Working with your accountant

What both sides need

Collaboration works when the owner and accountant are not asked to do the same job.

• Owner-side evidence, bank context, and answers to business questions.
• Accountant-side review, policy decisions, approvals, and handoff control.
• A shared view of open exceptions and missing context for the period.
• Clear expectations for who answers questions and when the month is considered ready.

Collaboration workflow

The workflow should reduce back-and-forth without removing professional review.

1. 01Prepare the monthThe owner sends sources and answers focused business questions while the month is still current.
2. 02Route review workHans keeps ready work, blockers, owner questions, and accountant review needs separated.
3. 03Review with contextThe accountant sees evidence, owner answers, flags, payment context, and proposal context together.
4. 04Close the loopFollow-up questions, edits, approvals, and rejected items remain visible to the right role.
5. 05Prepare handoffReviewed work can support close or DATEV handoff when the accountant is ready.

What Hans prepares

Hans makes the collaboration more structured.

• Owner tasks tied to specific records and missing facts.
• Review context for the accountant instead of scattered messages.
• Readiness and exception signals for the period.
• Handoff context that reflects current review decisions.

What each role decides

The role split should stay obvious.

• Owners decide and supply business facts.
• Accountants decide professional treatment and final approval.
• Both sides can see what remains open before handoff.
• The accountant’s engagement and professional process remain outside the public guide.

Rules for smooth collaboration

These habits prevent the same question from bouncing between owner and accountant.

• Answer tasks with the specific fact, file, or explanation requested.
• Do not use chat or notes as a substitute for uploading the missing source evidence.
• Keep accountant questions tied to the record or period they affect.
• Do not move a month to handoff while the accountant still has unresolved review blockers.

Next guides

Use these guides for the detailed parts of collaboration.

• First month explains the setup path for owner and accountant collaboration.
• Tasks and blockers explains how focused questions should be answered.
• Accountant review explains what the firm receives and controls.
• DATEV handoff explains what happens after review-ready context is prepared.