Certificate IV in Accounting and Bookkeepingmicrostarpublishing.com.au/OLL/FNS_R_3/Samples/Sample_FNSACC408.pdfin Accounting and Bookkeeping FNSACC408 Work Effectively in the Accounting
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The more clearly you can articulate and document the business needs and expectations of the clients you work with, the more effective you will be and the more satisfied they (and you) will be when it comes to your performance and your working relationships.
Client Types
Whatever your employment situation, your likely client types will generally include:
The essential ingredient in determining needs and expectations of others is
to be a good listener.
You need to take the time to identify the needs of your client by asking them questions, probing and concentrating on what they are really saying.
Listen to their words, tone of voice, body language and most importantly, how they feel. Be careful not to make assumptions. Thinking you intuitively know what your client wants can get you into trouble.
Do you know the three outcomes/deliverables that are most important
to your client?
This question is one that you should be able to answer for each of your clients. If you can’t … you need to seek additional information.
(a) With consideration of likely client types, discuss and list probable means for gathering information regarding their business needs and expectations.
(a) Work in pairs to develop a questionnaire to determine the business needs and expectations for the client in the following scenario.
Scenario: You are a contract bookkeeper who is meeting with a potential client for the first time. The potential client is an owner of a small family-owned carpet cleaning business who is looking to outsource her bookkeeping activities.
(b) Once complete, team-up with another pair and discuss the merits and limitations of your questionnaires.
(c) Make improvements to your questionnaires where necessary.
Note: You will expand this questionnaire during Activity Task 4.
2.3 Bookkeeper Roles and Responsibilities The scope and responsibilities of a bookkeeper tend to vary depending on several factors, such as:
• the employment situation (e.g. employed, contract, or self-employed)
• the business needs and size of the company that employs the bookkeeper
• the skill level of the bookkeeper/s employed or contracted
In small companies, the bookkeeper tends to be responsible for the general ledger, which encompasses all the financial transactions for the given company. In addition, the bookkeeper often provides summaries of the general ledger’s details, such as what the company owes, what is owed to the company, as well as any information regarding the company’s profit margin. Furthermore, a bookkeeper with a job at a small company may also be responsible for payroll, customer invoices, and tax reports.
In larger companies and corporations, people with bookkeeping careers are often assigned to a specific task or specialised area. For example, one bookkeeper may be assigned the task of maintaining accounts receivable, while another bookkeeper maintains the accounts payable. The responsibilities of a bookkeeper within a large company vary depending upon experience and position. Furthermore, an entry-level bookkeeper may enter transactions, total accounts, monitor accounts, and calculate interest charges, while a more advanced bookkeeper may reconcile vouchers, verify the accuracy of data, and review accounting journals.
While bookkeeper roles will differ, it is typical that they will be defined by a combination of the following responsibilities:
• Accounts payable and receivable Data entry Management of accounts Invoicing customers Paying suppliers Liaising with customers and suppliers Debt recovery Reconciliations Weekly, fortnightly, monthly or quarterly services
• Reporting Profit & loss Balance sheet Aged receivables Any type of reporting required in relation to accounts, banking, sales,
purchases and payroll Performed monthly, quarterly or as required
• Payroll
Weekly, fortnightly or monthly pay runs Monthly/quarterly payment of PAYG Superannuation Employee record keeping
• BAS
Performed under the supervision of a registered tax agent
If you are providing bookkeeping services, you should never rely on verbal agreements. Make sure you have a written service agreement in place to protect the interests of both you (the provider) and the receiver of services (business owner).
Documentation of bookkeeping responsibilities will generally take two forms:
1. Position Description (or Job Description) – usually in place for an employer/employee relationship
2. Service Agreement (or Service Contract) – usually in place for all bookkeeping provider/receiver relationships
Contents for Service Agreements
In partnership with the business owner, a service agreement should be developed to pin down issues such as the following:
(a) Research and review a selection of 3 or 4 bookkeeper job vacancies (online or print).
(b) List any bookkeeping responsibilities that are advertised as a requirement for these jobs that were not identified as a typical bookkeeping responsibility on the previous page.
(a) Team up with your partner from Activity Task 2.
(b) Work together to expand your Activity Task 2 questionnaire to include questions you would ask of the business owner to determine your role and responsibilities.
Part B:
(c) Role-play the interview scenario, with one of you acting as the bookkeeper (using your questionnaire) and the other as the business owner.
(d) Be sure to demonstrate clear communication and active listening.
Part C:
(e) Use the responses (given by the business owner) to develop a service agreement.
