KPIs to monitor the performance of the Accounting Department are:
Timeliness:
# Days to close the books and sign off the month
# Days to close the books and sign off the year
# Time to process invoices
# Time to process transaction /payment
# Time spent correcting documents or input data per week
# Payroll processing time
% Financial reports submitted on time
% Travel expense accounts processed in three days
# Days in accounts receivable
Quality:
% Input errors detected
% Invoices accuracy
% Accuracy of transactions /payments
# Factual errors identified in reports
# Errors reported by outside auditors
% Audit recommendations implemented
% Transaction items requiring reconciliation
% Collection rate of outstanding amounts
Generic KPIs
# Internal complaints received
# Internal customer satisfaction index with accounting services
% Tasks finalized on time
% Internal procedures updated
% Processes optimized
# Accounting employees to FTEs ratio
# Improvement ideas coming from accounting employees
# Accounting employees engagement index
Factors should finance managers include in their KPIs when they are measuring specific items on their balance sheet. Here are a few examples:
If you are going to be measuring the Accounts Payable, then consider:
a) The cost per invoice
b) Time taken to process the invoices
c) How many were paid within the agreed timelines
d) Discounts for early payment
e) Days payable outstanding
Measure these aspects and you can control your cash outflows.
If you are going to have KPIs for Accounts Receivable, then measure:
a) The collections effectiveness index
b) Days sales outstanding
c) The best possible days sales outstanding
d) The average number of days in which payments have been delinquentIf you wish to have control over your cash inflows, then this factor definitely needs to be a key part of your KPIs.
When accounts managers decide to have payroll as part of their KPIs, then the factors that should be considered are:
a) Cost per payroll payment
b) Error rates
c) Number of manual check outs.
d) You can go a step further and collaborate with the HR department to understand how many days it takes to process new hires, the cost per payroll enquiry and the days taken to resolve these enquiries.