In last week’s blog, (How to Find a Reliable Accountant: A Small Business Guide – PART ONE, 21 July, 2025) we give important tips for choosing the right person or business to manage your business’ finances. This week’s post looks at what NOT to do. Finally next week in PART THREE, we’ll tailor these tips to a specific industry – Meetings and Events Management. We’ll even share a FREE downloadable checklist which you can easily adjust for your use.
Hiring a financial manager or accountant is a major decision for any business. The right professional can help you handle tax obligations, streamline operations, and plan for growth. But the wrong hire? That could cost you time, money, and peace of mind to start with.
To help you avoid costly mistakes, here are 10 things you should never do when selecting a financial expert for your business:
🔻 1. Don’t Prioritize Price Over Expertise
Why it’s a mistake: Choosing the cheapest option can lead to errors or missed opportunities. Not to mention, you could end-up spending more to fix errors or to start from scratch. Evaluating the worth of who you choose is important and in the long run, it can really save you money and headaches from mismanagement of your money. In this case, you likely WILL “get what you pay for.
What to do instead: Look for value—someone with relevant experience and strategic insight. That doesn’t mean you have to spend a fortune on someone you can’t afford, to get the accountant(s) who is/are right for you. You do need though, to be careful not to hire just anyone to manage your money. If your budget is especially tight, find someone who can help with the main essential parts of your finances, and see what you may be able to easily handle yourself
🔻 2. Don’t Skip the Background Check
Why it’s a mistake: You could end up hiring someone unqualified or unethical. This could be very dangerous financially and even legally. If something did happen because of your accountant, you’d have to start over with someone new anyway, spending even MORE time and money to find a replacement.
What to do instead: Verify certifications, check references, and read reviews. Taking the time to investigate the person (talking to others, checking backgrounds, etc.) will be well worth the extra effort and cost.
🔻 3. Don’t Hire Without a Clear Scope of Work and Expectations
Why it’s a mistake: Uncertainty can end-up in missed tasks and accounting disputes. If you don’t make it clear what you expect from your accountant, you might rightfully only be able to blame yourself.
What to do instead: Outline responsibilities in a written agreement. You need to be as thorough as possible, so your accountant can do the best for you and your money. Be sure to include periodic reviews of your financial picture so you can know where you stand but be careful never to micro-manage. Building trust with and respect for how your accountant works and their capabilities is fundamental, and you don’t need or want to always look over their shoulder.
🔻 4. Don’t Ignore Industry Experience
Why it’s a mistake: Industry-specific knowledge is crucial for compliance and strategy. Also, someone who is unfamiliar with the specifics and intricacies of your industry can miss critical tasks. The person may have ways of doing business that may really cost you or may be inappropriate when clients or vendors are used to doing things differently.
What to do instead: Choose someone who understands your business sector. This will help you and your accountant be sure that they don’t miss critical deadlines, how to manage payments, and ways to work with vendors and clients that are typical or expected in your industry.
🔻 5. Don’t Overlook Communication Skills
Why it’s a mistake: Poor communication leads to confusion, mistakes and missed opportunities. Being unable to clearly exchange information can also lead to ignoring problems until it’s too late, frustration and a breakdown of trust.
What to do instead: Be sure your accountant explains financials clearly and responds without hesitation. You and your accountant need to be able to easily and clearly discuss issues and not withhold pertinent information. If there is something you don’t understand and have questions about – SPEAK UP! ALWAYS make sure you’re on the same page. A good accountant will give information voluntarily and be able to communicate with you in terms you can understand. Also, be sure that your accountant’s records and information are easily accessible and understandable should you or someone else need to follow-up or step-in.
🔻 6. Don’t Forget to Evaluate Ethics and Compatibility
Why it’s a mistake: Ethical misalignment can lead to legal or reputational damage. That can lead to trouble “down the road” between the two of you and between you and your vendors and clients. You’ll be seen as the one responsible and have to answer to your vendors and clients, not your accountant.
What to do instead: Choose someone whose values align with you and your business’ goals and ways of doing business. The greater that alignment, the smoother your business will operate because the two of you will better understand each other. Discuss what is or isn’t acceptable and get a feel for how the person might handle specific situations.
🔻 7. Don’t Ignore Software Compatibility
Why it’s a mistake: Incompatible tools and not having someone who knows how to best use them wastes time, effort, money and creates inefficiencies. If your software isn’t working well and doesn’t do what you need it to, and/or your accountant doesn’t know how to or can’t use it effectively, it can cause tremendous mistakes and problems, and cost you in many ways.
What to do instead: Be sure that your accountant and the software you use are fluent in your accounting system or that your accountant can guide a transition to software that is compatible Nowadays, there are TOO MANY software options available to justify using software that is too complicated, is outdated, has a lot of capabilities that you don’t need or not enough to match your needs. Your accountant doesn’t have to be a technical genius (and neither do you), but they should be well familiar with the software you use or be able to suggest options that might work better for your accounting system.
🔻 8. Don’t Assume They’ll Always Be Available
Why it’s a mistake: Some professionals get overwhelmed during peak periods, especially if they’re multi-client contractors. Unless you have an accountant exclusive to your business (and sometimes even then), you need to respectfully understand that they likely work with other clients. You could be left “in a pickle” if you expect to always get their immediate help – example: during tax season.
What to do instead: Ask about their workload and how they manage their time and deadlines. Set specific dates and times for coordinating when you can expect them to respond or when you will provide information. Be sure they are aware of your schedule of time and deadlines and know theirs. Have a back-up plan to get help from someone else in case of emergencies and absences.
🔻 9. Don’t Rush the Hiring Process
Why it’s a mistake: A hasty decision often overlooks red flags. If you hire someone without carefully checking them out, you can wind-up with a multitude of problems. These can include wasted time, energy, money, and may even put you back where you started (wasting more time, energy, and money). There may even be legal consequences because of the actions of an unqualified person.
What to do instead: Take the time to interview several candidates and evaluate the person with the best fit. Be fair, clearly communicating your needs and what you’re looking for to fill the position. Taking time and effort will save you potential time and effort in the future. After all, it’s your and/or your business’ money and it needs to be managed correctly and in the best way for you.
🔻 10. Don’t Assume All Financial Professionals Are the Same
Why it’s a mistake: Bookkeepers, accountants, and financial managers serve different roles. For example, hiring a bookkeeper to completely manage your financial portfolio would be a great mistake and very limited in scope. In the same way, if you only have someone to manage simple receipts and expenditures, you don’t likely need someone ready to plan and guide your financial future – nor pay for it!
What to do instead: Start with knowing and being sure of exactly what you need. Match your needs to the specific expertise of candidates and advertise the job that way. You don’t want to spend extra money for what you don’t need. If you’re unsure, talk to colleagues, other business managers, or financial professionals who can best help you evaluate what is best for you.
Finally
In part one of this three-part series of posts, we give tips and things to look for when hiring an accountant or financial adviser. Here in part two, we break down important things to remember NOT to do when looking for someone to fill that job.
Choosing the right person(s) or business to help you with your business finances is critical, and it’s important to keep in mind what NOT to do when deciding who to hire. By using these tips of what to watch out for, you’ll be in much better shape to manage your finances.
So what are your “no-nos” when choosing the right person(s) or company for the job? We’d love your comments below and would appreciate your “LIKE” of this post. Please also subscribe to our blog – absolutely guaranteed to be spam-free).
Stay tuned and look for part three of this 3-part posting next week where we’ll give you tips for applying this specifically to the best example we know well – the Meetings and Events Industry! We’ll also give you a FREE tip sheet that you can use and modify for your situation as needed. See you then!
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