Background
The busy season has started because of year-end. Unfortunately, we have had difficulty partially finding additional accounting staff because the position requires Japanese language skills. As the hiring manager, I do not think Japanese language skill is necessary. After all, we operate in the United States.
One of my biggest challenges was a global kaizen project presentation, which I could not be delegated to anyone. Unfortunately, this presentation is being held in the middle of my busiest season – we are in the middle of preparing three different audits, budgeting, and preparation for the third quarter consolidation report. Finally, I am still overseeing a few other continuous improvement projects.
According to my network, this is not uncommon for small or mid-size companies since it is getting harder to get qualified accountants in this area. Labor shortages in specific fields are getting worse. What I can say is this. I am confident that I am not the only busy person. This is my first time in this complicated situation, but it will not be the last. Today, I want to write about how I manage my tasks when under challenging situations.
My biggest suggestion is not to wait until the last minute. Instead, you need to start the process as soon as possible.
List all the tasks you need to complete
First, I usually list all outstanding projects I need to complete. I do not write down little tasks required for each project, but I write down the project name. I organize all my projects and tasks digitally. Still, I write down the list on a blank letter-size paper in landscape orientation to visualize the bigger picture of the situation. I spend about one or two minutes writing down this list.
Interim Audit
Quarter Review Audit
Internal Audit
Consolidation reporting package
And so on.
Next, write down the due date to the right of each item
- 3rd Quarter External Audit – Nov 8
- Interim External Audit – Nov 8
- Annual Internal Audit – PBC due Nov 8, Audit Nov 16
- Budget – Oct 26
- Global Kaizen Project Presentation – Nov 3
- Third Quarter Consolidation Report due Nov 23
If you know how long each project will take you to complete, you can estimate the earliest and the latest start time. For example, I will not do any projects involving the 3rd quarter until the 3rd quarter is closed. That will be the earliest start date. The latest start day needs to be calculated from the due date.
I usually use a checklist – which contains all activities listed in a project. For example, I typically have approximately 50-150 items depending on the type of audit. Examples of tasks on this list are federal and state taxes estimates, inventory reserve calculations, slow-moving inventory analyses. I write down how many hours it takes to complete each task. The project time is the aggregation of times of each activity to complete the project.
Checklist
I learned this trick when I was working for an accounting firm a long time ago. A checklist is a list of all the things you need to do, and a checklist offers multiple benefits.
A checklist is an excellent tool to maintain consistency in the tasks. For example, quarter audit, an external auditor usually asks for the same type of information. If you have the list ahead of time, you can generally gather them ahead of time.
A checklist is helpful when you want to delegate certain tasks to other team members of the financially auditing team.
I use a checklist to gauge how many hours each project takes. Once you have the due date, you can estimate the earliest and the latest start date for each project.
If you do not have a checklist for repeating a project, I strongly recommend you create one.
Task Delegation
I know I cannot do all tasks by myself. I usually delegate out as many tasks as possible to junior positions. Delegation does not only help you to ease your workload, but it helps to develop your subordinates.
The critical thing to remember when you delegate your work is you still need to hold responsibility for the tasks. If you need to train them, you should prepare and review their work. Make sure to give feedback immediately when the tasks are done. Immediate feedback enhances their task efficiency for the future.
I also have written instructions for individual tasks or activities, which I create whenever I have extra time. This instruction also helps train your subordinates.
Negotiate the Due Dates ahead of time
I often negotiate the due dates with our auditors when multiple projects need to be done spontaneously. In my case, I usually negotiate the timing of interim and quarter audits with our external auditors. Our interim audit was initially scheduled for Nov 4, but I dealt with our auditor no make it 8th. We had an internal audit starting on Nov 16.
I requested the consolidation report due date to Nov 23 instead of the 18th because we have an internal audit in the same week. Sometimes it is impossible to do two projects simultaneously because you do not have the time to do two things.
Tasks completion status
I made this list in mid-September, and I made my plan to complete all of them. I am still working on the tasks, but I managed to complete some of them.
- 3rd Quarter External Audit – Nov 8 – 85% completed (review delegated tasks left)
- Interim External Audit – Nov 8 – PBC submitted
- Annual Internal Audit – PBC due Nov 8, Audit Nov 16 – PBC expected to be completed Nov 4
- Budget – Oct 26 completed
- Global Kaizen Project Presentation – Nov 3 (Slide submitted, currently practicing presentation)
- Third Quarter Consolidation Report due Nov 23 (Starting Nov 16)
Conclusion
This was quite a challenging period since I also had to work on the global kaizen project presentation. I still think the key is to list all of the tasks and plan them well. The important thing is to start the planning process as soon as possible. I am 95% certain that I will complete all of them without any delay.
I acquired this process from my experience. The process can be applied to anything. You should try it. It is probably better than becoming stressed out.