Quality talent is attracted to SMEs by far more than an attractive salary; we human beings like to be more than numbers to a company.
Opportunities such as travel, entertainment or further education and training not only give a career its wings but stimulate innovation and original thinking which is critical to keeping the business’ competitive edge.
However, wading through the consequential suitcase of receipts to understand and calculate the necessary GST, FBT, CGT or PAYG and the like can cause a real headache for Australia’s small businesses at this time of year.
Taking the numbers into account, there is a huge pool of opportunity: Officeworks recently calculated that across Australia, whopping $1.65 billion of tax is left unclaimed annually.
With the end of financial year finally here, many SME owners are now wishing methods and processes were in place to make life just a little easier during this time.
And while it might be too late for this year, now is the time to make a financial new year’s resolution to put processes in place and simplify reporting come June 30, 2015.
You know what they say about the early bird…
Below, we will briefly assess two common problems and their partnering solutions to make end of Financial Year responsibilities easier, especially for small businesses.
1. The problem: An inability to fully maximise GST recovery
The solution: Adequate tracking of any incoming/outgoing GST payments.
Due to strict ATO requirements, manual tracking of deductions and offsets make for human errors and potential overpayments resulting in financial, and time inefficiencies.
One solution is the processing of expenses and claims digitally using systems such as Concur’s automated expense management solution, to record and give you better control over and transparency into your business’ expenses.
2. The problem: Lack of accuracy and understanding of FBT
The solution: Although FBT is calculated in April it is one of the biggest losses of earning, and according to the ATO, nearly 1 in 5 SMBs admit to having a small to non-existent understanding of FBT. Naturally, then, it is a hugely untapped revenue reclaimer.
The problem presented by the ATO is the keeping of records for five years which raises the same issues of human errors mentioned in the previous problem.
Once again, software systems allow for tracking travel and expense spends as the expense is filed; creating an efficient and entirely accurate record which keeps calculations and card data transactions, allowing for secure tracking and information capture.
Implementing processes to record and manage expenses now will not only make this new financial year easier but will also help you make much better decisions using real data.
Once introduced, these systems will help manage tax liabilities and help you understand where in your business’ expenditure savings can be made.
Matt Goss is the Managing Director of Concur, a provider of integrated travel and expense management services. It was number 57 on Forbes Magazine’s 100 best Small Companies in 2010.
