04/04/2026
Happy Saturday and Blessed Resurrection Weekend!✝️
If you are a business owner or manager, this post is for you! After 20+ years in this business, I have learned who makes a "good [bookkeeping] hire," and who ends up costing the company money. This is also not taken from anyone specific and is definitely not an insult to those in certain positions. It's just something I have learned by training and watching employees. However, I can say that most of my opinion on the matter comes from the last two years of training unskilled people in bookkeeping. The two ladies I have on staff are a PERFECT example of what type of person it takes to complete certain tasks effectively and efficiently. Ann-Marie and Ruby are a godsend!
Job Trait #1 - a willingness to learn and a sense of humbleness to admit when he or she doesn't know or doesn't understand a process.
Job Trait #2 - a bookkeeper either needs to already understand or be trained on debits and credits, assets and liabilities, bank transactions, check registers and reconciliations. If a business owner hires someone who doesn't understand these basics, ample time needs to be set aside to train the employee. No, we're not looking for an accountant here but let me give a real-world example.
>Most data entry on the expense side will be company overhead - utilities, payroll, benefit expenses. A bookkeeper needs to understand the difference between a cost and an expense and how it affects the profit and loss statement.
>Most data entry on the income side is either company revenue or loans to the company (either from the owner or a line of credit). I tell my bookkeepers to understand the difference between what affects the profit & loss and what affects the balance sheet.
>Print off your chart of accounts and highlight the most commonly used categories. Make sure the bookkeeper understands that if a transaction affects the balance sheet, he or she needs to make sure it is classified correctly. In other words, for most transactions, the bookkeeper needs to be comfortable with the balance sheet transactions or be humble enough to ask for help.
Job Trait #3 - understanding notes payable versus accounts payable. Several clients have accounts payable - bulk supply houses, fuel accounts, credit cards, different types of freight services - basically anything with net30 payment terms. Then there's note payables - loan accounts and lines of credit - basically things tied to an asset that generally has principal and interest.
>Make sure your bookkeeper understands that accounts payable usually doesn't have an interest charge attached to it if it is paid within the due date terms. However, a note payable will have interest. Decide how you want that interest classified (with each payment, recorded quarterly, adjusted annually).
Job Trait #4 - if your bookkeeper understands the difference between a check register transaction (live bookkeeping) and a journal entry, you're golden! And job trait #3 is almost guaranteed to be correct!
!! Please know if you disagree with me, these traits are a matter of my opinion AND fairly generalized statements. I have dealt with bookkeepers who are good at what they do simply because they care about the business. If you are a business owner and feel like you have a bookkeeper who could use a little additional training, we do that at Deer Cove Bookkeeping. We never want to take the place of your bookkeeper but we definitely can make sure he or she understands what the position requires in an effort to continue to care for and nurture your business! Reach out to us with questions or quotes for service - [email protected]. Bookkeeper Training and Continued Support!
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