So you’ve started a small business, congratulations! Launching your own company is a great endeavor, but now that you’re on your feet you may be wondering what’s next. Or perhaps, you’re like any business owner and want to grow your business but aren’t entirely sure how. If you haven’t hired a certified public accountant (CPA) that’s your first step towards business growth. Once you have a CPA, there are several ways in which they can help your small business grow, here are four of them.

1. Provide oversight of taxes

Taxes affect every business, whether it’s positively or negatively depends on each business’s tax planning. If your CPA does nothing else, managing your taxes alone provides enormous opportunities for growth. Thorough knowledge about tax regulations means your CPA can find all the tax deductions that your business qualifies for and help it qualify for more. What’s more, by accurately filing your company’s taxes, your CPA will help you avoid costly and stressful tax audits.

2. Monitor profit and loss

The thing that keeps a company in business is the same as the one that puts a company out of business, cash flow. The difference between whether your company stays afloat or sinks is the direction that the majority of cash is flowing. One primary duty of your CPA should be to monitor revenue and business expenses while developing strategies to increase the first and decrease the latter.

3. Implement a successful payroll system

Your business may only employ a few people now but with growth comes more employees. As your company takes on more workers, paying them correctly and on time becomes more of a challenge. With your CPA’s experience, your business will be in the right place to set up the most effective payroll system.

4. Work through financial issues

Small businesses don’t grow without going through difficult times. However, for growth to occur, a company has to survive its financial struggles. Your Certified public accountant is a key player in identifying your company’s financial problems. Additionally, your CPA is essential for negotiating payment plans with creditors so that your business will survive today and grow tomorrow.

Now that you’ve started a small business, there are three things it can do, decline, stay relatively the same, or grow. Growth is the most challenging task, but it’s also the most rewarding. Bringing a CPA on board helps ensure that your business stays on a path towards growth.