Your Tax Business Shouldn’t Live in Your Head: Why You Need Systems Before Tax Season

When you first start a tax business, it's normal for you to know everything.

You know every client.

You know where every document is.

You know which clients still need to send information.

You know which returns need to be reviewed.

You know who owes a balance.

You know what needs to happen next.

But there's a problem with running a business this way.

Everything depends on you.

And as your business grows, what once worked can quickly become one of the biggest things holding you back.

Your tax business shouldn't live in your head.

Being a Small Tax Office Doesn't Mean You Don't Need Systems

Sometimes tax professionals hear words like systems, processes, workflows and standard operating procedures and think those things are only necessary for large companies.

They're not.

Even if you're a team of one, start documenting how your business operates.

Think about some of the basic things that happen repeatedly in your office.

How do you onboard a new client?

Where should clients submit documents?

What happens when documents are missing?

How do you follow up?

What happens when a return is completed?

Who reviews it?

How are signatures collected?

How are payments handled?

What happens after the return is filed?

These things are already happening in your business.

The question is whether there is an actual process behind them or whether you're simply remembering what needs to happen next.

“I Know How to Do It” Is Not a Business Process

This is where many entrepreneurs get stuck.

You know how to do everything because you built the business.

You've probably done some of these tasks hundreds of times.

So when you're working alone, you may not see a reason to write anything down.

Then you hire someone.

Now you have to teach them.

You explain how to onboard clients.

You explain how you want documents organized.

You explain how you want follow-ups handled.

You explain when they should bring something to your attention.

A few months later, you hire somebody else.

And you explain everything again.

Eventually, everyone starts developing their own way of doing things.

That's when mistakes and inconsistencies can begin.

If the process only exists in your memory, you don't really have a documented process yet.

Growth Will Expose the Systems You Never Built

Growth doesn't always create problems.

Sometimes growth simply exposes problems that were already there.

You may be able to personally manage 100 clients without a clearly documented workflow.

What happens at 300?

What happens when you add three preparers?

What happens when someone starts answering your phones?

What happens when you add another location?

What happens when you finally decide that you don't want to personally handle every task anymore?

That's when systems become extremely important.

If you want other people to help operate your business, they need to understand how your business operates.

Start With the Things You Do Repeatedly

Don't make building systems harder than it has to be.

You don't need to sit down tomorrow and write a 200-page operations manual.

Start small.

Look for the things you do over and over again.

For example, your client onboarding process could document what happens from the first inquiry until the client is ready for tax preparation.

Your missing-document process could explain how missing information is identified, how the client is contacted, where the follow-up is documented and when another follow-up should occur.

Your completed-return process could explain what needs to happen after preparation but before filing.

If you repeatedly do something in your business, eventually there should be a process for it.

Your Team Shouldn't Have to Ask You Everything

Here's another way to identify where you may need a system.

Pay attention to the questions your team repeatedly asks you.

Where does this go?

What do I do with this?

Did anybody call this client?

Who is supposed to handle this?

What happens next?

Do I need to bring this to you?

If you're answering the same operational questions over and over, don't automatically assume you have a people problem.

You may have a process problem.

The answer may need to be documented so everyone knows the standard.

Systems Create Consistency

A documented process isn't about taking the human side out of your business.

It's about creating consistency.

Two clients shouldn't receive completely different experiences simply because they worked with different members of your team.

Your standards should remain your standards.

That becomes especially important in the tax industry, where we're handling sensitive information, documentation, deadlines, payments and compliance responsibilities.

Systems help your team understand what is expected and what happens next.

Ask Yourself: What Happens If I'm Not Available?

Here's a simple test for your business.

If you couldn't work tomorrow, would somebody else know what needs to happen?

Not forever.

Just tomorrow.

Could someone determine which clients need attention?

Could they locate the information they need?

Could they understand where each client is in the process?

Could they follow your procedures?

Could they keep the basic operations moving?

If everything stops because you're unavailable, that's something to work on.

Build Before You're Desperate

The worst time to build a system is when you're overwhelmed and desperately need one.

Don't wait until January when the phones are ringing, clients are waiting, your team has questions and returns are piling up.

October gives you time.

Use it.

Choose one process in your tax business this week.

Write down exactly how you currently handle it from beginning to end.

Then look at what you wrote.

Where are the gaps?

What could be clearer?

What could be automated?

What should always require human review?

What does your team need to know?

Test the process.

Improve it.

Then move to another one.

One process at a time, you're creating the operating foundation of your company.

Build the Business You're Trying to Grow Into

Don't wait until you have ten employees to start operating like a business.

Don't wait until you have hundreds more clients.

Don't wait until you're exhausted from being the only person who knows everything.

Build the foundation now.

Because eventually, growth will require you to hand something to somebody else.

And when that day comes, you want to be able to hand them more than instructions from your memory.

Your business shouldn't live in your head.

Build the system before you desperately need the system.

— Dr. Gwennetta WrightXpert Business Solution

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