RA Business Advisors

Technology

Tips to outsource work for small businesses

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As a small business owner, you already have so much work. Trying to do everything on your own can be overwhelming. It also prevents you from spending your precious time doing more valuable work that can better grow your business.  

To solve this problem, you can consider outsourcing, or giving your work to someone else outside of your main business. Outsourcing can bring many benefits to your business: cut costs, increase efficiency, reduce risks, speed up processes, etc. Read on for some tips to outsource work while keeping quality work.  

First, understand why you want to outsource work  

Why do you want to outsource work? To save money, add value for clients, gain expertise, help your business grow or simply convenience?  

Having a clear motivation and a goal is helpful to keep track of the quality and measure success.  

Second, identify tasks you’re not good at  

If you spend too much time doing something that you do not excel at, finding an expert to do it would save you a lot of time.   

Additionally, an expert would do the job well, so they will likely bring positive results. In other words, you don’t have to do it or allocate it to an employee and worrying about messing up.  

You will also be able to do the tasks with an economy of scale. For example, if you need help with building a website, you can hire a web agency to help design, build and optimise the website. This will be much more cost-efficient than hiring a new full-time employee or a team on a part-time basis that have all the skills you need to build a website.  

Third, choose the right service provider  

Whether you are looking for someone to complete one job or for a long period, you should handle the hiring process the same way you do for a permanent employee.  

To ensure you get a good quality of work, look for companies or contractors that are highly rated. You should look at their previous experience and achievements, work portfolio/samples, case studies and ratings.   

You should require a paid test project from at least three people/companies. It can be expensive to pay people just for a test, but you will be able to know if they can handle your project before trusting them with real, important work.  

Finally, interview them. If you can, do a face-to-face meeting with them, or conduct a video chat if you can’t. This will help you get to know them individually, make sure you get along and help with a better working relationship.  

Communicate, communicate, communicate  

Now that you’ve chosen the right contractor, you will need to make sure they are aligned with your goals. Communicating regularly is super important to make sure that the contractor is on the right track.   

When the contractor starts the job, you should communicate your expectations and the steps included in the job.   

You should also ask them to update you frequently about the work process. If they don’t do this, follow up.  

Providing detailed feedback would also be effective to ensure that the work is going in the right direction.  

What about data security?  

You will have to give the contractor access to the data that they need. This means that they may need to access to your IT system and confidential data.   

To prevent data theft, you should put necessary security measures and review their compliance certificates in handling client data if they have any.   

You should only provide the contractor with the absolute minimum data necessary for the provider to do the work.  

Conclusion  

Outsourcing work is a good solution to help you get more done in less time. If you prepare well, do research and use the right techniques, outsourcing work will be beneficial for you and your company.  

NEXT STEPS:  

If you need help, don’t hesitate to contact us! Give us a call or book a consultation on 07 3367 0852.   

You can also check out some of our articles:         

What the 2020 Federal Budget means for you

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Xero Document Packs are here for easy, quick and secure e-signing  

Tips to advertise your small business for free    

 

Xero Document Packs are here for easy, quick and secure e-signing

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Xero Document Packs is an electronic signing application using Adobe Sign for all documents that need to be signed. With this great tool, you can sign documents online without the hassle of printing, signing, and sending. Our team at RA Business Advisors uses Xero Document Packs and we think that it is super easy and quick to use this tool. Read on to know more! 

We combine tax returns from Xero Tax, reports from our clients’ Xero organization, and PDFs that we upload. Then we add any extra signature lines, upload the document pack to a secure online portal and invite clients to log in and sign using Xero Sign powered by Adobe Sign. 

Why is it useful? 

1, Improve efficiency 

You can just log in and sign with Xero Sign powered by Adobe Sign. No need to print, sign, send and file documents.  

2, Safe and secure 

Documents that need to be signed are stored in a secure Xero portal. Adobe Sign securely stores the signed tax return and the e-sign audit trail. You can also access a copy from Xero Tax anytime. Did we mention that Adobe Sign is the best-in-class provider, with over 40 million users of e-sign services? 

3, Track who’s signing 

All signing events are tracked and IP addresses are recorded in a detailed audit log. Xero also verifies who’s signing with their email ID. 

