It seems to me that this is the key takeaway for founders:
Your accounting stack is
1. accounting software
2. bookkeeping (ie operating the accounting software)
3. cpa / cfo (ie for tax and financial planning)
The benefit and problem with "nextgen" solutions like bench, kick, etc is that they provide a proprietary solution for the entire stack. This could be better/faster/cheaper but also comes with risk, as we are seeing in real time.
In contrast, the minimal risk approach is to source your accounting stack from different vendors:
1. accounting software (eg quickbooks, xero, wave)
2. bookkeeping (hire a person or use a service)
3. cpa / cfo (hire a person or use a service)
If you use "standard" accounting software, you can change the other layers of your accounting stack at will. The total cost of layers 1 and 2 might be $6k-$8k per year for a company with revenue, which looks more expensive than the nextgen solutions. But the reduced risk and increased flexibility may be worth it.
Your accounting stack is
The benefit and problem with "nextgen" solutions like bench, kick, etc is that they provide a proprietary solution for the entire stack. This could be better/faster/cheaper but also comes with risk, as we are seeing in real time.In contrast, the minimal risk approach is to source your accounting stack from different vendors:
If you use "standard" accounting software, you can change the other layers of your accounting stack at will. The total cost of layers 1 and 2 might be $6k-$8k per year for a company with revenue, which looks more expensive than the nextgen solutions. But the reduced risk and increased flexibility may be worth it.