How To Easily Create, Organize, and Optimize Your Bookkeeping Firm’s SOPs for Maximum Efficiency
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I've written a lot of blogs about creating processes for your firm and having core systems in place to maximize efficiency. Both of these are absolutely crucial to implement BEFORE you start building a team so that you have a structure in place that's easy to follow. One of the processes I highly recommend having in place from Day 1 is your project management system. We use and LOVE Asana because it's easy to use, but robust enough to support a growing bookkeeping firm and team.
I've been able to use Asana so successfully (and build an entire course off of my methods, now used by 1,000+ other firm owners) because I learned how to template my workflows so that they're easily repeatable (aka efficient!). That's really been the key for me, creating templates for projects and tasks that are more generic, so they could apply to any client. Then, going in to add more detail as needed.
The same principle is true for your SOPs! SOPs are going to be your Standard Operating Procedures, which is basically a step-by-step tutorial on how to complete a task. Your SOP won't usually cover how to do an ENTIRE process, because that could get a little overwhelming. Ideally, they'd be bite-sized resources that show how to do a certain part of a process.
In this blog, I'm covering the difference between general and client (or situation) specific SOPs and when to choose one over the other!
What Makes a Great SOP?
Your SOPs should be easy to digest via video, text, checklist, or a combination of all three! I love to have diversity in my SOPs — which means I'll usually record myself doing a task via Loom and sharing my screen, transcribing the video to create a description, and then using the same transcription to build a checklist. Then I'll pop that checklist into my Asana task and set each item as a subtask.
This is a great way to make sure everything you or a team member may need to complete a task is available and accessible.
Some people view creating SOPs as an overwhelming task because they feel like they have to create them for every little nuance and client situation.
But ultimately that just isn't true! I love creating generic SOPs and adding notes within the task itself, or at least somewhere that's easy to see when someone needs extra support.
When To Choose Generic SOPs
An SOP can be for almost anything, but they can really start to stack up and get confusing if you're creating too many. That's why I prefer to stick with generic ones as a rule and take the time to record a more nuanced version only if I feel like it's necessary.
And it MATTERS how you choose to organize your SOPs, because the easier it is to search them, the less time you spend trying to find the right one! I used to have mine in a spreadsheet, which worked well for a while — until I had so many, I realized I needed to organize them even further. That's when I turned to Notion and started storing all my information and data in one centralized hub.
So how do you know if you should create a general or specific SOP? Let's look at the Run Payroll in Gusto example from above!
Heads up, the steps in this example were taken directly from Gusto's website, but this isn't an actual tutorial on how to run payroll so definitely do your own research first!
Here's what the task would look like in Asana:
[TASK TITLE]
Run Payroll in Gusto
[DESCRIPTION]
Link to client Gusto account: [link]
SOP: [link to Notion page]
[SUBTASKS]
Log into Gusto
Click the Payroll section and select Run payroll.
Select the pay period you need to run and click Run payroll.
Select which bank account you would like to process payroll from.
Adjust salaries or hours worked
Click Save and Continue to move forward.
Enter vacation or sick hours your employees used during the pay period, if applicable.
Click Save and Continue or to move forward or Go Back if you need to adjust salaries.
Check out the preview of the wage and tax debits for your payroll.
Click Submit Payroll.
If you need to cancel, you can do so by clicking Cancel Payroll.
This is an example of a generic SOP. The link in the description of the task would take you to a Notion page that contains a video walkthrough and a written description of what to do in more detail than the checklist.
Pro tip: When you record yourself doing tasks for SOPs, narrate your thought process behind what you're doing so you can use them to help train team members on how to think like you. This helps down the road when you start delegating more work and want to ensure you'll get the results you want!
These work really well for simple tasks like this one that could apply to several different clients. If you have a client with a special requirement when it comes to payroll, simply edit the subtasks or add notes to the description box!
If you're tempted to record another SOP for 'How to Run Payroll in Gusto with Reimbusement', I'd suggest only recording ONE video that shows the reimbursement but name the SOP something like 'How to Run Payroll in Gusto with or without Reimbursement' so that when someone's looking through your database, they'll know that this one addresses both.
When To Create Client/Situation-Specific SOPs
There will be a few times when your client might need their own SOP for some reason. If you happen to have a client who has a complicated job costing process, that would be a great time to create a specific SOP!
It truly is up to you to decide how granular you want to get with the SOPs you create, just make sure you keep them organized!
Best Practices to Maximize Your SOPs
Decide where you'll store your SOPs (spreadsheet, Notion, etc)
Create a process or decision tree to help you figure out when to create a generic vs. a specific one
Choose how often to audit your SOPs and look for out-of-date info
Train your team members on how/when to create a new SOP
Name each SOP with keywords so they're easily searchable
And that's it! SOPs become SO much easier to create when you simplify the process around making them. You don't need them for every little thing unless it makes sense. I love how effective they are in supporting my team members and myself to help us get work done with fewer mistakes and get the same results every time!
Curious about getting all the backend operations of your firm optimized and ready to finally build your dream team? Book a consultation call with one of our team members to share a little more about your firm and your goals so we can guide you toward which of our courses or resources would be the right fit!