4, Nothing new to install 

E-sign works seamlessly within Xero Tax, so there’s nothing to install and our clients can access it from anywhere. 

Sounds good, so how do I sign and authorise a document? 

A, To authorise an e-signature request you’ve been sent: 

1, Click Review Documents from the email.

2, Log into the Xero Portal: 

  • If you’re an existing Xero user, trialist, or have used the Xero Portal before, log in using your existing email address and password. 
  • If you’re not a Xero user, you’ll need to enter a password and your phone number, indicate you accept the terms of use and click Activate your account.

3, Click Review to open each document you’ve been asked to sign. If you have more than one document to sign, you’ll see a list. 

4, After you have confirmed all document details are correct, click Start. 

5, Click in the Click here to sign field to open the declaration options. You can type or draw your signature, or use an image or your mobile to sign. Click Apply to confirm the signature. The date field will pre-populate with today’s date. 

6, If your signature is required in multiple locations, click Next to jump to the next declaration. 

7, When all declarations have been completed, click Click to Sign to complete the e-sign process. 

Or check out this page for a step-by-step video. 

B, To view the audit report of the e-signed document: 

You can download your signed document at any time from the Xero Portal, using the link in the request email. This will show you the audit trail of the signed document. The report is a full audit history including the IP address of the signer, dates and times of each action. 

1, Log in to the Xero Portal using the link from the request email or by logging in to https://portal.xero.com/

2, Click Download for the signed document you want to view. 

3, Open the PDF and go to the declaration or to where your signature is. 

4, Click on the link under your signature, to open the audit report for that return. 

5, Click View Audit Report. You can also type in the transaction number for another report. 

C, Decline a request to e-sign a tax return 

1, Click Review Documents from the email. 

2, Log into the Xero Portal: 

  • If you’re an existing Xero user, trialist or have used the Xero Portal before, log in using your existing email address and password. 
  • If you’re not a Xero user, you’ll need to enter a password and your phone number, indicate you accept the terms of use, and click Activate your account. 

3, Click Review to open each document you’ve been asked to sign. If you have more than one document to sign, you’ll see a list. 

4, From the return, click Options, then select I will not e-sign. 

5, Enter the reason for declining. 

6, Click Decline. 

A decline notice will be sent to your advisor. 

How secure is it? 

Adobe Sign e-sign services comply with industry-accepted standards and certifications. Adobe Sign stores all customer data in geographically dispersed data centers with state-of-the-art environmental and data security measures. Read more about Adobe Sign security.

 

NEXT STEPS:    

If you need help, don’t hesitate to contact us! Give us a call or book a consultation on 07 3367 0852. 

You can also check out some of our latest articles:       

Taxi travel exemption now includes travel in ride-sourcing vehicles 

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Withdrawing super early and recontributing your super can result in consequences    

Tips to advertise your small business for free    

How Strong Is Cloud Security?

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Data Security

All SMEs including accounting firms have a common issue: security, with ransomware, data breaches, employee theft and scam artists becoming an increasing issue for all companies. Unfortunately, the security market is becoming more convoluted with merchants who only care about sales, as well as poorly made “silver bullets.” How do we keep our firms secure amongst all the noise? We simply have to seek out experts and keep ourselves informed.

One of the biggest debates when it comes to considering your data security is what do you use to share data? How do you share access to apps? Well, as Ping’s senior technical architect Sarah Squire explains

“the two best practices are to encrypt data when it is stored and when it is transferred. When transferring to a client, the client needs a private encryption key on their computer to decrypt the file.”

What is identity management and why do I need it?

Identity management may be a foreign concept to many of us, but this is another integral practice for securing your firm. Employing identity management means setting up identities for each member of a firm and giving them separate permissions for logging into your software.

A common solution to the use of identity management is a password manager, either locally or through the cloud. However, as Sarah Squire states “(Password managers are inferior) because a password manager is controlled by employees. You could have an employee who is a bad actor and you need to log them out of all their apps at once.”

