We may be a small capital city here in Wellington, but we are dynamic and impactful in many ways, and our local business owners and organisations should take a lot of credit for that. As we make every effort to jumpstart our local economy back to life in a post COVID-19 world, experts and industry leaders have been stepping up to the plate to help support and guide the Wellington business community from surviving, to reviving, and eventually once again, to thriving.
One of those industry leaders is Xero, who just 14 years ago began in Wellington, and has been speedily taking over the globe ever since.
Xero is not just a beautiful accounting software provider; the company is literally changing lives by offering fully funded counselling services to its customers. We’re just scratching the surface here, because the entire platform is smart, automated, and connected and, if used well, it will save you time and effort (precious resources always, but especially now).
Is your business taking full advantage of Xero’s potential? It is vast and feature-rich, and as the largest Xero partners globally, BDO will ensure you are making the most of your time in the cloud, so you can spend more time doing the things you love.
BDO Wellington does this through running Xero Masterclasses, helping you leverage the single ledger to bring value through timely and accurate information which enables good business decision-making.
These courses are delivered by a team of qualified accountants who explain how to utilise the platform effectively, along with the ins and outs of compliance and financial recording requirements in a way that everyone can understand. The courses are suitable for people from any industry and specific industry-tailored workshop can also be delivered. Having taken a break from face-to-face training during the COVID-19 lockdown the team is excited to have scheduled the next Masterclass for mid-July 2020.
What is Xero?
Based in New Zealand with offices in Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Africa, Xero is a cloud-based accounting solution developed in Wellington, New Zealand which runs online and does not require any special software to be installed. Xero can be accessed anytime, anywhere and on any device that has internet access and a browser. Access can then be granted to your accountant who has access to all your real-time information. Your accountant is then working with your original information preparing your financial statements from the same single ledger.
BDO is the leading Xero Platinum business partner worldwide and was awarded the 2019 Xero National Partner of the Year, with teams of expert consultants providing expert advice regarding the platform all over the country.
What makes BDO’s Xero Masterclasses different?
The training package material in BDO’s Xero Masterclasses has been designed and developed by BDO Chartered Accountant Michelle McKay from our Christchurch office. Michelle utilised her wide-ranging industry experience and background in bookkeeping, teaching, and adult-training to develop practical and hands-on courses that selected BDO Chartered Accountants across the country are now rolling out in their local areas. These courses are tailored to real businesses and delivered in language ordinary people can understand.
BDO’s Xero Masterclass courses are more than just tips and tricks. They offer relevant and practical information that recognises and respects attendees’ varying levels of proficiency with Xero. BDO’s courses cultivate a welcoming environment where attendees feel safe asking questions. The material is flexibly structured to accommodate the specific audience in attendance. We use real-world transactions and examples to reflect what really happens in businesses.
In addition, these courses are ideal if you are moving from other accounting software platforms to Xero. BDO New Zealand is always available to assess your current and future accounting needs and discuss the benefits and challenges of moving from one platform to another. Visit our Xero New Zealand service page for more information and contact us to help to facilitate a smooth migration and ensure the setup will meet your on-going requirements.
BDO runs three levels of Xero Masterclasses
BDO’s Xero Masterclasses are 3-hours long and class sizes are limited to 12 attendees to ensure that one-on-one help can be delivered. You do not need to be a BDO client to attend, though we value this opportunity to better understand our clients and provide them with additional add-on solutions. Some free seats are available for non-profit organisations, but the courses themselves are affordable.
Check out our three Xero Masterclass courses below.
1. Foundations Course: Understanding the Key Functionalities
BDO’s Xero Foundation’s Course is ideal for brand new users and those with some experience who wish to become more comfortable with the platform’s basic capabilities. The course has been designed to help attendees capitalise on Xero’s core functions to deliver simpler and more accurate results for their business.
Topics covered in the Foundations Course
- An introduction to Xero
- Chart of accounts
- Bank reconciliation
- Quotes & invoices
- Purchase orders & bills
- Finding account transactions
- GST returns in Xero
- Tracking
2. Intermediate Course: Delivering Efficient Financial Services
The Intermediate course, Delivering Efficient Financial Services, has been crafted by BDO to help attendees grow their business within the Xero ecosystem, teaching them techniques to take advantage of some of Xero’s more advanced tools.
Topics covered in the Intermediate Course
- Branding & communication
- Managing debtors & creditors
- Xero contacts
- Automating data entry
- Manual journals
- Month-end processes
- Reconciliation reports
- Basic reporting customisation
3. Advanced Course: Supporting Data Driven Decision Making
BDO has designed an advanced Xero Masterclass to help even the most experienced users find further value with Xero. The course helps people analyse their business performance using real-time information to support optimised decision-making and minimise threats for their business.
Topics covered in the Advanced Course
- Reporting concepts
- Budgeting
- Advanced customisation
- Profit & loss variance analysis
- Cash flow reporting
- Tailored balance sheets
- Executive summary
- Key performance indicators
- Fixed assets
Join other satisfied customers at BDO’s Xero Masterclass
Attendees of our Xero Masterclasses go away being able to work more efficiently in a way that is better for them and better for their accountants as they gain more understanding of why accountants do what they do. This is incredibly useful knowledge whether you are a business owner, a finance team superstar, or anyone who has an interest in learning from the best on how to manage finances on this beautiful cloud-based accounting system.
Come along and make the most of your time by not only learning new skills and ideas from the BDO team, but also joining a group of like-minded people in taking a positive step towards business recovery, learning from each other and sharing your post COVID-19 stories.
Register for BDO Wellington’s Xero Masterclass sessions or if you’re unable to attend the times displayed please register your interest for Xero Masterclass Sessions and our team will get in touch when further dates are announced.
If you would like more information or would like to discuss running an industry-specific course, please contact Shelley Hunwick at BDO Wellington.