What I Do:
Process Improvement: I’m an Excel wonk and a big fan of using technology to its full capacity. People don’t realize how hard they’re making their work sometimes, because they don’t know what kinds of solutions are available. Where possible, I leverage existing technologies to bring efficiency to your workplace and free up your day to serve your customers.
Excel Efficiency and Education: Following on the “Process Improvement” service, I love showing clients what they can achieve by better utilizing Excel software. Good Excel skills can’t solve all of your problems, but it can solve a whole lot of them. As an introduction to my services, I offer free, no obligation 1-hour sessions on some of my favorite Excel tools. Then I follow that up with a separate (also free) 1-hour Q&A session, where people from all departments can brainstorm solutions with me to make their work more efficient.
Audit Prep: I have a process whereby I combine all balance sheet reconciliations into a single workbook, knocking out the largest part of audit prep. I’m skilled at general ledger forensics, so I can identify errors before the auditor gets to them. As a former auditor, I can also identify audit risk areas and work with you or your auditors to address them in advance, so you can hopefully avoid qualified opinions or management comments.
Grant Accounting Processes: I’ve spent a lot of my career accounting for grants from governments, foundations, and individuals. Providing them with reliable financial information will help build your relationships with those funders and give them confidence that their funds are well utilized. I can work on the detailed accounting for grants, set up systems for charging expenses across multiple grants, and get your reporting process set up. I can also be a liaison with your grantors if they want to talk with someone about anything related to accounting for their grant.
Budgeting: I love budgeting. As mentioned in the “Philosophy” section of this site, I look to achieve accuracy above all, and only focus on precision where necessary. I can take a lot of the pain out of the budgeting process by determining the activities and circumstances that may have the biggest impact on your budget and accounting for those, without getting overly distracted by small details.
Other: After reading about my services, is there something else you think I could help with? Reach out and we’ll brainstorm. If I can’t help, I’ll try to find someone who can.
What I Don’t Do:
Attestation Services: I don’t provide financial statement auditing, review, or compilation services. I can help you prep for those, though.
Tax Preparation: CPAs work in a lot of different areas. I haven’t provided tax services for over a decade. If you need these services, I’d be happy to point you to some people in the community that can help, free of charge.
SEC reporting: Publicly traded companies are an entire field to themselves. My career path has exposed me to many industries, but I’m not your guy if you have SEC reporting requirements. I may know some people, though, so feel free to reach out!