What are the duties of a bookkeeper?
The core duties of a bookkeeper revolve around meticulously recording, organizing, and maintaining a company’s day-to-day financial transactions. They are the financial historians of a business, ensuring the foundational data is accurate, complete, and ready for analysis by an Bookkeeping Services Knoxville.
Daily & Transactional Duties
These are the routine, high-volume tasks that keep a business’s financial engine running smoothly:
Recording Financial Transactions: This is the primary duty. The bookkeeper enters all sales, purchases, receipts, and payments into the General Ledger using the double-entry bookkeeping system (recording both a debit and a credit for every transaction).
Processing Invoices and Bills: Managing the flow of money into and out of the company:
Accounts Payable (AP): Recording and paying bills owed to suppliers and vendors on time.
Accounts Receivable (AR): Preparing and sending invoices to customers and diligently tracking and following up on outstanding payments.
Handling Payroll: Calculating employee wages, processing tax withholdings and deductions, and ensuring timely payment of salaries and related payroll taxes to government agencies.
Monthly & Reconciliation Duties
Bookkeepers perform these tasks regularly to verify the accuracy of the records and prepare the books for financial reporting:
Bank Reconciliation: Comparing the company’s internal financial records (the ledger) with the bank statements to ensure the balances match. This process is crucial for catching errors, missed transactions, or fraudulent activity.
Maintaining the General Ledger: Systematically posting all journal entries to the proper accounts (Cash, Revenue, Expense, etc.) and confirming that the total of all debits equals the total of all credits, often by preparing a Trial Balance.
Managing Inventory and Fixed Assets: Tracking the value of unsold inventory and calculating the monthly depreciation of long-term assets like equipment or vehicles.
Reporting and Compliance Duties
While an accountant usually performs high-level tax strategy, a bookkeeper provides the necessary groundwork:
Generating Basic Financial Reports: Preparing fundamental reports like the Income Statement (Profit & Loss) and Balance Sheet to give management a snapshot of the company’s financial status.
Tax Preparation Support: Organizing and compiling all necessary financial records, receipts, and summarized data to prepare the company’s files for the accountant or tax professional.
Ensuring Compliance: Making sure all Bookkeeping and Accounting Services Knoxville practices adhere to local, state, and federal reporting requirements to minimize legal and tax risks.