A weakness that many starting businesses share is not being truly invested in their accounting team. Often, accounting teams are viewed as a necessary evil, a cost that must be dealt with, or as just a data processing department. This mindset, however, can seriously hinder the growth of your business. When business owners only think of accounting as overhead and focus more on minimizing expense than investing in their accounting team, the functionality of the accounting team suffers.
DISADVANTAGES OF A NON-TEAM ENVIRONMENT
When all parts of your business don’t work together as a team, there are many costs and disadvantages that can develop.
- ISOLATION. When any one department, such as accounting, becomes isolated from the rest of the business there is a greater chance that the department will begin operating more for its own benefit rather than the benefit of the business.
- STAFFING ISSUES. When teamwork is not a priority, you will see more disengaged employees, lower productivity and satisfaction, and higher turnover rates.
- LACK OF INFORMATION. Isolated departments tend to hoard information and, rather than share it freely, dole it out to a select few, which doesn't foster teamwork and stifles innovation and productivity.
- POOR DECISIONS. The shortage of information between departments will inevitably lead poor, uninformed decisions that could be costly to your business.
- INEFFICIENCIES. Efficient work cannot exist in an uncooperative work environment. Isolated departments that are mostly concerned with looking out for themselves and hoarding information will not make efficiency a priority.
- HIGHER EXPENSES. The above-mentioned poor decisions and lack of communication and hoarding of information will soon lead to costly mistakes that will be costly to the business.
- BUSINESS FAILURE. When left unchecked, an uncooperative, non-team-based work environment can easily lead to the kind of grave errors that will undo a business.
To prevent an uncooperative work environment, think of accounting as a team sport. Each member of the team has an important, specialized role and each team member must work in harmony to achieve a common goal. Most successful companies are those that have integrated their accounting team as a key part of the strategic planning process.
HOW A TEAM APPROACH CAN BENEFIT YOUR BUSINESS
Prioritizing a team approach to accounting will allow many other critical elements to fall into place that will benefit your business. Some of these benefits include:
- MORE ACCURATE DATA. With all departments working together and no one hoarding information, data can be shared and reported with greater accuracy.
- ACTIONABLE INFORMATION. Data will be produced faster which will allow for more timely decision-making. The allows the company to evaluate and take advantage of otherwise missed opportunities as well as minimize potential issues which can now be forecast with accurate data.
- INFORMED DECISIONS. More accurate, timely data means that the decisions made will be based on the best possible data. It will be easier to make the right decisions for the business.
- BETTER PLANNING. Planning for the future is much easier with accurate and timely data. Budgets, cash flow projections, and strategic planning all depend on information that is accurate and current. This translates into savings through better inventory management, reduced shrinkage, and more efficient buying.
- MORE EFFICIENT OPERATIONS. Departments that work as part of a team are always more efficient than isolated departments. Members of a team can hold each other accountable and help steer each other towards a common goal.
- BETTER MARGINS. Accurate and timely data can help you reduce costs, boost revenue, and run your business more capably. As a result, you see a difference in your bottom line.
- HIGHER MORALE. Happier employees are more productive and as your team cooperates with one another you will see a collective improvement in morale.
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