AccountKit Case Study: Gilroy Barnes & Associates

“I’m just a woman in my backyard who’s been doing this for 30 years.”

That’s how Kerrie Flood, Principal Accountant at Gilroy Barnes & Associates describes herself – and with 1,300 clients (a mix of individuals and microbusinesses) counting solely on her for tax advice every year, efficiency couldn’t be more crucial.

The quest for time-savings and streamlined workflows is what led Kerrie to switch to Xero Practice Manager in 2019, and she came across AccountKit soon after.

“I was initially attracted to AccountKit’s Fuel Tax Credit Calculator, because a lot of my clients use equipment,” Kerrie explains. “I immediately saw how much time that was saving me just by linking the Xero file and pressing a few buttons. Then I started exploring all the other features. I’d be lost without it now!”

High performance accounting in one toolkit

Today, Kerrie uses AccountKit for everything from client correspondence and admin to compliance and taxation work, and integrates with NowInfinity to track ASIC payments, SuiteFiles for document management and Twilio for text messaging.

“One of the tools I use the most is the Correspondence Register,” she says. “I love that feature and it’s a good way of having all the communication in one place. I use the templates, so if a client wants to make an appointment, I can send them a text with a link to make their own appointment on my website.”

“Having that feature saves me about three weeks a year. And it allows me to give more to my clients because I’m not wasting time on all that upfront admin.”

“I also have a template set up for birthdays. For example, I have a client turning 50 today, so I’ll send him a text message to wish him a happy birthday. It’s two seconds out of my day and it makes clients feel loved.”

Kerrie says AccountKit is especially handy for keeping track of client loans and rate changes throughout the year.

“When I use the Div 7a tool it’s amazing. It saves me so much time, especially for clients with multiple loans. I was doing one a couple of weeks ago that covered multiple loans and multiple years, and I was able to quickly find out things like ‘What was the benchmark rate that year?’”

“It’s the same for the Fuel Tax Credit Calculator. The rate changes in February and August, so you’re dealing with two rates in a quarter. AccountKit just takes care of all that for me.”

AccountKit’s ATO Lodgement Statistics integration also enables Kerrie to quickly review the lodgement status of all her clients.

“Every month I can upload a list of my clients and easily see what’s outstanding and who’s fallen off my client list or gone elsewhere,” she says. “It’s also useful for picking up on red flags that a client’s identity might have been compromised. In those cases, I can send them a quick text to check if there’s anything we need to be worried about. It’s a really handy feature that I didn’t even know I wanted until I had it.”

Next on the agenda?

Kerrie says she plans to dive into the Client Map Tool and the Franking Register next as she works her way to AccountKit power user status.

“I’m always singing AccountKit’s praises. With the time saved, it pays for itself. I’m not a power user yet, but that’s my aim!”

“The support is amazing and really responsive. And I like the fact that they’re constantly improving and looking for ways to make their product better. I can’t wait to see what’s next.”

Find out how AccountKit’s time-saving tools can help your business perform at its absolute peak. Try it free for 14 days (no credit card required) or get a live demonstration of AccountKit’s tools.