What the hell is workflow, and why should I care?

bookkeeping workflow automation small business

The systems you use to run your business can either help you, or hold you back.

What is Workflow? According to the Oxford Dictionary, Workflow is:”the sequence of industrial, administrative, or other processes through which a piece of work passes from initiation to completion.”  

Basically, it’s how things get done.  Every business already has a workflow, but the question is whether it is serving you right now.  

Take a look at your billing systems.  How many steps and how long does it take to get an invoice in your customers hand.  How long does it take you to collect on that invoice, and how easy have you made it for your customers to pay?  

What about collecting receipts for year end?  Where do you store them, how many do you lose, and how much time do you spend tracking down copies? 

What about scheduling work and going to job sites?  Are they taking a paper file with them?  Does that file always make it back to the office? Don’t confuse motion with progress, increasing your efficiency means you can focus on the areas of your business that really need your help.

We are living in the 21st century, the age of automation, and there is technology out there that can streamline most of your processes.  

Leveraging that technology to automate collections, capture receipts and easily accept payments can increase productivity. 

There is a solution out there for what your business is struggling with.  

Implementing these technologies can help take your business to the next level, but pick the wrong tech or botch implementation and you’ll end up worse off than when you started.  

Talk to your business owner friends, trusted advisors, and find out what’s working for them. If you can only implement one solution, make it a strong fully functional cloud bookkeeping solution like QBO. Using a cloud based programs means that you can plugin other productivity apps as you need them and get all your systems talking to each other.

Smart Monkey is a support system for people who want or need to do their own bookkeeping for their small business. You get on-demand training videos and unlimited technical and bookkeeping support. Our membership includes the apps and help you need to get started and keep going.

Visit The Bookkeeping Antidote page to learn more about how we can help you.

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