It’s Okay to Delegate your Accounting Services

The Harvard Business Review first published the article, Who’s Got The Monkey, in 1974. It’s still on the HBR website after all these decades because the topic remains relevant? The article talks about monkeys, but what it’s really discussing is delegation. For most small business owners, delegation is a far hairier problem than cute little monkeys.

Every time the manager in the story passes a monkey (a task) off to an employee, the employee brings it back with a question only the boss can answer. The manager needs time to consider the question, so the employee walks away monkey-free and the boss has another monkey on his back.

The boss’s monkeys begin to add up as other employees use the same tactic. While the employees have lots of free time, they leave the boss with a lot of monkeys to care for. The boss doesn’t like having all those monkeys on his back, but he’s just not delegation savvy.

Delegation is a hairy issue

Does this sound at all like your business style? You assign tasks to employees or subcontractors but you continue to work on them because you have all the answers. Or perhaps you never assign certain tasks to anyone else because … well, you have all the answers.

Delegation is especially important when it comes to time-intensive tasks like bookkeeping. You might be able to maintain your books better than anyone else but the DIY approach isn’t always the best way to go when you’re trying to run a business. When you have easy economical access to accounting services professionals, delegation is usually your best option.

Bosses are often delegation-challenged

The Small Business Association Readiness Quiz has 25 simple questions for businesses owners considering entrepreneurship. Under Skills and Experience, it asks if you think you can be …comfortable hiring, disciplining, and delegating tasks to employees. If you answer this question No, you probably stay far busier than you should.

Some people don’t want to let go of their monkeys

Delegation is a critical management skill. It’s the reason you hire employees or subcontract services instead of doing everything yourself. Delegation allows you to hand off tasks to others while you concentrate on the big picture. Unfortunately, many bosses don’t delegate very well.

At Goode Bookkeeping and Consulting, we’re particularly interested in the reasons why you do your own bookkeeping instead of delegating it to an accounting services professional. We understand that you may have a list of valid reasons.

1. You like playing with numbers.

Some small business owners like to handle their own accounting services. They want to know how much money they’re making and what expenses they’re paying. They love watching their cash flow.

2. You want to make sure it’s done right.

Although most business owners won’t say it, some believe they’re the only ones who can perform their company’s accounting services the right way.

3. You don’t want to lose control

Some bosses don’t want to hire accounting services professionals because they like the feeling of being in control.

4. You don’t trust anyone else.

When you’re dealing with money (and monkeys), trust is always an issue.

What’s your reason for not delegating your acocunting services?

When you decide to get a few of those monkeys off your back, Good Bookkeeping’s trusted accounting services professionals will perform your bookkeeping tasks the way you would if you had enough time.