Tips for hiring an awesome, honest accountant

One place where your company is the most vulnerable to loss and fraud is in the accounting and bookkeeping department.A dishonest accountant can pilfer a good proportion of your profits before you will notice it.A bad (but honest) accountant can lose you money on taxes and by making costly mistakes.

How can you go about hiring an accountant that will be both awesome and honest?Here are a couple of suggestions that might help you in this endeavor.

Use several interviewers-when it is time to hire an accountant don't trust your own judgment when it comes to the interview.By using several interviewers, you can get a group opinion about the candidates.The more opinions you can get, the better off you will be in the long run.Talk about each candidate with your interviewing team and listen carefully to all of the feedback.Hire someone that the whole team feels good about.

Check references-once you have narrowed down the candidate list through interviews, call all the references and get firsthand information on each candidate.There is some information that a previous employer cannot reveal, but you can ask pointed questions about the performance and ability of the candidate.Find out as much as you can about both the nature of the job and the general attitude about the candidate personally.

Make a good match-there may be an honest, personable accountant out there who is just not going to fit well into your company.Make sure that the person you hire has had experience in a business that is a good match for your business.Try to find someone that has experience with the same size of business and with the same basic business structure.If you do international business, make sure they have international experience.If you are non-profit, make sure they have non-profit experience.You want someone who can walk into your company and get to work.Not someone who will have to learn the ropes as they go.

Get referrals-the best way to find someone who is awesome and honest is to find someone that has proved themselves to be awesome and honest.Word-of-mouth is as valuable in hiring an accountant as it is in most other business related ventures.A good reputation is much harder to achieve than a business degree.When you get to the point of hiring an accountant, start asking around.See if any of your associates know of a great accountant that might be on the market.If someone is really good, you might consider recruiting them from another company.

Groom your own accountant-one good way to ensure that you end up with an honest accountant who will do a great job is to educate someone currently in your company.If you are a small but growing company, consider having your employees grow with you.If you have a terrific sales person who your trust, consider helping that person complete a business degree.Some of the most loyal employees are loyal because their companies paid them to go to school and provided upward mobility.Let your young employees know that there is a future for them in your company, in accounting and other professional positions.

Decide if you need a CPA-CPAs are highly trained accountants.Other financial advisors don't have CPA degrees and will not cost as much per hour.For tax purposes, you will need a CPA, for day-to-day finances you may do just as well with a less educated financial advisor.