App Stacks – The Next Step For Business Optimisation

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The future of business is digital.  This might sound like something you would hear from someone in the 90’s, but digital is taking on a whole new meaning. The world of apps long relegated to games and memes on iTunes has moved into the world of business. The positive effects on your business from having an ideal app stack are boundless. Research from Xero shows small businesses using apps grow net profit 30% faster.  

Hang on, what is an app stack? 

App stack is the name given to the family of apps you have working for your business. In the digital ecosystem it’s important to eliminate clutter. You need to make sure your app stack is set up to work efficiently for your business. When you have the ideal stack you are going to see administrative work eliminated, time saved and a foundation for success built.  

What are the ideal apps for small businesses? 

Xero – Xero is our bread and butter here at RA Business Advisors, but it’s for good reason. Xero is where everything starts when it comes to running your small business. All the apps that follow in your stack will most likely already work perfectly with Xero considering the Xero app marketplace already has over 700 apps integrated.  

Google Docs – Well-known by everyone but still an integral part of any small business, Google Docs is the go-to word processing software for those looking to save money.  

ReceiptBank – ReceiptBank allows you to scan receipts directly into Xero, simply take a photo with your phone and ReceiptBank will scan for important information and produce a handy version in Xero instantly. 

Hubdoc – ReceiptBank is the go-to app for your receipts but what about banks and online vendor receipts you have to fetch? That is where Hubdoc comes in, automatically fetching statements, bills and receipts from more than 700 banks and online vendors. 

WorkflowMAX – WorkflowMAX is exactly what the name suggests, a solution for maximising your workflow. Through WorkflowMAX you can push sales invoices to Xero, get payment confirmation, send invoices and view profitability all through one place.  

Deputy – Deputy is the ultimate employee management tool, simplifying rosters, timesheets and every aspect of payroll and time billing – all integrated with Xero. All in 1 click! 

If you want to take the next step and get a tailored app stack for your business which will work towards your goals, get in contact with us today on 07 3367 0852.

How Are You Making Sure Your Mobile Phone Data Is Safe?

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Recently, the new shiny iPhone XS and XR entered the market.Is Your Phone Data Safe

For all the Apple lovers out there, this might mean being the first to wrap your hands around the irresistibly smooth all-glass design, or finally upgrading your old glitchy iPhone to the new model.

If this is you, I’m guessing you’re focused on the opportunity to start afresh, buy a new case, clear all those apps cluttering your current device, and start playing with its new features. Right?

But have you considered the security aspects?

According to online security software vendor, Norton, the scary reality is that 978 million people in 20 countries were affected by cybercrime in 2017. In New Zealand and Australia, one in four small businesses experienced a cyber-attack or hacking attempt.

“It’s an unfortunate fact that the impact of cybercrime is a reality for all businesses,” Xero Head of Security, Paul Macpherson, said at the recent Xerocon conference in Brisbane. “We continually remind all of our customers – small businesses, accountants and bookkeepers – to take precautions to keep their data safe from hackers.”

Sure, you’ll be eager to try the cool Face ID feature and of course you wouldn’t dream of breaking your shiny new phone. But are you mindful of how you’ll keep its contents safe too?

Obtaining a new phone is the perfect opportunity to get everything set up correctly right from the start. And if you don’t plan to upgrade your mobile phone, there’s no time like the present to make changes.

Are you too relaxed with your data security?

While many of us are looking for convenience of easy-to-find or easy-to-remember passwords, in reality you’re making yourself vulnerable to digital identity theft.

Xero Head of Industry, Matthew Prouse, says “the biggest mistake people make is keep highly confidential information in their phone, such as in ‘Notes’ or disguised as a contact. You’re walking around with a pocket of very sensitive data.”

Prouse recommends that you do not –

·         Add passwords and pin codes to the ‘Notes’ app

·         Try to disguise passwords, bank account numbers or your tax file number as phone contacts

·         Choose obvious passwords (such as your date of birth or cat’s name) that even your kids can work out

·         Replicate the same codes everywhere (such as your bank account pin)

·         Allow your computer or phone to automatically save passwords

·         Hand over old mobile phones to your kids without clearing all sensitive data first

Think about the worst case scenario: your phone gets stolen. For many of us, this doesn’t just mean losing a device. It also means losing passwords. And your digital identity.

