CPA’s time is valuable. Keeping track of it, especially during tax season, is paramount in order to see a healthy return on investment for months of tireless efforts. Fortunately time and billing software can help a CPA keep track of where his or her day goes.
“Time and billing software provides CPAs with information that supports preparation of federal, state, and local income and/or franchise tax returns - reducing return preparation time and the related fees for such services,” said Curt Finch, CEO of Journyx. “It facilitates the calculation and related accounting for labor costs that must be capitalized for tax purposes, labor costs associated with passive or otherwise separately reportable activities, labor cost components eligible for various tax credits, and payroll apportionment factors required for multistate tax filings.”
“With tax season being so busy it’s easy for things to slide,” said Terence Cummings, vice president, sales at Sage Software. “Especially when it comes to tracking time. A few minutes here or there might not seem like a big deal at the time. But if you do this a few times every day, think about how much time you’re not tracking and billing for by the end of tax season. Be sure you have a solid system in place to help you track all of your billable time.”
“The use of time and billing software provides you the ability to apply a configurable workflow that allows your organization to review and approve the final details before submission for compliance purposes,” said Kevin Sequeira, general manager at Tenrox.
Keeping track of time not only ensures you get paid but proper use of time and billing software also saves valuable minutes.
“It’s helpful to keep the time and billing system open all day during tax season,” said Tom Dawson, president of TPS Software. “Everyone is very busy and working the hardest that they do all year so requiring the extra step of opening the program to record either time spent or stage of the return is counterproductive. Always try to minimize the struggle to record. More will be recorded and the accuracy will be better if effort is kept to a minimum.”
“Excel and Pen/ Paper tracking systems create additional work for you and your staff, and a lot of non-billable hours,” said Shafat Qazi, CEO and founder of BQE Software. “You need a time billing software that completely automates your processes and offers intuitive, easy to use time/expense capture tools.”
Counting and managing time spent with various client tasks not only saves money but it finds the proverbial sweet spot in the revenue/expenditure matrix maximizing profit.
“By tracking your time worked against billed and collected amounts you can see which of your hourly and flat fee clients are profitable over the short and long term,” said Michael Lipps, managing director of business and litigation software solutions at LexisNexis. “Several time and billing software applications have custom reporting options built into the system which can be used to tailor a report to meet a client’s specific needs. This not only helps clients more easily digest the information that is being presented to them, but shows they are a valuable partner to you.”
“Invoicing your services at or close to the time they are provided will enhance cash flows and improve the likelihood that billing disputes are resolved in your favor,” said Fred Lindsley, president of ImagineTime.
Time and billing no longer simply helps a CPA keep track of time spent filing taxes and conducting research but it now can tie all tax processing efforts together for the practice.
“Get online now,” said Brian Saunders, CEO of BigTime. “If you’re thinking of a timesheet as just a history of time, or an invoice as just a vehicle for billing, then you’re missing the true power of cloud-based practice management. It’s more than just an online repository of timesheets, invoices and notes. Big data is on the verge of providing you with the practice management equivalent of “instant replay” (together with a virtual press-booth of data analysts).”
“Automate routine tasks to the greatest extent possible,” said Brett Owens, CEO and co-founder of Chrometa. “Think about the overhead tasks you spent the most time on in previous tax systems. Was it chasing down time entries? Billing customers? Making sure you got paid? There is now software that can automate each of these tasks for you. If one or more was something you spent too much time on previously, look for a product that will reduce your headaches and busywork.”
“As tax season approaches, timesheet data is often a critical source document for so many aspects of the year’s end,” said Chris Vandersluis, CEO of HMS Software. “You may need auditable task-based timesheet data for Research Tax Credits, Sarbanes-Oxley compliance if you are publicly traded, Defense Contract Audit Agency Compliance if you do any work for Homeland Security or numerous other scenarios. Auditable task-level timesheets opens the opportunity for many grant and subsidy programs that require you show how your firm spent its time. Even if you haven’t been gathering task-based timesheet data so far this year, starting now can show good faith that you intend to follow such a practice and that can be a huge factor should you face an audit in the spring.”
Time and billing software is an intricate part of a CPA’s practice. Such an important cog in the machine is worth all the time a CPA can give it.
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