Why Your Partner Shouldn’t Be Your Bookkeeper
Your family aren’t your built-in business support service.
Before we dive into this potentially controversial topic, we should clarify.
If your partner IS a bookkeeper or accountant by trade AND they are totally willing and eager to take on your business finances, then by all means, they should go ahead.
But we’ll call out the elephant in the room: tradespeople, particularly one-man bands or those operating very small businesses, have a bad habit of turning responsibility for keeping their books in order over to the nearest trustworthy loved one: their partner, parent, or other family member.
In reality, that’s not usually the best idea. Let us tell you why!
1. They probably don’t have the experience or skills.
And that’s no shade to your wife, husband, girlfriend, boyfriend, or even your mum. Bookkeeping is not the menial task that some people believe it to be, even with handy tools like Xero. While dearly beloved may be able to do the basics of collecting and filing receipts and recording transactions, finer details will likely be missed.
Bookkeeping is an actual job, one that requires experience to do well. And it’s so important to have everything squared away properly—so while your fiancée might do the best they possibly can, mistakes and omissions will be made.
2. They probably don’t want to.
Look, your boyfriend loves you. Your wife loves you. Whoever it is, they probably love you and might take on the task of keeping your books for solely that reason.
But ask yourself honestly whether they want to—and whether they actually have time to. If they aren’t working and have plenty of time to dedicate to the task (including figuring out how to do it well), that’s great. In that case, there should be some kind of formal arrangement that involves payment or part ownership of the company, depending on the situation.
3. It can be hard to let go
Consider this situation: your business is growing bigger and bigger, and you think it’s getting past the point where your husband can deal with the finances on his one day off a week. So you mention that you might pay someone to do it properly.
Will they feel threatened or unwanted? Will they have trouble relinquishing control? Will they have difficulty explaining their systems to someone and therefore not want to bother? The answer may be no, but these are valid concerns and can cause awkward conversations. Which brings us to the next point…
4. Mixing business and family can be tricky
The way you communicate with an employee or contractor is different to how you communicate with your wife. There are different boundaries involved in those relationships, and decisions are made in very different ways.
Having someone close to you take control of such a crucial part of your business can work well, or it can cause issues in both the business and the relationship. Discussions around payment and “who exactly owns the business?” should always be had if you’re entering into this kind of agreement. Put it in writing.
“She’ll be right” is not the road you want to go down, because at some point she may not be.
5. They may not have industry-specific knowledge
Financial details like subsidies and tax requirements can be very specific to your industry. And if your mum is not a part of that world, she may struggle. A bookkeeper with experience in your industry is an invaluable asset and well worth the investment for the amount of time and hassle saved.
It might not be the best idea to have your loved one as your bookkeeper—but if you need one, you know where to go! Released has all the experience and skills on tap to keep the books for tradies and service businesses. We can ensure that all of your finances are in order, making for a smooth end of financial year every March and peace of mind all year round.
In addition, our team of VAs can provide administrative services of many kinds, customer communications, digital marketing and social media management, and more. We are a one-stop business support service shop for small businesses. Get in touch to chat about how we could work together.
