What an outsourced bookkeeping engagement covers each month
Updated 16 October 2026
An outsourced bookkeeping engagement hands the recording, reconciling and reporting of a company's money to an outside firm. The owner gets a set of reports on a set date each month. This article lists the work inside a typical engagement, the steps to start one and the questions to ask before choosing a firm. The worked examples use round figures, and the figures are an illustration.
Recording each transaction
Every sale, purchase and payment goes into the books with a date, an amount and an account. The account decides where the item lands on the profit and loss statement or the balance sheet. A bookkeeper posts items from the bank feeds, the card feeds, the sales system and the bills the company receives. Items that cannot be placed go to a short list of questions for the owner.
The figures are an illustration. A company has 640 transactions in a month. The bookkeeper posts 612 from rules set up for regular vendors and customers. The other 28 go on a question list to the owner, with the date, the amount and the bookkeeper's suggested account for each.
Reconciling the bank and card accounts
A reconciliation matches the balance in the books with the balance on the bank or card statement for the same date. Any difference is traced to a missing entry, a duplicate or a timing item such as an uncleared check. The bookkeeper reconciles every bank and card account each month before any report goes out.
The figures are an illustration. The statement shows $48,210.55 at month end and the books show $47,985.30. The difference is $225.25. The bookkeeper finds a bank fee and a refund that were never recorded, posts both, and the two balances match.
Bills to pay and invoices to collect
Accounts payable is the list of bills the company owes. Accounts receivable is the list of invoices customers owe the company. The bookkeeper records both, schedules bill payments for the owner's approval and sends reminders on overdue invoices. An aging report sorts receivables by how long they have been open.
The figures are an illustration. Customers owe $95,000. Of that, $62,000 is under 30 days old, $18,000 is 31 to 60 days, $9,000 is 61 to 90 days and $6,000 is over 90 days. The $15,000 over 60 days is 15.8% of the total. The owner gets that list with the monthly reports and decides which customers to call.
Payroll
Payroll runs on a fixed schedule through a payroll provider. The bookkeeper checks the hours or salaries before each run, records the wages and the employer taxes in the books, and confirms the tax deposits. The payroll totals in the books then agree with the provider's reports.
The figures are an illustration. A company with 14 employees runs payroll every two weeks. Before each run, the bookkeeper compares hours with the prior period and flags any employee whose hours moved by more than 10. After the run, the wages and taxes post to the books on the pay date.
The monthly reports
After the accounts are reconciled, the bookkeeper produces a profit and loss statement, a balance sheet and a cash summary. The reports show where cash went, which costs take the largest share of sales and how this month compares with last month. They also feed any budget or forecast.
The figures are an illustration. Sales are $95,000 for the month and materials cost $21,000, which is 22.1% of sales. Last month, sales were $80,000 and materials $17,100, or 21.4%. The report shows the 0.7 point rise in materials as a share of sales, and the owner asks the supplier about price changes.
Questions to ask before choosing a firm
Ask whether the firm already keeps books for companies in your industry. Ask which accounting software it uses and whether you can see your books online at any time. Ask how it fits the chart of accounts and the reports to your company. Ask for the monthly price in writing and the date each month's reports will arrive. Ask whether it knows the tax and payroll rules where you operate, so the CPA receives books that fit them.
The figures are an illustration. Firm A promises reports by the 15th and includes payroll in its monthly fee. Firm B gives no report date and bills payroll as a separate charge. The owner asks Firm B for a report date and the payroll charge in writing before comparing the two monthly totals.
How an engagement starts
At Averan Advisors, an engagement starts with a 30-minute call about the business. The owner then gives read access to the books as they stand. Averan reviews the file and reports what needs fixing and whether the work calls for bookkeeping, controller work or both. A written scope follows, listing each month's tasks, the reports, the date they arrive and the fee. After both sides agree, Averan sets up access, enters opening balances, and closes the first month on the date in the scope.
The figures are an illustration. The call happens on 2 March. Read access arrives on 4 March and the file review comes back on 11 March. The owner signs the scope on 14 March. The books for March close on 15 April, the date written in the scope.
What this means for an owner
An outsourced engagement covers five tasks each month: recording, reconciling, payables and receivables, payroll and reports. Every bank and card account is reconciled before reports go out. The reports arrive on a written date. The price, the tasks and the date sit in a written scope agreed before work starts.
Bookkeeping with Averan
Averan Advisors keeps books and closes the month on a set date for owner-run companies. See bookkeeping and monthly close for the scope and how it is priced.
If you want this done for you
What happens next
Reading about it and having it done are different things. Here is exactly what happens if you want the second one.
- The call takes thirty minutesYou describe the business and where the numbers are letting you down. We give you an expert view of your situation, and what we would start with. There is no pitch deck.
- We look at the fileYou give us read access to the books as they are. We come back with what is wrong, what it will take to fix, and whether the answer is bookkeeping, controller work, or something else.
- We send a written scope and a priceIt lists what we do each month, what you get, the date it lands and the fee. We agree it before anything starts, and it does not change unless you agree.
- We take over the books and close the first monthWe set up access and systems and enter the opening balances. The first close lands on the date in the scope, and every one after it does too.