting professionals can cater to more clients and expand their services. Accounting VAs can take on routine yet time-intensive activities, so accountants can focus on revenue-generating and strategic tasks.
VA staffing can be a key component in the growth of an accountancy firm. VAs help increase productivity and capacity by taking on tasks that do not require the accountant’s direct involvement, such as data entry, basic bookkeeping, and managing appointments.
This delegation enables accountants to scale their operations and cater to more customers without sacrificing the quality of their services. Instead, they can reallocate their energy and resources to new technology that can help digitize more processes and diversify their portfolio.
Regain control of one’s time and energy
Aside from keeping finances in check, hiring a virtual accounting assistant also enables accountants to take better control of their time and energy. They can free up their plate of low-level yet important tasks by delegating them to a skilled VA. Accountants can instead focus on other parts of the business, including their core responsibilities and growth strategies. Accountants can also have more time to work on their professional development or further education, which can help differentiate their services even more.
Hiring a VA can also promote a healthier work environment. By hiring the right virtual accounting assistant, accountants can better manage their workload. This helps minimize the risk of burnout and other health issues related to overworking oneself. Delegating effectively to a VA can also mean having more time and energy for a more meaningful life outside work, allowing for a better work-life balance.
Learn how you can make virtual staffing work for you. Get started by booking a free consultation call with our Growth Experts today!
Finding a top-tier virtual accounting assistant
It’s clear that accountants can do so much more and gain a lot by hiring a virtual assistant. However, to maximize this excellent staffing solution, finding top-tier remote talent is crucial. Just like traditional hiring, the search for the right VA can be demanding. It requires accountants to take valuable hours from their busy schedules. The solution? Working with a leading remote staffing company like 20four7VA.
20four7VA is a virtual assistant services provider with clients and VAs from all over the world. Our fully distributed team is committed to helping clients grow their businesses through cost-efficient and highly scalable remote staffing solutions. At the same time, we offer competitive and rewarding career opportunities to virtual assistants looking to expand their horizons beyond their local job market.
Why choose 20four7VA?
“We’ve helped over 2,900 clients find the right VAs for them,” shares Joan Banez, 20four7VA Business Development Director. She adds, “We can do the same for accounting professionals, too!” By working with our expert team, accountants can get top-notch remote talent without taking too much time away from their business. Plus, our services don’t stop at matching accountants with their accounting virtual assistants. We also offer award-winning end-to-end remote staffing solutions, which include:
- Free client-VA matching services
- In-house VA training
- Dedicated customer support
- IT helpdesk
- VA performance management
- Payroll processing
- And more!
Curious about 20four7VA? Learn about our team, top-notch services, and what our clients have to say by visiting the 20four7VA page. Or, better yet, book a free consultation call with our Growth Experts today!
Finding the right virtual assistant for your accounting practice
A skilled virtual assistant can be the missing piece an accountant needs to grow their business. With a VA, an accounting professional can check more tasks off their to-do list without worrying about sky-high labor costs or unsustainable workloads. A VA can also add much-needed expertise or skill sets that accountants have difficulty finding in their local talent pool.
However, the search for top-notch talent can be demanding. But that doesn’t mean busy accountants won’t be able to reap the many benefits of hiring a VA. Partnering with a global remote staffing agency like 20four7VA can be the key. Our team of remote staffing experts can help accounting experts realize their business objectives by helping them find top-tier virtual assistants. And it all starts with a free, no-strings-attached consultation call!