Let’s Collaborate, Communicate and Share Effectively!

We value effective communication and collaboration. We are a part of your business team now and we will need to communicate information and share documents on a regular basis. We strive to produce real-time, meaningful financial data and have actionable, strategic conversations with you. We will need your engagement in this process in a manner that works for all of us.

How We Communicate

We “time block”. This is how we stay in the moment & on task to GET STUFF DONE. Including your stuff! We will attempt to get back to you within 48 hours during normal business hours, but keep in mind there is no such thing as an “accounting emergency” that an instant response can solve.

  • Any and all day to day actions, questions and requests are by email; bookkeeping@amyjane.ca. This is the only way we have of tracking, documenting and actioning what you need us to accomplish for you.
  • We welcome phone calls if it is a more efficient medium for a discussion or to explain a situation or scenario. Who doesn’t love a friendly voice? We will attempt to pick up if we can, otherwise leave a clear message or email us the bullet points.
  • Please do not communicate with us through text, social media messaging or chat. We cannot turn these requests into actions nor can we track these communications well.

How We Share Documents

Some documents relate to day to day bookkeeping and are not sensitive. Others are sensitive and we need to make sure they stay private. And some are informational and we need to collaborate on them.

  • Receipts and documents for posting in your books will be uploaded/emailed/scanned into Receipt Bank. We use “messaging” in Receipt Bank to communicate information outside the basics of the document.
  • Secure documents and period end reports are shared through Dropbox. Please be very careful to download but never delete documents here!
  • Collaborative documents are likely period end reports and we will have customized them for your unique requirements in QBO. You can access these at any time and if you would like us to schedule them to be automatically emailed on a schedule
    we would be happy to do that too.

How we strive to engage with our clients

We strive to complete your prior period by the 15th day of the next month. This gives you a few days to review your reports for accuracy, so that we can supply your GST filing information by the 20th of the month. To accomplish this AJ Bookkeeping needs all your documentation & receipts and requested information uploaded to Hubdoc by the 5th day of the month at the latest.

We will supply management reports, including Profit & Loss, Balance Sheet, Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable. Within 5 days you need to review them and email back to us that you are in agreement with them and confirmed that we (you or us) are ready to file GST, OR contact us to discuss them.

We will also supply a report of transactions we do not recognize what they are for, did not clear the bank or credit card OR feel will not meet the CRA standards for business expenses. You need to review that report and have the transactions identified for us, again within 5 days of receiving the report. You can mark up the report and put it in Dropbox.

AJ Bookkeeping will supply your GST filing information within 5 days of receiving your reports approval. If you file GST please do so by the 25th of the month following the past filing period and email us that the confirmation and payment receipt have been Hubdoc’d. If you are unable to pay your GST you still must file to avoid penalties in addition to the interest you will be assessed.

If we file on your behalf, we will do so by the 25th and will send you a confirmation.

All business receipts go into Receipt Bank

  • All receipts, documents and bank/CC statements must be in Receipt Bank by the 5th of the month following at the latest, please check that they are in there.
  • You can take a pic with the app, scan, drag & drop from computer, email in or have suppliers email directly.
  • Receipts and docs can go in on the fly or as a task every few days when it works for you.
  • Meals & entertainment – both the restaurant receipt AND the payment receipt, side by side with the who & why written on the receipt.
  • NO personal receipts in Receipt Bank. None, they will only confuse us.
  • If the payment method is not obvious on the receipt, please mark “paid by [method]”.

Our Technology Security Policies

  • AJ Bookkeeping does not conduct client work from public places such as coffee shops or libraries.
  • We do not email reports or documents, instead, we will make them easily, but securely, accessible and notify you when
    your books are ready for review.

    • Sensitive documents such as tax returns and Articles of Incorporation are stored in QBOA, shared documents.
    • All other non-sensitive documents & reports are accessible through our common GDrive folder and QBO custom reports.
    • Receipts, bills and invoices are all shared through Receipt Bank.
  • AJ Bookkeeping does not know or store your banking access details.
    • When onboarding you virtually to cloud financial technology that requires bank connections, we Zoom and screen share for you to input details. You are then educated on how to maintain the connections.
  • Rewind is installed on all client QBO files
  • All out computers are hard-wired to the routers
  • Our laptops have unique PINs to open them and they go to sleep after a half-hour of inactivity.
  • Systems are protected using anti-virus software
  • We use 2-factor authorization for all accounting applications where it is an option.
  • We use 1Password to store, secure and manage our passwords.

Bulletproof, accurate bookkeeping & continuous service provisions

  • AJ Bookkeeping insists on signed annual engagements that outline all the internal and client-facing apps we will be using together, including a special note about those that will be connected to bank feeds.
  • AJ Bookkeeping has Industry E&O insurance as well as cybersecurity coverage.
  • We have a contingency plan, with a designated person at a collaborating bookkeeping firm, that can access all our apps and client files in case of an emergency.

“Passwords are like toothbrushes. Don’t share, choose wisely, change it often, don’t recycle it.”