Every day, there are reports of email accounts being hacked, phishing emails being sent with the aim of collecting credit card details and bank account numbers, and credentials stolen from one website and then used against other sites to see if username and passwords have been replicated.

Macpherson says over 80% of breaches occur via stolen or weak passwords, with email as the primary method of attack. So it’s highly important to keep sensitive employee and customer data safe via modern security practices, especially while running a sustainable and trusted modern business.

How can I improve my phone security?

Now is the time to brush up on your security awareness.

Prouse recommends utilising apps such as LastPass and Google Authenticator for encryption and a second layer of security for important business and personal websites. However, you can’t just download them and consider yourself completely covered.

“As a business owner, your smartphone itself needs to be safe and secure too,” says Prouse. “Make sure there is a fingerprint scanner, facial recognition, and good password security.”

And when it comes to passwords, Prouse suggests thinking outside the box.

“You might like to check out Stay Smart Online for some good tips and policies around passwords. Don’t just use your date of birth, postcode, or banking pin numbers. Pick random numbers; the authorisation apps will remember them for you.”

It’s also key to remember that if you have an existing authenticator app setup on your old phone, you need to set it up on your new device before disposing of your old one.

So if you’re getting your hands on the new iPhone X, take some time to set up the security as a priority. Because, admit it, downloading Instagram was otherwise first on your list!

Utilising the Xero App Marketplace to Save You Time

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Time saving for small business has always been the focus of Xero, with over 700 apps on the marketplace to make Xero save you even more time. With so many apps it can be overwhelming, but there is no need to worry about which ones are best for your business as each app is reviewed by users – no room for bias! 

Xero app marketplace

Research has shown small and medium businesses who use cloud apps grow revenue 30% faster!

There are four key areas that Xero apps help businesses exceed in 

  • Project visibility and delivery: Achieve real-time views of projects that give you meaningful insight into how work will be completed and the impact on bottom line. 
  • Managing cash flow: Make sure your cash flow is healthy by realising revenue and settling bills efficiently 
  • Improve customer relationships: Generate new business through acquiring new clients as well as growing existing client revenue 
  • Managing people: Improve your processes to attract, retain and develop the right staff 

What are the best apps on Xero?

Let’s take a look at a restaurant business with a single storefront for example.

All of their accounting and payroll are processed through Xero, they also use apps to streamline point-of-sale, invoicing, and rostering.  

Vend

Vend provides a database of products which can be used to view profitability against wages and other expenses, opportunities to see sales, payments and posted stock orders as well as plenty of tools to analyse loyalty programs.  

Receipt Bank provides a one-stop automated solution for all supplier invoices to be deposited. Using your mobile device you can easily upload invoices through simply taking a photo. Receipt Bank automatically scans for GST and all other relevant information. This is all automatically uploaded to the cloud and transferred Receipt Bankinto Xero.

Deputy provides rostering software that all employees can easily use for time-sheets as well as processing leave and issuing rosters. Employees automatically receive messages whenever there is a roster change or associated changes. This app also allows you to easily juggle rosters in the case of an absent employee or spur-of-the-moment sick leave.  

You don’t need to worry about juggling between apps as all of these are integrated into Xero. Even better, these are all scalable, a store expanding to multiple stores can easily use Deputy to manage multiple stores, for example. 

But what if you don’t have a physical store?  

If you are thinking that maybe Xero might not be for you as you don’t have a retail business, there’s still value for you if you are operating a trade business for example.  

Through apps such as Tradify, tradies can manage jobs across multiple vehicles and process each job quickly through Xero. Through Tradify, a trade business owner can link their vehicles to employees, assign jobs, process billing for each vehicle and process payments for their employees – all through one app. Business owners can view all of this information through Xero at the end of the day, automating the things you don’t want to do and providing information you want all in one place.

How do I set this up? 

If you are already an avid Xero user, jump on the app marketplace and have a look at the highest rated apps. Otherwise, if you want to take the guesswork out of integrating apps – give us a call! We understand the importance of time and can set up your business with Xero and associated apps using the method that suits you best. We pride ourselves on providing you with knowledge and advice to incorporate Xero into your daily life without any hassle. Apps such as Tradify offer automation opportunities within Xero that truly change how you work, book a meeting with us now and see which apps would benefit your business!

