In this article, you will read about 5 Techniques for Accountants to Get Ahead of the Busy Season in 2022.
It is the tax season. This means things are going to get hectic and stressful. Isn’t that so?
Stress is a significant influence during tax season, which reduces productivity at work. Thus, turning tax preparation into chaos and increasing the costs and time.
In many respects, busy season accounting appears inescapable. Yet, it is doable with the appropriate attitude.
Due to the COVID epidemic, last year was challenging. We don’t expect anything unusual this season. Heaps of paperwork, a frantic dash for client communications, a flurry of late calls, and the most essential but often overlooked consequence – your and your staff’s mental health.
So, we’ve put up five techniques to help accountants get ahead of the busy season in 2022.
Why does the busy season of accounting happen?
A busy tax season filled with long hours, nighttime labour, and time away from family begins with one major blunder: lousy preparation.
For accounting professionals, the tax and audit busy season runs from January to April, i.e. the year’s first quarter. The rationale for this is that everyone, including clients, is aware of the crucial tax days and other deliverables ahead of time. Thus, giving them ample time to prepare.
- Assigning the resources, you’ll require.
- How much expansion you’re willing to go through. The projects you’re ready to take.
Five techniques for accountants to get ahead of the busy season in 2022
There are several options for accountants to avoid a hectic and stressful season. Here are five preventive action items to consider for the upcoming tax season.
1. Seasonal staff outsourcing
Because of the nature of the accountants profession, staffing is always an issue. Unfortunately, tax season employees are franticly busy at the beginning of the year. But nearly inactive between February and September.
Have you considered employing experienced personnel through outsourcing partners to help with the workload?
Now could be a good moment to think about outsourcing. It will save you money. You gain the following benefits when you outsource your taxes:
- Staff with a thorough awareness of UK taxation, including tax legislation.
- Outstanding technical expertise and comprehension of tax documents.
- Staff familiar with using the software of your choosing, such as IRIS, TaxCalc, CCH, to file tax returns.
- Cost-effective billing structure.
- Teams that can scale: Utilise the time of your most valued employees to serve clients better.
- Expand the firm.
- Compliance with data protection and privacy legislation.
2. Peace of mind
During tax season, it’s critical to look after your employees and your mental health. Your employees require senior partners, colleagues, and managers who are calm and competent in handling the workload throughout the hectic season. It might appear simple in a perfect world. But, sometimes, things do not work according to the plan. As a result, if feasible, have a backup plan in place.
3. Prepare capacity planning a few months ahead
The technique of having a precise mechanism to quantify how much work you have and how much you get done is known as capacity planning. It’s due to inadequate capacity planning if you’re always swamped with the workload.
Planning your capacity several months ahead of time will offer you an accurate picture of how much work you’ll be able to finish throughout the tax season. Based on this, you can ensure that you don’t overcommit to anything. Alternatively, you can utilise this information to staff up for the workload.
4. Automate
Technology and automation are making our lives simpler.
Thus, the goal is to make the most of it.
So, where do we begin?
- Technology and automation are making our lives simpler. Keep track of your procedures. You may discover the repeated jobs by becoming precise about the exact tasks you and your team conduct daily.
- Instead of adding, try subtracting. If you want to make the hectic season move faster, look for places where automation might help.
Many compliance and data entry chores can be automated. Thus, freeing up time for your employees to focus on communication and advisory services. Begin there.
5. Control capacity with a three-tiered pricing
Three-tiered pricing lets you increase your profits while also freeing up capacity. You can get creative by delivering work in multiple ways so that not every customer receives the ‘premium’ service at low costs.
Your Gold plan, for example, might include meetings to go through the client’s tax return before submitting it. But, your Bronze plan might merely include email help.
Three-tiered pricing can increase your prices and safeguard your valuable capacity.
Final thoughts
The next hectic tax season is approaching quickly. Busy tax seasons are difficult for you and your team. Although the workload is more than usual, you and your team don’t have to fear it. If you are proactive in your approach, there is a lot you can do to make the hectic season much more tolerable.
This year, stay ahead of the tax season and enhance your practice, mind, and profitability.