Due to the skills shortage in Australia, many accounting practices hire offshore staff. More than ever, offshore teams play key roles in making accounting practices successful. With advances and acceptance of video conferencing and working remotely there is no reason why you cannot offshore and obtain high-end talent.
Offshoring is now a common practice for accountants who are successfully running practices with impressive net profit-to-fee ratios. If you have an accounting practice and are not offshoring, you may be giving competitors a huge advantage.
Offshoring in the Philippines
Offshoring to countries like the Philippines allows you to find highly skilled accounting staff. The Philippines is a top country for offshore business services and has many skilled back office and accounting staff.
Aside from having high English proficiency and a commendable work ethic, Filipinos also have a high literacy rate of 99.27%. Furthermore, the education standards in Universities are very similar to Australia.
The Philippines’s time zone is also the same as Perth and only two hours behind Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane.
READ MORE: 5 Benefits of Offshore Accounting in the Philippines
If you haven't already, now is the perfect time to set up an effective offshore team. The employment market in the Philippines becomes very active after the Christmas break with high-quality candidates generally coming to the market.
This article lists some full-time offshore roles that you should consider within an Australian accounting practice.
Tax Accountant
Australian practices can hire tax accountants with different experience levels from junior to intermediate to senior accountants. Accounting in the Philippines shares a lot of similarities to that of Australia. For one, they adopt the same International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as their Philippines Financial Reporting Standards (PFRS).
Moreover, an accounting degree in the Philippines takes five years to complete, which is longer than in Australia. This makes them ideal remote team members for your accounting firm.
Bookkeeper
A good bookkeeper can add capacity to your team and free up time for your onshore accountants. Many firms hire offshore bookkeepers because their tasks consist of repetitive and rules-based work.
Offshore bookkeepers can process data in programs like Xero, MYOB and Quickbooks. They can help in managing financial data, prepare business activity statements (BAS) and Instalment Activity Statements (IAS), attend to Single Touch Payroll (STP) requirements and even process payroll.
Paraplanner
Financial Planning is one of the most in-demand services in Australian Accounting firms. In fact, roughly 3.2 Million Australians use a financial advisor or planner. However, due to the skills shortage, it can be hard to find high-performing paraplanners.
Offshore paraplanners can prepare insurance SOAs and ROAs and manage superannuation. You may even find paraplanners with the FNS0690 Advanced Diploma in Paraplanning.
Administrators or Executive Assistants
An offshore administrator can manage your business’s needs and make workflow more efficient and productive. Many offshore admins are adept in assisting Australian businesses, as well as CRMs and other administrative tools. They can document processes, manage your emails and calendars and handle inquiries.
High-quality offshore administrators are able to undertake tasks including, managing your emails, managing your diary, taking telephone calls, managing practice workflows, responding to emails, invoicing clients, debt collection, processing and sending all ATO and other mainland requirements and attending to corporate affairs tasks.
Hiring offshore executive assistants can also help practitioners stay on top of meetings and client engagements. They can support you so you can focus on doing chargeable work.
Marketing Coordinators
Marketing your accounting firm allows you to expand your client base, gives your firm an online presence or footprint, and increases long-term profitability. Hence, finding skilled marketing coordinators can be a great benefit to your r firm.
Since most advertising and promotions are usually done online nowadays, marketing staff can work from home efficiently. Offshore marketing coordinators can elevate your brand and create an effective marketing strategy to drive more leads. They are equipped with technical knowledge in content editing and SEO software, as well as managing social media accounts.
Specialised Offshore Staffing Solutions for Accounting Practices
Managing a remote team is no easy task which is why choosing the right offshoring provider is crucial to making it work. It’s best to use an offshoring provider that specialises and is experienced in the accounting industry.
TRA is owned and operated by a 35-year, CPA-qualified accountant who is also an expert in the area of quality standards for accounting practices. His accounting practice is operated by staff in the Philippines who do administration, accounting and marketing work. No other offshore providers have this mix of talent and experience.
Given our industry knowledge and offshoring experience, there is no other place to call or email. We can help you find and train staff, as well as mentor you on how to successfully manage your remote team. Get in touch with us now at 1300 614 110 or email info@remoteacc.com.au.