Xero Up Their Game With Acquisition of Hubdoc

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Xero acquires HubdocXero’s vision for the workplace is focused on providing code-free accounting, and the platform has taken huge steps towards this with the acquisition of Hubdoc. Hubdoc is an automated data capture solution for real-time financial data that verifies and organises data from over 700 financial institutions.

With this acquisition, Xero adds streamlined data collection and classification to its arsenal, complimenting Xero’s “financial web” strategy. Integration between the two services is currently surface-level, but deeper integration is promised for the future. This acquisition follows the recent partnership between Xero and Gusto to deliver full-service payroll. Xero and Hubdoc are currently dedicated to further enhancing the AI and machine learning features of Xero.

For businesses this development is very exciting, as cloud-based accounting solutions continue to change the face of accounting, Xero has been a frontrunner. With this acquisition, the Xero platform continues to increase in ease and accessibility, enabling businesses to offload bookkeeping completely as all documents are available in one central location.

Collaboration is one of the biggest benefits of using Xero; the ecosystem of the platform allows users to pick and choose from endless tools to suit their needs. Whether you are doing your own accounting, or an accountant delivering value to your clients, the Xero marketplace has tools for everyone. At RA Business Advisors we are passionate about small businesses utilising Xero; if you would like to learn more about how Xero and Hubdoc could benefit your business, get in contact with us today!

Mid-Market to See Xero and Intuit Enter Arena

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Xero and Intuit to enter mid-marketAs the roll-out of Single-Touch Payroll sweeps across Australian businesses, MYOB Premier have decided against adding relevant services to their platform. This has given Xero and Intuit incentive to enter the mid-market, but is it worth your time?

Hang on, what is the mid-market?

The mid-market consists of the 50,000+ businesses in Australia with more than 20 but less than 200 staff. As well as more than $3 million turnover and three or more users of the core business system. This is a market currently dominated by MYOB, but soon to be contested by Xero and Intuit.

Why would I want to use Xero or Intuit anyway?

These platforms have been game changers for small businesses, offering a cloud-based platform which is constantly updating to include support for the future. Technologies such as machine learning, bank feeds, as well as well optimised user interface are huge selling points of Xero. However, to many these options are only available to small businesses with Xero or corporate level businesses with Workday. This is where the mid-market jump for Xero and Intuit comes into play.

Why isn’t the mid-market using these platforms now?

One of the main reasons cloud software hasn’t penetrated the mid-market is because of fear and cost of change. The majority of companies using MYOB do so because they doubt smaller software can perform, and fear the cost of corporate platforms. But this is not the case, as more businesses are realising Xero can match and exceed the performance of MYOB, as well as offering more features at a lower price point.

How Can Accountants Use Blockchain To Step Up Their Game?

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The buzz is continuing to grow across the business world for Blockchain, and we have written about it in the past, but how can accountants use Blockchain to streamline their work?

Wait, how does Blockchain work again?

Put simply, Blockchain removes the need for storing your own transaction records through creating an audit trail on “blocks”. These blocks are public and can be accessed/maintained by all parties involved in a transaction. The audit trail of a transaction builds as more information is added, blocks are encrypted to ensure privacy breaches don’t occur. Once a block is verified and added to the Blockchain. These can’t be manipulated by others but can be corrected by those involved.

Isn’t Blockchain only useful for cryptocurrency?

Cryptocurrency brought this technology into the zeitgeist, but these applications are just breadcrumbs of what Blockchain is capable of. The motivation for the use of this technology is secure and easy exchange of information between parties. These are very important capabilities when exchanging Cryptocurrency, but also useful for accounting and bookkeeping.

Why should I care about Blockchain?

Reports from the World Economic Forum suggest 10% of global GDP will be stored on this technology by 2025. Universities are offering courses in Blockchain, the next generation of accountants will be masters before they even enter the workforce. To put it simply, Blockchain is here to stay and is growing in importance.

How is this going to change accounting?

Because transaction information is entered into “blocks” and securely stored, there is no need for parties to keep their own records of transactions. However, there may become a triple-entry system, where transactions would be entered into both the Blockchain and each party’s ledgers.

