How To Stay Safe And Secure When Outsourcing Your Accounting Needs

As a business owner, you have many things to think about. You must ensure that your employees are well-trained and productive, customers are happy with your service, and your finances are in order.

Outsourcing accounting needs is one of the best ways for small businesses to reduce expenses while maintaining an efficient record-keeping system. Whether you need help with payroll processing or want to outsource your accounting functions, plenty of options are available today.

Before you hire an accounting firm or provider, it’s essential to understand what they do and how they can help you. Here are some critical points on outsourcing accounting needs:

Data Security

When outsourcing your accounting needs, ensure the company has adequate security measures to keep your data safe. You should also check that the firm has secure servers with backup capabilities so that your data isn’t lost forever if something goes wrong with their system.

If possible, ask them about the type of encryption they use on their servers and how long it takes them to recover from a break-in attempt.

Accounting Process Outsourcing (APO) Services

It involves hiring an external company or individual to perform specific tasks within your business, such as managing payroll or preparing monthly financial statements.

The advantage of APO is that it allows you more time to focus on other aspects of running your business while still getting accurate information on financial matters. APO services will enable you to outsource all or part of your accounting processes without hiring another employee or buying new software programs.

Importance Of Safety and Security When Outsourcing Your Accounting Needs

Security is one of the most critical considerations when outsourcing your accounting needs. Here are some tips for keeping your business safe and secure when outsourcing accounting functions:

1. Know what data you have, where it’s stored, and how it’s transmitted.
2. Train your employees on data security best practices, including password protection and encryption.
3. Ensure employees understand they cannot disclose confidential information in response to requests from third parties.
4. Audit your vendors regularly to comply with your organization’s data security regulations and policies.

How To Ensure Data Security When Outsourcing Accounting?

Outsourcing your accounting can help you save money, access a broader range of expertise and experience, and free up your time. However, it can also raise some security concerns.

It’s essential to understand how data security works in outsourcing so that you can ensure the safety of your sensitive financial information.

Here are some best practices for ensuring data security when outsourcing accounting:

Choosing The Right Accounting Outsourcing Provider

Ideally, you should choose an accounting partner vetted by a third party or other organizations that promote trustworthiness in business practices. You can also check with different companies that have used their services in the past to see how well they have worked together.

If possible, get references so you can get an idea of how well they have handled their responsibilities over time.

Understanding Their Policies

Before you sign any contracts with an outsourced accounting partner, make sure that you fully understand their policies regarding security measures and data backup procedures.

If possible, ask them about these things before signing to avoid surprises.

Know What You’re Getting Into

When considering security in accounting needs, you must know what you’re getting into before making any decisions.

For example, if you outsource your payroll function, ensure that the provider has experience handling payroll taxes and filing requirements for each state in which you operate. 

Monitoring and Oversight

Outsourced accounting services can be an excellent option for small businesses as long as they understand their responsibilities and obligations. The best way to ensure that everything runs smoothly is to have a monitoring system. This should include regular communication with the provider and frequent reviews of their performance reports.

Regularly monitor your financial data. You need to know what’s happening with your accounts to take any necessary action before any damage occurs. You should also consider using software like encryption software or firewalls that prevent unauthorized access or use of information technology (IT) equipment and systems.

Wrapping Up

As an entrepreneur, you don’t want to lose sight of your business’s ongoing needs for security. Ensuring your data is safe from hackers can be challenging when outsourcing your accounting functions. This is why choosing an experienced outsourcing partner who can help protect your sensitive information from unauthorized access or theft is important.

About OHI

OHI is a specialized finance and accounting outsourcing service provider with over sixteen years of finance and accounting outsourcing experience. We have strong functional outsourcing expertise in end to end accounting processes covering daily accounting activities, reconciliations, month end and year-end account finalization processes, employee reimbursements, payroll processing, management reporting and financial analysis.

OHI serves close to 300+ clients across USA, UK and Canada. We invite you to experience finance and accounting outsourcing through us.

Learn More About Our Accounting Outsourcing Services – CONTACT US