The Ambitious Bookkeeper Podcast

159 ⎸ [STRATEGY] Managing Process vs. People with Becky Hesson

• Serena Shoup, CPA • Episode 159

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In this strategy episode, I coach Becky Hesson through some business roadblocks. We delve into challenges with marketing, managing people, and seeking better and more efficient ways of doing things. If you have a team, you’ll definitely wanna tune into this one!

In this episode you’ll hear:

  • the challenge of ensuring consistency in monthly reports
  • use of automation tools for improving processes
  • recommendations for handling client responses & setting deadlines
  • open-door policy, regular one-on-one meetings, and mentorship for team members
  • solutions for transitioning responsibilities

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Meet Becky
ANJUDI3 was founded to provide exceptional bookkeeping services to specialty beverage creators. The name comes from using the first two letters of each of the German exchange students' first names with whom Founder Becky Hesson was lucky enough to spend their junior year in high school. Becky started ANJUDI3 because she wanted to show the girls she hosted that they can do whatever they want to do using their positivity! Anja, Julia and Diana will always have a special place in her heart and will always be her special daughters!

Connect with Becky
📧 Beckyhesson@anjudi3.com
📞 512-737-5760

For more info about the Ambitious Bookkeeper Podcast or interest in our programs or mentoring visit our resources below:

Serena:

Welcome back to the ambitious bookkeeper podcast. Today is another special strategy session on air. And today I have Becky Hessen and we are going to dive into a single laser topic and kind of coach her and mentor her around, the roadblocks she's having in her business and what she wants to achieve. So welcome Becky. How are you today?

Becky:

I'm doing great. Thank you, Serena, for having me on the call on the podcast.

Serena:

yeah, these are honestly, we get a lot of really good feedback from these episodes. I think it's really helpful for people to hear, one, real questions bookkeepers have, and hearing someone kind of get coached through it. So if you're listening, you can kind of, Take this and apply it however you can in your own business., and then number two, giving people the opportunity to see what it's like working with a mentor or bouncing ideas off of someone else and how valuable it can be to have that in your corner. So before we get started, can you please introduce kind of where you're at in your business, the background of your business, how you ended up here, and then we can dive into Our mentoring topic.

Becky:

Sure. I'm Becky Hessen and my company name is Anjudi3 LLC and I started my bookkeeping business in 2020. Wasn't really because of the pandemic. It just occurred that time. That's the timing of when it occurred. And my background is actually in technology and software applications. And so I decided to do the bookkeeping and accounting because I like Xero. Like Serena, I only use Xero as the bookkeeping, but I use some other tools as well. but only that for the. accounting part of it. And I named my business after my three exchange students. I had three exchange students who lived with me their junior year in high school from Germany. Anya and Julia and Diana. That's how I came up with the crazy name.

Serena:

That is so cool. I love hearing, about how businesses are named. And this is something like as a side note, if, it's something that your clients and potential customers are interested in hearing as well too, and it offers a connection point. So I'm, I think I've seen you share about the background of the name of your business, in your posts and stuff. And I think that's very, very smart.

Becky:

I try.

Serena:

So.

Becky:

I had another mentor who told me that, , if there was something I didn't like to do, which, marketing is not my favorite to do. I like doing the managing of people and I'm trying to figure out how to do that and make sure that the bookkeeping is done appropriately.

Serena:

Awesome. Okay. So that's what we're talking about today, correct?

Becky:

Correct? That's, that's what I'd like to understand. Your feedback and interest on that. Input on that.

Serena:

Yeah. So where I would start is, getting an idea of what you currently have in place in this realm. So if you want to give me a background of what your current process is and, maybe identify the areas that you know are lacking and point those out, or I will probably be able to point them out as well, but yeah, let's start with what are you currently doing or having them do each month and what's your system.

Becky:

So we use Kickoff with Asana. I, signed up for that training and we use Asana to help us keep track of the operations. And so we have the bookkeeping and accounting for each month. I have an account manager who is the client facing person for our clients. We have about 30. And, we also have another bookkeeper who helps to do some of the work. And then I have a, virtual assistant as who works a few hours and a marketing person who works a few hours a week for me as well.

