Drowning in Documents? Organized Recordkeeping Will Keep Your Business Afloat
I’ve worked with enough small business owners to know that it’s easy to get caught up in the “doing” of business when you’re, well, doing business. You’re pulled into hundreds of different directions, and it seems that everyone — and everything — needs your immediate attention. When you’re up to your eyeballs in inventory, personally handling every customer issue that arises, and working late into the evening to make sure your staff gets paid, it’s easy to lose track of the more mundane tasks, like keeping complete, organized, and accurate records.
The to-do file
Most business owners I know understand that documentation is important — and it’s certainly unavoidable. Like it or not, business paperwork will flow at a steady pace into your digital desktop and onto your literal one. Invoices, tax documents, bank statements, legal papers … The deluge can easily become overwhelming. For many folks, the easiest thing to do is put it to the side to address at a later date.
Unfortunately, procrastination and ever-growing to-do files aren’t a realistic or prudent recordkeeping solution when you’re running a business. Deadlines are missed, papers get lost, payments aren’t made, and frustration grows. Eventually, you have no choice but to call in an expert — like a fractional CFO — to help you make sense of it all.
Of course, I’m happy to step in and help a business owner wade through their mountains of accumulated paperwork. I’ve certainly been faced with this challenge before, and eventually, I’ve helped my clients overcome it by creating a sustainable recordkeeping system that meets their particular needs. However, my services as a fractional CFO (and your talents as a business owner) are definitely better-used in other aspects of a business, like helping you make more money or grow your organization. That’s why I encourage every owner to create a solid system for recordkeeping from the get-go — before the piles of paperwork get out of hand.
The essentials
Every business owner should know where to find important documents at a moment’s notice. This information should also be shared with key people within your organization, whether that’s a second-in-command, administrative assistant, or accountant.
I recommend having the following documents within reach at any given time:
- Copies of business and personal tax returns
- Formation documents, which could be:
- Corporate Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation for a corporation, or
- Operating Agreement and Formation Certificate for an LLC
- IRS Employer Identification Number (EIN) form
- Any real estate documents for business-owned properties, including:
- Deeds,
- Mortgage paperwork,
- Environmental reports, and/or
- Appraisals and surveys
- Lease Agreement if your business leases space
- Copies of promissory notes and security agreements for outstanding business loans
- Copies of any contracts, agreements, etc. with vendors or partners
- Certificate of Good Standing
- Business licenses for all municipalities where your business has locations
Keep them within reach
Creating clearly-labeled files and storing them in a central location, like a locked fireproof filing cabinet in your main office, is a simple and straightforward method of recordkeeping. If you keep digital copies of your documents (which I also recommend for accessibility and as a safeguard against physical catastrophes), be sure to share pertinent usernames and passwords with designated personnel in case you’re not available.
Knowing you or your representative can quickly put your hands on any physical piece of paperwork certainly provides peace of mind, and can also save you time and embarrassment when a lender, potential investor, or government entity comes calling.My best advice is to pay attention to recordkeeping from the first day you become a business owner. If that ship has sailed, and you’re already drowning in documents, give me a call at 256-318-8242 and let’s rescue you from that treacherous river of disorganized recordkeeping.