How to use Xero to simplify compliance and improve your practice efficiency

Compliance is a fundamental part of practice life, so finding ways to make it simple, efficient, and less time-consuming can make a huge difference for you and your team.

In this guide, we share solutions for balancing client projects and compliance tasks, keeping up with evolving legislation, and reducing time spent on manual processes. Learn practical tips for delegation, best practices for using templates and apps, and which accounting software features to use for your unique challenges.

Manage multiple client projects from one dashboard

Keeping a clear view of client projects alongside ongoing compliance tasks is difficult when you’re running a busy practice. Along the way, you and your team may have adopted a range of systems and processes to keep things on track.

But when information is spread across multiple systems, getting complete oversight of the practice workload is almost impossible. Plus, finding data for compliance tasks – such as client invoices and receipts – takes much longer.

To solve this, you need a single view of the practice – a space where you can track deadlines, work in progress, and the status of client tasks.

Xero project management software provides just that: a place to see all the work that’s happening in your practice. Instead of hopping from spreadsheets to handwritten notes or other systems, you can manage everything in the same software you use to do the work. And with Xero Tax, you can also keep up with all your projects and deadlines by automating reminders for compliance deadlines, and monitoring client obligations, from a single, easy-to-read dashboard.

Ensure compliance for evolving tax regulations with Xero’s automatic updates

Over the past few years, we’ve seen Making Tax Digital for VAT, Basis Period reform, and Companies House reform impact the way practices and clients do compliance work.

With tax laws, reporting requirements, and industry standards changing often, being able to keep up also means avoiding non-compliance and penalties.

It helps to keep a finger on the pulse by researching and learning about upcoming changes. But accounting software like Xero can also help, with automatic updates in line with the latest regulations – to make sure you’re working to the right set of standards.

Xero automatically makes tax rate adjustments so you can continue using your software as normal. Plus, bookkeeping data flows into personal tax and company tax returns, which can be sent to HMRC and Companies House directly from Xero Tax.

Another way Xero helps you maintain compliance is through tax alerts, that tell you what’s due and which returns need attention. Instead of trying to hold every deadline in your mind, you can keep them in Xero.

Reclaim time lost on manual processes like invoicing and reconciliation

Invoicing, reconciliation, and document management tasks take up time that could be spent advising or working closely with clients.

By automating repetitive admin, you can make more time for personalised services. Instead of spending hours on reconciliation, you can use that time to support clients with tax planning or cash flow management – the stuff that makes a difference to their bottom line.

Automations in Xero can save you time on tedious tasks. For example, you can set up recurring invoices on behalf of your clients for their regular customers. And when it comes to matching statement lines, Xero’s bank reconciliation predictions feature can speed things up by suggesting matches for transactions.

You can also improve your practice productivity by making collaboration with clients easier. Clients can upload receipts and invoices to Xero from their smartphone, for you to reconcile immediately. Plus, you can share reports in Xero to help clients make informed financial decisions, or send documents for e-signatures. These small changes can have a big impact on your practice efficiency.

Practical tips for delegating tasks and improving practice efficiency

Confident delegation starts with a clear system for managing work.

With Xero Practice Manager, you can assign tasks and monitor progress in one place. For high level updates on how your practice is performing, the dashboard shows you time and productivity summaries, along with key dates, today’s jobs, and this week’s schedule. If you only have time for a quick glance, the dashboard gives you everything you need to know quickly.

Time tracking and profitability tools in Xero can also help you improve your efficiency. Your team can post their timesheets to specific jobs, so you can see the cost of every service. Convert timesheets to invoices in Xero for fast and simple practice billing.

The reporting features in Xero Practice Manager give you detailed oversight of your operations. You can easily set up custom dashboards and create reports for specific clients that include jobs, time, and cost. For practice performance, there are reports on productivity, recoverable costs, and staff time.

Lean on third-party apps for enhanced efficiency

Some tasks call for additional functionality. But standalone systems are difficult to manage when they’re disconnected. You can end up doing the same tasks across lots of different systems, or losing sight of important information.

Using app integrations with Xero means you can continue using tools you love or find new ones for your practice. All of the data connects back to Xero, so you won’t lose sight of updates or changes.

Xero integrates with a variety of popular apps to automate and connect your accounting processes:

• For receipt capture and document management, try Hubdoc. Your clients can snap photos of receipts on the go and send them directly to Xero, reducing the time you need to spend on manual data entry.
• For workflow automation, use Zapier. You can set up triggers in Xero – where a specific event triggers an action in another tool. For example, you could set up a Zap so that new bills in Xero trigger an email notification.
• And for practice and client management, add Ignition to your toolkit. Use Ignition to create elegant, detailed client proposals and letters of engagement. The Xero Ignition integration means when clients sign contracts, jobs are automatically added to Xero and invoices are sent without manual effort. It’s a smooth and professional onboarding process for your clients, and less admin for you.

Save time and improve accuracy with Xero’s templates for recurring tasks

For tasks that have to be completed for every client, templates can save you time and professionalise your processes.

You can create job templates in Xero Practice Manager for work you do regularly, and simply edit the details and assign them to the team. You can do the same thing for reports that you use over and over again for clients – simply set up and save a template so you have it there for next time.

Another benefit of using templates is that you can maintain consistency across various client tasks and communications. A standard layout for invoices ensures the right information is included – the same is true for job templates. This can reduce the risk of error when you’re working with multiple clients at once.

Even small changes, such as automating one or two regular tasks, can have big benefits for your team and clients. Start with one of the solutions offered in this guide, and add more on as you grow more confident and ambitious with using cloud software.

Check out Xero’s features and third-party integrations today to see how you can improve practice productivity and delight clients.