Serena:

Okay. And back to you. So you said you have one bookkeeper and one account manager.

Becky:

Yes,

Serena:

Okay. And your account manager, what responsibilities do they have? Is it just the month end interacting with clients? Are they also doing some bookkeeping?

Becky:

they're also doing some bookkeeping. They want to continue that. They like the problem solving of that.

Serena:

Okay.

Becky:

And, one of the things that seems hard is to let go of work and have it be taken over by someone else in order to free up some of her time as well.

Serena:

All right. So that is definitely sounds like a pain point

Becky:

Yep.

Serena:

because As the client base grows, that account manager is probably going to have to completely let go of bookkeeping, And so maybe this is where you can help solve this problem and let her, her or him keep, some, a finger on the pulse and kind of keep their hands in some of the bookkeeping, my recommendation would be to, to move them to have their account manager role, but also manage the onboarding and establishing the process for the monthly bookkeeping. And then once the process is established, then they are to hand it over to a bookkeeper. then their time is freed up for the reviewing and onboarding a new client. Have you guys talked about that?

Becky:

We have talked about that. It's been, so that nothing is ready to be turned over yet. Yep. And I'm trying to help not overwhelm her and also ensure that the other bookkeepers feel like they are doing a valid piece of work.

Serena:

Right. and are you doing like frequent one on ones with your account manager? Do you have like a rhythm? Okay. So on your, I would probably give them a heads up of like on our next one on one, we're going to discuss a handoff plan. And so I need you to come to this meeting with some specifics. I need to know exactly where all these clients at, that you're onboarding that need to be handed off and where, you're stuck so I can help you. get unstuck and get it moving along. also give them the assignment of, writing out. I mean, when they do this exercise of having to show you like, this is where it's stuck. It's going to illuminate either that they're, they don't want to hand off this type of task or, I don't know. It's going to illuminate some things. So maybe, maybe that's where you have to leave it. And kind of, but their, but their assignment is to bring to you. So you're not the one doing the work of figuring all of this out. This account manager likes problem solving. So this is a great opportunity to solve a problem and you need solutions. So, your expectation of this account manager is to come to this meeting with current status of the clients we're onboarding, where you're stuck and why. Why you cannot hand it off yet and then come with some solutions to those points what is your suggestion of what is the next step? so that they're bought into that process of handing it off. And so what's going to happen is either they're going to be like, Oh, okay, this is why it's stuck. And this is the solution. So now we can go do that. Or they're going to come to you and say, this is why it's stuck, but I'm really having a hard time figuring out how to get it past that point. And so you're going to use that meeting for brainstorming, but you're still going to be like coaching that. account manager to come up with the solution themselves by asking a lot of questions like, well, you know, where is this at and why are you having a hard time handing it off? Is it that we need to establish a process? Is it that, you haven't figured out the process for that client yet? What do we need to do to get you to that point? Do you need more time? Are you at capacity? It's going to open up all sorts of, possibilities. So you're going to come to that. Meeting, just asking a lot of questions and hopefully driving that account manager to a point where they're the ones coming up with the next steps and solutions. And that's going to, they have to be bought into it. Does that make sense?

Becky:

Right.

Serena:

that's how I would approach that. And I love that you're doing regular one on one meetings with your team. at a certain point, your account manager ideally is a very, for you, a hands off role. Like for, for me and my account manager, initially we had one on ones weekly as he was getting up to speed on all the clients. And then we dialed it back to bi weekly. And now we pretty much just have one on ones like quarterly to just check in with each other. And ideally that's the kind of position that your account manager is in, but also you have to establish like That real open door policy where people do feel like they can come to you anytime, but even like you're still checking in with them between meetings of saying, Hey, I'm just checking in, making sure like, do you have anything that's holding you back? You want to discuss blah, blah, blah, like be that mentor and coach for them, and be available even in between meetings. But yeah, ideally your account manager is at a level that they don't need as much guidance and they can kind of run with things. And then the other thing too, that I would kind of tackle in these one on ones, maybe not the next one, or maybe it becomes a conversation in that one on one meeting is what do they actually want to be doing? Do they have the aspiration to manage the bookkeeper, like a team of bookkeepers? Like

Becky:

Yeah,

Serena:

where do they want to be? Because

Becky:

doesn't want to manage and so perhaps I'm, asking for them to do something that isn't what they want.

