Business Accounting

How a CPA Firm Can Help Form Your Business Plan

2018-01-09 | by Gene B. Reynolds, CPA

If you are like most business owners, you are constantly evaluating opportunities to improve or grow your company. What if I told you that working with a CPA firm is an important and strategic opportunity that you should consider in your business plan?

Warren Buffett, one of the most successful businessmen and investors in the world, once famously said about accounting: “You have to understand accounting and you have to understand the nuances of accounting. It’s the language of business…”

There are two important elements of what Mr. Buffett said that apply to how a CPA firm can help form a business plan for your company. The first element is accounting nuances. The second element is the language that connects accounting and business.

How Does the Language of Business Relate to Accounting?

Before examining the accounting nuances that are important for your business, you need to buy into the value of embedding accounting into your business plan.

Business owners often place accounting and business performance in completely separate buckets. The mentality is that “I need to sell my product or solution, track the productivity of my teams, and deliver great value for my customers. Where does accounting fit into my business processes?”

The key is that accounting is not a separate entity living on the sidelines of your business waiting to be called into the game. Unfortunately, many businesses keep accounting on the sidelines until the quarterly or annual review.

Successful business owners understand the importance of accounting strategies to enhance financial performance and work with CPAs to embed these strategies into their business plan. Contrary to popular belief, you do not need an accounting degree to understand this process! A CPA firm can work with you to identify opportunities that already exist in your company.

Once you get in a rhythm of using these techniques throughout your business, you’ll see the results in your financial performance. Then, you’ll understand why it’s so important to make accounting part of your business plan.

What Accounting Nuances Are Important for Your Business?

Once you commit to implementing accounting techniques in your business, you need to understand the nuances that apply to your industry.

Houston-area accounting firms such as Reynolds and Associates work with companies from a variety of industries. To capture the diversity of accounting nuances that are available to build into your business plan, here is a sample of three industries that our CPA firm works with. This illustrates how important a CPA is to all business specializations:

– Construction: The accounting process for a construction company is unique because of the complexity of projects across multiple locations. It highlights the importance of accurate job costing to ensure expenses are properly tracked, not only for financial reporting purposes but also to bid on future projects. Accurate tracking should be embedded into your business so that your team knows when a job is too high, too low, or just right to bid on.

– Health Care: Our firm works with a variety of medical practices that need to accurately track inventory, reconcile bank accounts, and produce financial reports. We also go beyond standard accounting services to look for areas to implement accounting strategies into the business. This ranges from reduction of risk to more efficient use of resources to turn a profit.

– Car Dealerships: Because there are multiple processes involved in selling a vehicle, Revenue Recognition is important for car dealers, as inaccurate reporting could affect the accuracy and reliability of financial reports. Our firm ensures that car dealerships are properly set up to track the life cycle of a vehicle sale. We also understand the nuances of the vehicle inventory to help dealers embed a more efficient process into their business plan that meets IRS requirements.

How Can Reynolds and Associates Support Your Business Plan?

At Reynolds and Associates, we take the time to understand your business, size, and industry. This helps us formulate a strategy to implement accounting techniques into your business plan.

Our CPA firm also continues to learn about the nuances of accounting in your industry while simultaneously supporting your business through our collaborative approach. Overall, we provide important accounting services for our clients and also find ways for your business to grow.

Contact our team today by phone, email, or our contact form to get started on leveraging our accounting expertise to form your business plan.

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