How it runs for staffing and recruiting agencies
Recruiter commissions and job-board spend are coded to the desk that used them. Perm fees carry their replacement window. At month-end every account is reconciled, and a second accountant reviews the file before you see gross margin by client.
What is outsourced bookkeeping?
Outsourced bookkeeping means a remote accounting team records, categorizes and reconciles your business transactions instead of an employee doing it in-house. You keep ownership of the accounting file and the bank relationship. The provider works inside your software on a fixed schedule, so the books are ready for reporting, tax and lending whenever you need them.
What we handle for staffing and recruiting agencies
- Weekly payroll register posted by client and work state, with burden allocated
- Bullhorn invoice run imported and agreed to approved timesheets
- Funding advances, fees and reserve releases posted to the funding account weekly
- Recruiter commissions, job-board and background-check spend coded by desk
- Perm placement fees recorded with their replacement window and any refund
The KPI that matters here
Payroll, invoices and funding activity for each week are posted before the following week's payroll runs.
Staffing compliance notes
Multi-state payroll tax
Each state where temps work needs withholding and unemployment registrations, and several states have local income taxes on top. We post payroll by work state, reconcile the liability accounts to the returns your payroll provider files, and flag new work states before the first assignment starts. Your provider files; we keep the books and the reconciliations that prove the filings.
Worker classification
Whether a placed worker is an employee or a contractor depends on control, integration and the applicable federal or state test, and the wrong answer is expensive. We keep W-2 and 1099 spend separate, hold the classification reason with the vendor record, and report 1099 volume monthly so you and your counsel can review it. We give no legal advice on the test itself.
Payroll funding and factoring
Agencies that use a funding partner receive advances on invoices, pay fees, and get reserves released when clients pay. Each of those movements is reconciled to the invoice it relates to and to the bank, so the balance sheet shows the true amount owed to the funder. The funding agreement's reporting requirements are prepared from the reconciled books.
Timesheet-to-invoice controls
The invoice to a client should be provable from approved timesheets, and the payroll should be provable from the same sheets. We keep the three-way match every week, hold client approvals with the invoice, and log corrections with a reason so disputes months later can be settled from the record.
Staffing software we work in
More for staffing and recruiting agencies
Other services for staffing
Frequently asked questions
Why do you post staffing books weekly instead of monthly?
Because payroll, invoicing and funding all happen weekly, and a month-end catch-up makes the three impossible to reconcile. Posting each week keeps billed hours, paid hours and approved hours in step, so a rate error is caught before the next payroll. Month-end then becomes a review rather than a rebuild.
How do you allocate workers' compensation and employer taxes to clients?
Employer payroll taxes are posted by state from the register, and workers' compensation is allocated using the class code and rate for each assignment. Both are treated as burden on the client's cost of sales, so gross margin per client reflects the full cost of the temps placed there. Benefits and paid leave are handled the same way.
Can you keep recruiter desks separate in the books?
Yes. Each desk or branch is a class in QuickBooks Online, with its placements, commissions, job-board spend and background-check costs coded to it. The monthly report shows contribution by desk, which is what most owners use for commission plans and for deciding where to add a recruiter.
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