Serena:

yeah. And that's what's so important about these one on ones is getting an understanding,

Becky:

Yeah. Do you feel like the account manager needs to be managing people?

Serena:

not necessarily But they do have to be able to collaborate and be able to disseminate information to the bookkeepers to hand things off. So it's more of a client manager and then a senior bookkeeping role in that instance, which you can create for that person. It doesn't have to be that they manage other people. It's more of a, They're managing a process, which is the client process, but they're seen as more of a peer to the other bookkeepers. And maybe that person's more comfortable in that type of senior bookkeeping role where it's like they're establishing the processes and they're helping the other bookkeepers on a collaborative basis, but they're not actually the manager of that bookkeeper. But they are responsible for managing the process. So ultimately there is an overlap kind of, of managing people. Like they don't have to deal with the HR issues of managing the people, but they need to be able to communicate the process and oversee the process because that's part of the account manager role is overseeing the work of the bookkeeper and being able to communicate when things need to be fixed and all that kind of stuff. So honestly, like it's doable. Like Especially for someone who doesn't necessarily want to be a manager, but they're a really good team player and people like working with them and they're good at showing how to do things. That's how I was in corporate. For a long time, I was like the senior accountant, accounting manager type situation, but I felt more like a peer of everyone. And I was kind of like, this is the process. Let me show you how to do it. Ask me any questions. It was very collaborative. And you can have it structured like that if that's what they prefer

Becky:

I've tried to say that, you know, you don't have to manage them. Just tell me what needs to be done for the management of them and I'll do that.

Serena:

Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.

Becky:

Because I want to support them.

Serena:

That's ideal for a lot of people. Yeah.

Becky:

Yeah, and that's the part I like so I'm okay to do that even the hard parts.

Serena:

It's so amazing that you're offering this opportunity for people to be able to get really good at their craft and not have the weight of people managing, but they're also still getting experience in. You know, becoming a guide and you're offering that mentorship. So I would really focus heavily on that in your one on ones of like developing that teammate as like, okay, well, how do you want to do this? Okay. You want it to be more of a collaborative approach. So this is how I would do it. And you can kind of show them lead by example, whatever, but you're really mentoring them that way.

Becky:

Right.

Serena:

and I think that's amazing.

Becky:

is it. Sometimes I feel like I'm, , because I'm not the bookkeeper that they think that they, that I don't understand what the problems might be. And, I think I'm open to those, and I do think I understand enough of what needs to be done.

Serena:

Yeah, in that instance, yeah, the communication is very important to make sure people feel like They don't necessarily have to explain the whole process to you, but that you do understand enough of it to get them to that next point. So I can see the struggle there for sure. I'm trying to, I'm kind of like, I'm thinking, since we don't have video on, I'm like, I'm looking up for a, an answer on this, like, yeah, so, keeping that, yeah, keep that communication open and be honest, like, this is how I would role play it with, you know, It's a role play with you, but if I were talking to my teammate from your perspective, I would say, I understand how you see like that. You might think that I don't, you know, since I'm not doing the bookkeeping, that I don't have a full understanding of the process. And that's why it's so important for you to really be able to communicate where the broken pieces are to me so I can help bridge that gap and help you come up with solutions. But just because I'm not doing the bookkeeping or don't have as much in depth knowledge as you do is like, that's why I hired you so that you can solve these problems and communicate them to me. And we're a team. and really like kind of pump them up of like, you're the expert, you have the skills for this. So , I need you to manage up. I've worked with, leaders like that too, that are very clear. Like, I don't know the technical stuff that you're doing and that's why you're here. So part of your responsibility is to be able to manage up and tell me like what you need from me. And let me know when something is broken so we can work together for a solution or whatever. But, yeah. do you feel that, and maybe this is something that you will discover once you start really having these conversations, do you actually feel like your account manager has the skill set to be able to communicate to you what's not working? Yeah.