Blockchain eliminates the need for auditors to verify transactions, this means accountants will no longer have to reconcile and process transactions as parties can record and share information independently. Standardisation also allows auditors to verify large portions of data automatically, saving time and costs for audits. This marks a shift in the workflow of accountants, through shortening the process of verifying information, this opens up other opportunities.

This technology can be used to improve the integrity of electronic files easily through generating a hash string of a file. Hash strings are electronic fingerprints of files which can be compared once timestamped into a file.

Hashing blockchain

What changes are we seeing right now?

Robert Massey discussed the boom of Cryptocurrency business for accountants at the Accounting and Finance Show. As governments around the world develop better tax guidelines and recognition for Cryptocurrency, tax professionals will see more business.

Massey also discussed the idea of ‘smart contracts’ using Blockchain to embed contract details into third-party sources. For example, a contract where an invoice will pay for itself after checking delivered goods are received based on specifications and presence of funds in a company’s account. At the moment, ‘smart contract’ technology is being used in the legal industry, but the applications are wide spreading.

 

There is a lot of business in Blockchain, start to develop your knowledge now so you don’t get left behind

Blockchain spending

Artificial Intelligence – The Future of Finance

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Artificial Intelligence – The Future of Finance

If someone said the letters AI to you 20 years ago, you would think they were insane. The prospect of artificial intelligence never seemed real but since the technology era really took off, AI is a reality, not just a dream. Each and every day we are subject to artificial intelligence, from auto-correct on phones and computers to Siri and Google assistant on your smartphones.

The corporate giants are investing heavily in AI because they know it’s not the future anymore, it’s the present. AI provides so many possibilities that us mere mortals never thought possible, that’s why our absolute favorite corporation – Xero are investing heavily in this transformative technology. Unfortunately, as with all technology advancements, there are misunderstandings and massive concerns. Does Skynet ring a bell, anyone?

The Difference Between AI and Machine Learning

AI concept creator John McCarthy explains AI as: “every aspect of learning or any other feature of intelligence can in principle be so precisely described that a machine can be made to simulate it.” This definition moves away from the concept of ‘thinking machines’, as we’ve seen in the Blockbuster  ‘Terminator’. The definition of AI varies based on the goals corporations are trying to achieve.

Machine learning is a data analysis technique that teaches computers to learn from experience. Machine learning uses both supervised and unsupervised learning to predict future outputs and find patterns or structures within input data. Machines use learning algorithms to ‘learn’ information directly from data without relying on predetermined equations as models.

Google Assistant

Tech Mogul Google has always been the forerunner with technology, especially with the release of the small but powerful Google home. Google home utilises the intelligent and responsive google assistant that you can find on any 2016+ Android or Google smartphone. This tiny inexpensive gadget sits anywhere in your house or office and provides you with a whole myriad of features, including but not limited to: playing music, sending directions, providing weather and traffic updates.

Appointment Setter

Even though Google is absolutely obliterating the AI market with Google assistant and Google home, they are furthering this development even more. Enter stage right, the Google Duplex. What is Google duplex? Another step in the direction of advanced AI. Google Duplex is an appointment setter, not an online one mind you, but Google Duplex actually calls the restaurant or hairdresser that you want to book at.

The Backlash

Unfortunately, this new technological advancement has prompted concerns about the ‘fate of the human race.’ In a nutshell, people are worried that we are playing with fire and are about to get burnt. Some claim Duplex is not only strange but completely unethical whilst others are applauding Google for this massive feat. I don’t want to imagine how many man-hours went into accurate speech recognition. Those against the innovative technology said it was immoral for the robot not to identify itself prior to booking the appointment. Google has since given in to these demands and will avoid the assistant ‘deceiving’ humans when setting appointments by identifying itself as a robot to the recipient.

Will AI Affect the Way I Work?

Because of the second payments directive PSD2, significant changes are coming to the accounting industry (significantly good that is). Finally, the big banks won’t be allowed to hold onto user data, this vital information can now be shared (with user permission) to third parties. What does this mean exactly? Management accountants and business advisors will be able to utilise businesses’ banking and account records to accurately predict data and turn towards intelligent cashflow.