Small Business Checklist: 15 Accounting Tasks

     As the end of the year arrives, business owners should be thinking about their strategies for the upcoming year.  As your business grows from year to year it is important to track your finances to keep its growth successful and healthy!  Making a routine of tracking your finances can help you make more business savvy decisions when you have to make them, like where to cut costs or when to finally invest in that big money item.  Here's how to start making your accounting tasks part of your business routine.

Daily

1. Check cash position— Cash is the lifeblood of your company, keep it pumping so your business thrives.  Begin the day with an overlook of how much you have.  How much you expect in payments and how much you expect to spend is useful to keep in mind for the future as well.

Weekly

2. Record Transactions— Every one of them.

3. Document and file receipts— Best if scanned to a computer that sorts them automatically. Keep your statements, invoices and vendor files organized.

4. Review unpaid bills— Keep an “unpaid” folder to track of what you still owe.  If there are discounts to take advantage of for early payment and you have the cash on hand, do it.

5. Pay vendors— This is where technology becomes helpful.  Get reminders for upcoming payments due to avoid late fees, make automatic payments and keep copies of invoices.

6. Send invoices— Include payment terms (generally give a 30-day grace period).  If you don’t specify your due date, other businesses won’t prioritize paying you.

7. Review projected cash flow— So critical.  A realistic forecast of how much cash you need in the upcoming months will help you plan and maker better business decision on how to spend.

Monthly

8. Balance your checkbook.—  Reconcile your business' checking account.  It helps you discover inaccuracies and oversights by either you or the bank, so you can correct them quickly.

9. Review past due receivables— Separate “open” invoices with “overdue” ones.  Send outstanding reminders at the beginning of the month and to anyone else who owes money.  Keeping this column will help you determine what to send to collections or what to write off at the end of the year.

10. Review current monthly balance sheet vs. previous month— Determine whether or not there is significant up or down activity in managing your assets and liabilities.  Then set out to understand why.  Are you up because of increased sales or down because of unpaid invoices?  Determining the cause will light the way to resolving any problems.

Quarterly

11. Review payroll reports and make payments— You’ve been withholding income tax, social security, Medicare and disability taxes from your employee’s paychecks (usually semi-monthly).  The IRS and most states require quarterly estimated filing and payments.

12. Calculate estimated income tax and make payments— Review your year-to-date P&L statement to determine if your business is required to make estimated quarterly tax payments.  Your tax accountant can help you determine your status.

Annually

13. Review your inventory— Calculate the value of items not sold if your business has an inventory.  Write-down of inventory translates to tax deductions at year’s end.  Don’t pay additional taxes on unsellable inventory by overstating your inventory balance.

14. File taxes— Report the earnings of your full-time employees by filling out W-2 Forms.  Use 1099s for independent contractors you paid more than $600.  Mail out forms to your employees by the January 31 deadline.

15. Review and approve annual financial reports and tax returns— When it comes to filing taxes, accuracy is your responsibility.  Review annual reports carefully, if you've been keeping up all year, this won't prove too difficult.  

While this is by no means a comprehensive list of everything that pertains to your business, it is a guideline to hold your bookkeeping at bay throughout the year rather than the insurmountable chore playing "catch-up" can be.