Becky:

I think that, I like the way that you said she manages the process, not the people, and I think that's what I need to emphasize more so that she can really see that that's all she's having to do is manage the process, but, that she's not having to manage the people. But I think in some cases. The things that I say sound to her like managing people.

Serena:

yeah,

Becky:

and that's not what I'm trying to get done. I think she's fabulous and she resolves everything when, you know, when she has to do it and she does it herself. But, and a lot of times it's like, she'd prefer to do it herself than to pass it off. but we can't do more. And I want to do more.

Serena:

yeah. So that's definitely a conversation that you're gonna have to have with her of like, I understand that feeling of wanting to just fix things yourself when things don't come back to you correctly, but you're also doing a disservice to the bookkeeper who is trying to learn as well and grow. So as a teammate. I would really appreciate if you put yourself in the bookkeeper's shoes and, and think back to in a situation where if your mentor or your boss hadn't showed you or given you the opportunity to fix your mistakes, would you have learned and grown?

Becky:

Right,

Serena:

a lot, yeah, and just be like, and then if we don't have time, that's another thing. Because I've fallen into that trap too of like, well, I didn't review things until the night before that they were, we were going to be meeting with the client. So I didn't have time to send things back to the bookkeeper. So if that's part of the problem, then we need to build in the time for that back and forth. And so maybe that's where the process is broken. And now it's up to her to fix that process and make it so that it, it helps everybody.

Becky:

Yeah. I mean, I think that, the clients are difficult. They don't always get back what they're supposed to. So I'm trying to give the, you know, processes for. Me to fuss at the clients if that's necessary or, you know, say, should we let that client go? And every time I ask that question, the answer comes back. No, even though they might get complained about again. So,

Serena:

Yeah. So let's talk about that, like how to handle, , how to handle that situation. So one of the things that we've established. And this is, and this came out of a team meeting. So we have weekly team meetings as well as one on one. So there's a whole team meeting where everybody gives an update on where everything's at with each client. and. in instances like this, this kind of stuff kept happening where it was like the team didn't really know when it was time to hand things off to the account manager because the client hadn't gotten back yet So things got delayed and delayed and delayed and so we as a group discussed With the bookkeepers the account manager everybody on board as a group we discussed Okay, how do we want to handle this then we need to draw a line in the sand of okay If the client hasn't gotten back to us To us for the suspense items, or if you're a listener and you use QBO, it's, ask my accountant if the client hasn't gotten back to us with those answers by day five of the close. Then we drop everything in suspense. We reconcile the bank accounts and we push it through the process. And then the account manager reminds the client when they send the client's financial statements of here's your numbers with a caveat. There's all this in suspense that might not be actually on the P& L or isn't in the right place. And so to have really accurate financials, we need you to answer this question. So they get the reminder every month. By the account manager. And if it just builds and builds and builds, then we just continue to remind them. And then at a certain point, like you said, Do we drop the client? We come back as a team and talk about it. Do we enjoy working with them? Are they fine other than this one thing? Are we okay with just waiting until the end of the year to fix all of this because we love the client? Then we keep them. And if there's other issues with that client, and that's just, you know, the needle in the haystack or the, you know, the needle that broke the camel's back rather,

Becky:

Right. Right.

Serena:

then we decide as a group, like, let's let them go. So, but yeah, having that. And maybe that's the process for you. Maybe, maybe you don't leave it up for discussion in this instance, because you know, this is a process that works in other firms of like, you can just come to the next team meeting and say, new process. If a client hasn't gotten back to us by day five, we move it along in the handoff and the client manager reminds them when they've, you know, finished the review and blah, blah, blah. And now you have your process. So you could do either one

Becky:

does your, does your account manager, do the bookkeepers also speak to the clients?

