Bookkeepers are good at thoroughly analyzing, storing, and recording your day-to-day transactions. That includes incomes, expenses, invoices, and basically every transaction that runs through your company. They also produce preliminary financial statements on a monthly basis, provide full back-office support, and reconcile bank statements at the end of the month. Basically, bookkeepers are trained to sniff out and zero in on even the tiniest transaction to make sure no financial data is left unattended.

CPA’s, on the other hand, delve into more analytic responsibilities, like planning a tax strategy at a federal, state, and local level. They also provide assistance during audits with the IRS. CPA’s look at finances from a consulting point of view, and they also make sure all bookkeeping has been done properly.

But, if you assign your CPA to do your bookkeeping, they probably wouldn’t do a very good job. It’s not that they’re not capable of tackling the assignment, it’s that bookkeeping is not what they do best. CPAs look at the bigger picture.

They use the data compiled by bookkeepers and utilize the information to craft a thorough analysis, offer valuable insights, and allow your business to enter the future on the right financial foot. Ideally,

CPA’s should be tackling higher-level activities that provide in-depth analysis and strategic recommendations regarding your financial plan.