Whether you’re starting fresh or eyeing growth, your financial foundations are what power your plans. But before you start getting strategic with your accounts, you have an important question to answer: outsourced or in-house accounting?
This isn’t a trick question, and there’s no objectively right or wrong answer. The way you approach your money management should be based purely on what’s right for your unique business – taking into account cost, control, scalability, expertise, and security.
Get to know the pros and cons of each approach with this quick guide, so you can get a better picture of what mix is right for your organisation.
In-house accounting
This is where a company manages its accounts and finances using its own internal accounting employee(s), rather than an external service. Nobody knows your business like your own staff, but you need to fund an individual or team that is qualified to handle bookkeeping, payroll, financial reporting, tax preparation, growth strategy and more. And that can come at a cost…
Pros:
- Direct control – You have immediate access to your accounting team and can monitor tasks closely.
- Company-specific knowledge – In-house accountants become deeply familiar with your operations, culture, and specific needs.
- Faster internal communication – An employee can more easily coordinate with other departments for real-time decisions.
- Customisation – You may find it easier to tailor processes, software, and reporting methods to your exact needs.
Cons:
- Higher costs – Salaries, benefits, training, software, and office space add up.
- Hiring challenges – Recruiting skilled professionals can be time-consuming and competitive.
- Limited expertise – Smaller teams may not have the same breadth of knowledge or specialisation as a firm.
- Scalability issues – As your business grows, scaling your team can be expensive and slow.
Outsourced accounting
This is where you engage an external firm or independent professional to handle some or all of your accounting and financial tasks. Although not a member of your immediate team, an outside expert can sometimes bring fresh thinking to help your business thrive. And as well as completing general tasks, external accountants can often offer strategic analysis.
Pros:
- Cost-effective – This route is typically cheaper than hiring full-time employees, especially for small or medium businesses.
- Access to experts – Outsourced accountants have diverse experience and updated knowledge of regulations and compliance.
- Scalability – You can easily scale services up or down based on business needs.
- Technology and tools – External firms often use the latest accounting software and best practices.
- Reduced overhead – There’s no need to manage HR, training, or infrastructure for accounting.
Cons:
- Less control – An external accountant will have limited visibility into day-to-day operations and there may be potential time lags in communication.
- Security concerns – Sharing sensitive financial data requires strong security protocols and trust.
- Generic solutions – Some firms use one-size-fits-all methods that may not fit your unique business model.
- Time zone/language barriers – If offshored, there may be coordination issues.
What’s right for your business?
For larger organisations with a bigger budget, complex operations and high sensitivity to data control, in-house accounting may be preferable. But for small, medium and rapidly growing businesses, the agility and strategic edge of an outsourced accountant can keep your operations lean while providing invaluable expertise to help you level up.
Nabarro Poole – secure, flexible and tailored to need
Our approach to accounting goes beyond transactions – getting to the heart of your short- and long-term goals as a business. We’ll ensure your core accounting tasks are taken care of while helping you strategise for the future. From tailored accounts advice and forecasting to identifying unique tax opportunities for you to take advantage of, we’ll flex our services to fit your needs.
Contact our friendly team to chat about what your business needs to perform.
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