Serena:

Yes. So that, and this is a preference, honestly, how you want to have your firm set up. But the way that we have set our, process up is when I onboard a client, I let them know, you're getting a team, you're getting a bookkeeper and an account manager, and you are going to be communicating with both of them. in various points of the process. Cause the bookkeeper is going to be asking you specific transaction questions before it gets reviewed. Like, what is this transaction for? And blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And they're going to be the ones sending the ask. We use Xero ask for all of that. And then, and then your account manager is the one that you're going to be getting your financial statements from with the bullet points. and anything that's still lingering. But because we also, all of this communication happens in a central inbox. I also make sure the client knows no one should be emailing you separately from their own email. All of this should come to and from our help inbox. it'll have their signature and the specific person's picture is in the signature. So we have faces with names. Everything feels very personal and high touch that way. And so we all have our own signature in that inbox, but we're all using that for communication. So at any point in the process, My account manager can go to the sent box, the outbox, and see what has happened. And then know like, okay, this has already been asked. So now like, I know this is going to be like a nudge of a reminder. And then at a certain point, this is the next part of the process of, okay, at what point when the client hasn't responded to the bookkeeper, hasn't responded to the client manager or the account manager, at what point does firm owner come in and reiterate, we need these things.

Becky:

Be the heavy.

Serena:

yeah, and that's usually something that just comes up on our weekly team meeting of like, the bookkeeper is like, I've already asked for this twice. The account manager says, I've already also asked for this twice. now it's to the point where we're asking you to Call the client or voxer the client or nudge the client again in an email. And generally when I step in, that's when the client finally does what we asked of them.

Becky:

Yeah,

Serena:

and it happens. That's okay. Our clients are really busy, but usually that gets their attention, and it's all done in a very kind way, right? Like, you shouldn't be the one it's escalated to every month. Like, this is like, Very few and far between. And this is part of the communication that happens in the sales process too, or onboarding process when you're meeting with the client, whoever's doing the onboarding is like, if you get an email from our firm owner, that's when you know, like we've asked you a lot and we've escalated it and blah, blah, blah. Right. is all this helpful? Are you starting to

Becky:

Yeah, that it is helpful. Like I said, the, calling it process ownership and process management is different. And may be the trick to helping ensure that she's able to define the process. Yeah.

Serena:

And figure out what it, you know, she might be feeling overwhelmed, especially if she doesn't want to manage people. I remember when I first started managing people and being in that management role, it was very overwhelming for me because I also didn't have the leadership skills yet. I needed that. coaching. And so it felt really hard and it was easier to just be like, I'll just fix this myself because I don't want to have the conversation. I don't want people to feel that they're going to be in trouble or blah, blah, blah. So just kind of giving her that relief of like, you're not reprimanding the bookkeeper. You're benefiting them. You're acting as a mentor to the bookkeepers on your team, and everybody needs that mentor. So it's in everyone's best interest, and then you also are going to, you, Becky, not the account manager, you're going to be communicating with the bookkeepers of like, She's going to be required to send things back to you for you to correct them and do not take this personally. This is so that you become better at your job and then down the line there will be less mistakes because you got to correct your own mistakes and you probably won't make them again.

Becky:

Right. Right.

Serena:

to be expecting to have those changes sent back to them, and they're probably going to be grateful for it.

Becky:

Right. I think, I don't think I'm speaking to the bookkeeper as often as I need to be.

Serena:

Great realization.

Becky:

I'm talking to the, the account manager weekly, but I don't think I regularly have something scheduled. And some of that is, you know, this particular person isn't always available. And so we just need to get it set.

Serena:

Yeah, honestly, especially if your account manager is not taking on the role of people managing, then you have to take that role on. And so you do need to have those one, you need to have those one on ones with the bookkeepers as well. or at least, you know, make sure they're participating in the weekly meetings so that you understand the status of things and where things are at. and that level probably needs more than your account manager should, as far as the one on ones. However, Like your account manager, if we're structuring it as a process management, it is good that she's checking with you weekly and giving you status updates because she's managing that process. And,

Becky:

it, I think it makes her feel better too. You know,

Serena:

yeah.

