There is a perception that while taking on accounting trainees is good for the long-term development of the practice, it takes too long to get them to be chargeable.
WRONG!
Professional qualifications such as the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) take students through a tried and tested approach for developing their finance and accounting skills. However, it is a misconception that the students will not become ‘useful’ until several months into their studies.
Accountancy Learning’s approach to their AAT studies is to help students develop their skills so they can be working on live jobs as soon as possible. However, the firm’s desire to have chargeable staff sooner in the process, caused us to develop a complementary training package to develop these students sooner rather than later.
The Balancing Act – Introduction to Bookkeeping.
We created ‘The Balancing Act’ to give trainees, or those retraining to be accountants, not just an introduction to bookkeeping, but also the skills to be able to put together a set of final accounts in as little as 5 working days. Yes, you read that correctly!
Using a combination of online and hard copy study materials, The Balancing Act helps your firm to recoup the costs of the staffing investment, much earlier in the accounting training process.
This bookkeeping course has been designed to be a self-study programme, which drastically reduces the amount of time senior staff need to spend on 1-2-1 training with new recruits. The whole course can be completed in approximately 35 hours and there are tests throughout the course which can help the students (and you), to confirm they have understood the previous section before advancing further. There is also an end of course test which you assess to gauge their progress and plan their future training requirements.
So, within the first couple of weeks of being employed your new trainees can become productive members of the team.
Using the induction process to create chargeable staff
While some choose to put their accounting trainees through The Balancing Act a couple of months after they have joined the firm, there really is no need to wait. In fact, there are four good reasons to introduce them to The Balancing Act during the first couple of weeks of their employment. These are:
- Choosing the induction period to get accounting trainees or new joiners to complete The Balancing Act, makes their initial time with the firm as effective as possible. In between the various staff introductions and training on firm-wide procedures, they can also be carrying out their bookkeeping training.
- It is the perfect course to quickly get an insight as to whether your new recruits have got what it takes to become an accountant. If they are struggling with the concept of double-entry bookkeeping it gives you an opportunity to identify if additional training and support is required. If, however it becomes apparent that bookkeeping and accounting really is not for them, you can agree to part company sooner rather than later. This makes it a less risky approach to training staff, but also minimises your costs due to the salary savings and costs of enrolling onto such programmes as the AAT courses.
- New recruits who successfully complete the test feel more engaged and invested within the firm and the rest of the team and are more likely to want to continue with further accounting qualifications and to develop their careers.
- Within 1 – 2 weeks of the recruit joining your firm they can start being a fee earner, and in essence start ‘earning their keep’. Don’t forget, they could be a chargeable member of your team in as little as 5 days!
The Balancing Act can also be completed alongside an accounting apprenticeship, to further aid the student’s development. Further details about Accountancy Learning’s apprenticeship courses can be found here.
Don’t take our word for it!
Accountancy firms across the country are tapping into the huge benefits which The Balancing Act can provide. Here Sophie Parkhouse, Technical and Training Partner at Albert Goodman shares their experience of using this innovative bookkeeping course:
“For a number of years, we have used The Balancing Act distance learning bookkeeping course as part of our induction programme for all new recruits. This has allowed our school-leaver and graduate intake to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to become productive in the workplace within a week and, in the case of our AAT students, to commence their studies at level 3, rather than spend a year completing level 2. This not only fast tracks their career progress and enables our business to immediately benefit from their increased effectiveness, but also reduces the amount of on-the-job training provided by their line managers and consequent lost chargeable time.”
Great course. Great outcome. Great price.
The Balancing Act has been designed to meet the needs of busy accountancy firms and students who are keen to progress with their accounting studies. It costs just £180+VAT per course candidate, making it one of the most competitively priced and invaluable bookkeeping courses on the market.
To get your accounting trainees chargeable quicker, watch the video on the home page here: www.thebalancingactedu.co.uk. You can also order your copies online too.
If you have any questions, please do get in touch on 01392 244048 or email us at: [email protected].
Get The Balancing Act today
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