Accountants, are you considering outsourcing? Why not!

Historically, outsourcing has had a rather negative stigma in the accountancy industry, with many worried if they use services and their little secret gets out, it will ruin the practice's image.

What will people think? Will customers ever trust us again? Could people think we’re sloppy?

Of course, these worries are unjust, with outsourced accounting services, doing quite frankly, a fantastic job.

Well, in the last few years, we’ve noticed a shift in opinion, with many embracing outsourcing as a means to tackle the talent shortage.

In a recent survey, we found 47% of respondents are either using outsourcing or are considering it.

Great to see more and more firms openly adopting outsourcing, but these results mean something else: 34% weren’t interested, and 19% still don’t trust outsourcing.

Tackling the talent gap: why outsourcing needs to be more than a consideration

Let me guess, in recent times, you’ve struggled to fill vacancies and find candidates with the necessary skills.

This is the situation most UK firms are facing – recent studies found 49% of accountancy firms are struggling to meet growth targets due to internal resources.

Why? Well, in 2022, Accountancy Age reported a skills gap of 22%, and the ICAEW cited a 36% drop in the number of applicants year-on-year.

It’s harder than ever before to find the right people.

What options do you have? Paying a ridiculous amount to attract candidates isn’t feasible, but turning down more work and growth opportunities also isn’t ideal.

One word: outsourcing.

Offload your more time-consuming, admin-based tasks to an outsourcing service, freeing you and your people up to focus on more value-added work.

Not only does this approach help with growth and workloads, but it also makes you a more attractive employer as you’re able to offer staff greater fulfilment and more meaningful roles.

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What tasks should you outsource?

When it comes to determining which tasks you should outsource, simply remember these four factors.

You want work which is:

• Repetitive
• Time-consuming
• Repeatable
• Can be documented

It’s these tasks which make perfect candidates for outsourcing.

A helping hand is always useful – at IRIS, when you look to join our IRIS Outsourcing service, we start by reviewing your processes and offerings to help you understand what these tasks are in your practice.

Why choose IRIS Outsourcing?

Our dedicated outsourcing team has been operating for over 20 years and continues to grow.

We offer a pool of highly qualified and experienced accounting experts; our team possess a diverse skill set and in-depth industry knowledge, enabling them to handle even the most complex accounting tasks with precision and speed.

By tapping into IRIS Outsourcing's talent pool, firms can bridge the expertise gap and ensure the delivery of top-quality services.

Why UK accountants choose IRIS Outsourcing:

• All our accounting professionals are qualified and have at least five years’ accounting experience
• Clients have a dedicated CRO (client relationship officer) working with them
• We can provide accounting software for you, or work with any accounting software you have, including non-IRIS products (e.g. Sage, FreeAgent, CCH, TaxCalc, Xero, etc.)
• IRIS Outsourcing uses bank-level security – it’s ISO9001 and 27001 certified so our IT and security processes ensure that your confidential data is always protected and kept secure
• Have access to your jobs 24/7 via our secure portal, in which you can log in and monitor job progress at any time 

IRIS Outsourcing has grown massively over the past 12 months, with many firms using our service to tackle their recruitment challenges.

We have over 400 staff in our skilled team supporting accountants, so if you haven’t spoken to us about our service, why not?

Learn more about IRIS Outsourcing and chat with an expert here.