Becky:

I think I need to do that. Do you think it's worthwhile to have her review the processes with me?

Serena:

as in like you guys sit down and say, okay, let's look at the process together. from an overview and talk about each step and assess whether this is something we should be doing. Does it need to be changed? Is that what you're saying?

Becky:

Yep,

Serena:

Yeah, that would probably be,

Becky:

might help her too.

Serena:

yeah. And also opens up the conversation for, because I don't know how much you've established this as a team culture of, Looking at things with a fresh eye every once in a while and giving people the autonomy to say, Hey, this process isn't working and I would like to change it. Like if you create that culture of everyone automatically looks at things with a critical eye and is like constantly like, how can we make this process better? Giving people that leeway to like take that upon themselves. That's a culture that. is really important for, that's the culture I have at my firm. And I talk about that during the interview process of like, we love problem solvers. I don't ever want to hear that. Well, this is how we've been doing it. So we should just keep doing it. That those words aren't allowed.

Becky:

Right. Right.

Serena:

we always need to be reevaluating is this the best way for us, for our clients? cause sometimes there is that process where it's not the best for us, But it's the best for our clients in providing the level of service we want to provide them. So you have to compromise. that's okay too. Like, we don't love this process, but right now this is what works the best for this client or whatever. And like, you have the opportunity to have those discussions on a case by case basis as well. But yeah, creating and establishing that, that culture of like, always look at the process to see if like, Is it working for us still? Like, is this the most efficient way we can do this with the tools that we now have available to us? and making sure people know that and, and rewarding that and recognizing it when people do that is really important for keeping that, culture going. So, for instance, we have, you know, we use Asana as well. We also use Notion and we. You know, I have the two businesses. I have the firm and I have this one, the ambitious bookkeeper. And for the most part now, we have all of our project management for the ambitious bookkeeper in Notion instead of Asana. So they're separate now. And, that is all the doing of the team saying, Hey, I think there's a better way to handle the ambitious bookkeeper projects in Notion because it's a different way different business model and the way we do the launches and all of that. It just, it's going to keep everything in one place and it's just going to be better. And that's the team, the team decided that because we have that culture of always looking at things with the critical eye and thinking like, is this the best way to be doing things? Is there a cleaner way? Is there a faster way, more efficient way? And then like it saves, it saves the company money as well. And then so giving them the autonomy to make those decisions and backing off as the firm owner, which I, I believe you're probably pretty good at since you have never been the one to do. all the work. It's easier for you to look at things like that from the bird's eye of like, if this is what works for you, make it happen. And then figuring out a way to reward them and recognize them. For instance, you could, if it's something that they changed the process to make things more efficient, can you give them a bonus, a spot bonus? Like, you saved us this much money, so I'm going to bonus you this much. because we're going to save this much money in, you know, software fees for this year or, as a group, you guys all collaborated on this and made this happen without me suggesting it. And I just really like just even verbal recognition in front of everyone. Like you guys are amazing. I'm going to send you all a DoorDash gift card or whatever, right? Like little things like that to build the culture and you know, recognition. Most of the time, people just truly want recognition. A lot of times, it's not even about the money.

Becky:

No, I agree. I agree.

Serena:

What else is there that you need support on regarding, what the specific question you asked actually in the intake form was ensuring bookkeepers and account managers are doing the same thing each month. Is there an area in your process that you need specifics on?

Becky:

I feel like, in some cases, because we haven't heard back from the. Information to do the reconciliation. we aren't doing the reports and I want us to do the reports regardless of whether they're correct

Serena:

yeah.

Becky:

in quotes or not.

