How to Avoid Creating Extra Conversion Steps in Your Bookkeeping Workflow

The process of processing a single statement isn’t a huge problem. Even manual entry can seem simple when just one PDF file is involved.

Multiply this task by dozens of companies, multiple account numbers and multiple statement times.

The problem has been solved. What started out as a small clerical job becomes a repetitive workflow that consumes staff time, and also creates opportunities for inconsistent data entry. The improvement in bank statement conversion does not simply mean making one statement more efficient. It’s essential to devise an approach that works when the number of documents increase.

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The bottleneck is repetition.

Think about an accounting company receiving monthly PDFs from multiple clients. One of them is Chase One uses Wells Fargo, the other Wells Fargo, while others transmit reports via Bank of America, Capital One, Citi, or smaller firms.

Access each PDF file and manually enter every transaction manually.

A bank statement converter can move the flow of work from transcription toward reviewing. Docubrew makes use of the actual statements to find transaction numbers rather than estimating values. This creates structured files that can be inspected prior use. This is a benefit when the amount of documents is increasing.

Batch Processing Changes the Equation

Processing files separately could be suitable for occasions when you need to convert. Accounting firms often encounter a different set of challenges. Docubrew lets multiple documents to be uploaded and processed in one batch, with individual results. Firms can then process a set of client records without manually creating each transaction table.

If the accounting workflow calls for CSV files users can transform the bank statements into CSV before proceeding.

Similar to scans of paper statements. Docubrew comes with OCR for PDFs that are scanned, which can be useful when the client’s records from the past include a mixture of native PDFs and scans.

Create an Output to help with the Accounting Work Ahead

The process of conversion isn’t completed. The transactions usually need to go somewhere.

Docubrew is able to export CSV, Excel and QBO. QBO has an output format that is suitable for teams who need to transfer bank account statement to Quickbooks.

Firms that regularly convert bank statements to Quickbooks can build a more consistent process around receiving statements, processing them, checking the extracted data, and preparing the appropriate files for the accounting workflow.

Human reviews are still crucial. While automation may reduce repetitive transcriptions, bookkeepers must review financial information and complete the accounting task.

Client Data Should Have Its Own Workflow Choice

A greater volume of documents also means more sensitive information about clients.

Docubrew provides two different processing options. Windows desktop software converts files locally and allows them to remain on the computer of the company. Cloud-based options include encrypted uploads and Docubrew states that the uploaded and converted files will be deleted in 24 hours.

Accounting practices could choose the best method to meet their internal needs.

Scale the process and not the repetitive work

As the practice of bookkeeping grows and more financial records are required, more of them should be expected. This shouldn’t mean that it automatically allows increased copy-and-paste.

The most important thing to consider is whether the method that worked for five clients would be effective for 50 clients.

Standardizing the manner in which statements are received, reviewed and made available to accounting software will help firms build a workflow that is designed to handle regular volumes, instead of considering each PDF as an individual manual project.

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