Professional networks will assist when encountering tasks outside their defined roles and responsibilities or beyond their skill set. The network of professionals that bookkeepers will build relationships with may include, but is not limited to:
Network type: Can assist with:
• Fellow bookkeepers Processes, industry updates, software assistance
• Colleagues/staff Company policies, procedures and information
• Accountants Legislation and tax information
• Lawyers Laws and legislation
• Registered Tax Agents Legislation and tax information
• Auditors Adherence to company policies, legislation and tax information
• Banks, building societies, credit unions
Banking and financial tools
• Suppliers Software upgrades and advances
• Mentors Processes, industry updates, software assistance, ethical behaviours, professional developments
• Software consultants Software upgrades and advances
• Information technology (IT) team Software upgrades and advances
• Australian Taxation Office (ATO) Legislation and tax information
• Professional associations Processes, industry updates, software assistance, ethical behaviours, professional developments
• Business or financial advisor Processes, industry updates, software assistance, ethical behaviours, professional developments
• Debt collection agencies Adherence to company policies, legislation and tax information adherence
It is imperative that bookkeepers build and maintain networks with other professionals.
(a) Discuss and identify two activities or business owner requests that would generally fall outside the scope of a bookkeeper and would require the assistance of other professionals.
(b) Identify the network/s able to carry out or provide advice regarding the activities/requests.
(c) Explain why it would be appropriate to utilise the assistance of other networks for this activity/request.
Example:
Activity: Preparing tax return
Referral network: Accountant
Reason: Bookkeepers may not have the requisite knowledge and experience to comply with the legislation allowing them to prepare tax returns.
2.4.2 Accessing Publications Bookkeepers should conduct regular research to identify and access publications that help them maintain current knowledge of industry trends and practices and stay abreast of regulatory changes and requirements. Publications may be online or in print, and include (but are not limited to):
• ATO’s Bookkeeping essentials
• ATO Fact Sheets and guides
• The BAS Agent – a free e-newsletter
• Professional association newsletters
• Training publications
• Operation manuals
• Instructional guides
Activity Task 6
(a) Access the ATO website at www.ato.gov.au and type ‘free newsletter’ in the Search for… field.
(b) Locate and click ‘Subscribe to the Tax professionals newsletter’.
There are 2 free newsletters available: • The tax professionals newsletter • The tax professionals newsletter – BAS agent addition
(c) Subscribe to the Tax professionals newsletter – BAS agent addition.
(d) Print a copy of the email response that is automatically generated to your nominated email address (confirming your contact details) and attach as evidence.
2.4.3 Software Tools Earlier in this User Guide, we examined some of the roles responsibilities of a bookkeeper. Many of these functions (such as tax and profit reporting) consist of complex calculations that can be quite confusing and time consuming to manage. Many financial institutions utilise commercial accounting packages to assist in the management of these functions including:
• MYOBTM
• XeroTM
The main advantage of these programs is their reporting capabilities. Simply by performing daily financial operations, bookkeepers create valuable data records that can be used to create a vast array of reports. These reports can in turn be utilised to perform such functions as:
• Reconciling bank accounts
• Measuring and analysing sales profits/losses
• Identification of high and low sales areas to assist in marketing campaigns
• Reconciling customer account discrepancies
If you or your client want to be able to communicate electronically with the Australian Taxation Office, they will need to register for AUSKey. AUSkey is the single key to securely accessing government online services. ATO digital Certificates are no longer issued but existing ones can still be used for as long as they remain valid.
• view, prepare, lodge and revise activity statements
• view and request refunds from:
income tax accounts
fringe benefits tax accounts
excise accounts
some superannuation accounts
• view your statement of account and payment options
• update your details
• transfer funds between your accounts
• communicate with us through a secure mailbox.
The Australian Business Software Industry Association (ABSIA) has developed a software industry product catalogue to replace the ATO Product Register which enables you to search for tax-related software products. www.absia.asn.au/page/product-catalogue. The products listed in the catalogue are commercially available and meet Tax Office requirements. Using products listed in the catalogue will increase the quality of business management and record keeping, resulting in efficiencies within accounting practices, increased compliance and less intrusive audits. You can search the catalogue by:
• Company or Product Name
• Industry
• Target Market
Software tools to assist in planning your activities are discussed in later topics.
(a) Conduct research to identify two commercially available software tools designed to assist in carrying out bookkeeping activities.
(b) Briefly explain the differences between the two products.
________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ (c) List some of the reporting functions of these software programs. ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________