Serena:

Yeah, so

Becky:

I think that the, the accounting account manager and the bookkeeper want them to be correct, which is good and I want that, but you know, so I'm sort of making them do something against the grain for them,

Serena:

Yeah, that's gonna be, that is definitely part of that discussion on the team meeting of like, I know this is going to be difficult for you all because as bookkeepers, we want everything to be perfect and accurate, tied out to the penny before we send things off as a quote unquote finished product. However, That's not possible in all instances. So you have to separate yourself from that and say, okay, what the actual deliverable for this client is, is financial statements by the 15th. And if we're unable to do what, you know, whatever your deadline is, if we're unable to do that, because the client hasn't given us information, then we're still gonna send our deliverables with that asterisk and the caveat of and disclaimer of these are your financials, but XYZ was never answered. So these two accounts are not accurate. If you want a more accurate number and you want to be able to really make business decisions, we need to hear back from you in a more timely manner. and then you get to decide how long you want to let that go

Becky:

right? sort of train the clients as well,

Serena:

Yeah. And so it could be an issue too of how many times have we followed up? maybe they've only asked the question once and then they wait again until next month. And then it's like, you know, Maybe the client actually needs more reminders. So then figuring out, okay, team, I'm going to task you with, okay, what's the best system for continually sending reminders? If we don't have it in place, one of you has to research, what softwares can do this for us without us being the one chasing things. And that ultimately is why we moved to Xero Ask, because it sends the reminders to the client. So wherever you can automate things like that.

Becky:

And you use Xero Ask instead of something like Content Snare?

Serena:

Oh, you can use Content Snare, yeah. But yeah, that's our, something like that. Content Snare, Keeper, Xero, Ask. But putting

Becky:

felt like it, it provided a listing for us of what had been accomplished.

Serena:

is that what you're currently working with?

Becky:

Well, that's what we, I just bought it. So we're trying to figure out and include it in the process.

Serena:

good. So that's something that, yeah. You could hand over to your account manager if she has the bandwidth. if she doesn't, then I'm guessing you're the one that's implementing that process?

Becky:

Yeah, sort of. I bought it, but I'm basically pushing people to use it, basically. And so, I'm not necessarily defining the right process, but,

Serena:

Yeah. You need your team to help you develop that process for sure. So that's something that, you becoming the champion of the project where you're getting everyone to buy in and say, this is ultimately going to help you guys move things along the process faster. You're not going to feel like, You know, you can't move on because you haven't gotten things back from the client. Like, yeah, like ultimately it's going to help them, but I think you still also need to establish that. Okay. Everyone, if you haven't gotten it back by the fifth, we're still going to move forward. And the account manager is going to remind the client when they get their financial statements that they're not accurate.

Becky:

Yeah.

Serena:

And that'll help a lot. once We established that process, the team was so relieved because they're like, now I feel like I can move forward. I didn't feel like I could move forward yet because I didn't know I was allowed to. But we all gave ourselves that freedom by establishing this process that I know it's not perfect, but that's okay. it's just, we drew a line in the sand and we're moving forward and everyone feels really good about that. So that's going to be a game changer, I think.

Becky:

I think so too, if we can really get people to do it.

Serena:

Yeah.

Becky:

and that's what I mean by the same thing every month.

Serena:

Okay. Yeah. So one of the things that we did in Asana is, you know, how each part of the process is kind of grouped. So there's like the information gathering process or section, at least this is how I have my Asana set up. I don't know if you do too. You're in, are you in BBA?

Becky:

Yes, I think

Serena:

Okay, so you have this process if you want to print it out or import it into Asana just to see what it looks like. There is one section, the first section of the accounting project for the monthly accounting project for each client, is information gathering. And so then underneath that is the task list You know, pulling bank statements or pulling any other reports that we need to be able to do the work. Shopify reports, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And that can be your VA, to be honest. Doesn't need to be one of the bookkeepers. And then,

Becky:

to implement that kind of thing too. I have a, I have a great VA who I'm trying to get her to also document and help. Create the processes that are being created by the account manager. Sort of follow her around and document it.

Serena:

yeah, very good. there's that first section of the process information gathering. And then the second section is the bookkeeper section and all the bookkeepers tasks of, you know, reconciling the bank account, categorizing stuff, doing the hub doc, all those things. I'm not saying them in order,

Becky:

Right. Right.

Serena:

but you get the gist. And then at the last task of that is the month and handoff to the account manager. And it's like another checklist for the bookkeeper to look at, like, Okay. Did I do all this? Did I do all that? Yes, yes, yes. And like, basically giving a status update to the account manager of like, everything's done except we never received XYZ from the clients. So I put it all in suspense. So please remind them when you send their financials. And so then the third section in the Menthen process is, the account manager's tasks of the review. So the review process of reviewed the balance sheet, reviewed the income statement, did a flux analysis, basically showing, looking at things month over month pulling out the things that look different and drilling into them and figuring out, is this accurate or is something miscoded? So that's the review process. And then if everything's Great. Then the account manager runs reports, sends them to the client, finishes the end of month project. Now we've completed that client's work for the month, even if the client never got back to us on suspense. If there is something in the bookkeeping review process, the account manager finds during that flux analysis of, Oh, this was miscoded. The process is for him to actually send it back to the bookkeeper in Slack. Slack message, because we're all virtual. Hey,

Becky:

Teams, but essentially it's like Slack.

Serena:

same thing, like going back into communicate with the team. Hey, this, was coded to the wrong account. Please move, you know, giving them a checklist of things they need to correct. And then, but we've built in the timeline so that there's plenty of time to do this before we're supposed to actually be giving the financials to the client. And so then the bookkeeper makes the corrections, tags the account manager in Slack. Okay, they're ready to rerun the reports and send to the client. Like I fixed all the mistakes. so that's essentially the process. yeah, so you have all of that in BBA, or if you're a listener and you're an Elevate, it's also an Elevate. and Elevate really dives into that analysis process. So you can actually put your account manager through that program. I would recommend sending your account manager through the Elevate first module of financial statement analysis, at least, maybe even the whole entire program.

Becky:

Yeah. Yeah. I love that you, , allow me to share it too.

Serena:

there's anything that your account manager or have them ask the question in the comment section too. So I know if there's gaps in what I'm saying and there's a disconnect for people to understand, I would love to know, because I want to make sure that that program can serve as a training tool for your team.

Becky:

Right. I think that it's been great. we use the kickoff with Asana and I am a member of what's the breakthrough.

Serena:

Oh, wonderful. You're also in breakthrough. Okay.

Becky:

I'm in all of them.

Serena:

Good. Breakthrough has the end of month handoff documents that you're going to want to start using.

Becky:

Okay. And you know, when I talk about handing it off and whatever, the account manager acts like, well, I have to do it again then. And it's like, no,

Serena:

you're reviewing it for accuracy, but if it's not accurate, your responsibility is to the bookkeeper so the bookkeeper can learn how to do their job better.

Becky:

right. Right,

Serena:

next month, you won't have those same corrections. You won't have those issues to continue to fix. The longer you perpetuate just fixing the errors yourself, they're never going to learn. You're always going to be fixing those errors every single month. Even if you go back and say to the bookkeeper, Hey, I changed this, that, and the other thing. I fixed this. The bookkeeper is not going to remember. Because she didn't actually make those corrections, so you're going to continue to be fixing those same things every month, and you're going to get frustrated and resentful.

Becky:

And I don't want that.

Serena:

no. Okay, Do you feel like you have some, actionable steps to take now with your account manager.

Becky:

Yes, I think so. I think that, like I said, the terminology of process management versus people management

Serena:

Yeah.

Becky:

to be more focused, put on that, and that will help.

Serena:

Yeah, absolutely. Well, thank you so much for being willing to share your roadblocks on air and get coached on air. I really appreciate it. And this is, I think this is going to be a really Really popular episode. People are going to love it because there's so much in here that we talked about

Becky:

I listen to your podcast a lot, so

Serena:

Good. Awesome. Thank you so much, Becky, and we'll talk to you soon.

Becky:

I'll talk to you soon. Thank you.

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