If you’re like most small business owners, managing your back office isn’t exactly your favorite part of the job. You’ve got a ton of moving pieces to deal with—bookkeeping, payroll, taxes—and when those pieces don’t fit together smoothly, it makes everything harder.
At Patrick Accounting, one thing we’re upfront about with new clients is why we ask you to move payroll to us when you move your accounting. It’s not about trying to bundle services for the sake of it—it’s about fixing a lot of little problems that pile up when payroll and accounting are handled separately.
Everything Under One Roof Just Works Better
When payroll is managed separately from accounting, there’s a lot of back-and-forth. You end up chasing down numbers, waiting for updates, or trying to fix things that don’t line up. It’s frustrating and wastes your time.
When we handle both payroll and accounting, everything happens in one place:
- Payroll connects directly to your books. Your payroll automatically connects to your accounting records, so you don’t have to worry about reconciling numbers or fixing mapping issues.
- Adjustments are faster. If you need to tweak an owner’s withholding or fix how payroll is mapped to the GL, we can handle it immediately without waiting for someone else.
- Payroll data goes where it belongs. Labor costs, taxes, and other payroll expenses are coded correctly in your books the first time. You get reports you can actually trust—without having to double-check them yourself.
Payroll with Whirks
Whirks is our sister company focusing solely on payroll, HR, and employee benefits services. While Patrick Accounting handles your bookkeeping, accounting, and tax needs, Whirks takes care of the nitty-gritty details of payroll—like cutting paychecks, filing payroll taxes, and managing things like overtime or multi-state employees.
Even though we’re separate companies, we’re closely connected. We share systems, processes, and communication channels, so everything flows seamlessly. Whirks handles the payroll side, and we use that data to keep your accounting accurate and up to date. Our teams are in constant contact, so if something comes up—whether it’s a tax notice or an adjustment to your payroll—we can resolve it quickly without you having to play middleman.
Compliance Is Built Into the Process
Payroll isn’t just about paying your people—it’s tied to a long list of rules and regulations. Overtime, tax registration, benefits reporting...it’s a lot to manage, especially if your business has employees in multiple states or remote workers.
When we manage payroll and accounting together, we can see potential compliance issues before they become problems. Here’s what that looks like:
- Multi-state compliance. If you hire an employee in another state, we’ll get your business registered there for taxes right away. No surprises, no penalties.
- Nexus tracking. Got a salesperson who works across multiple states? We’ll handle the tax obligations tied to their travel so you don’t get blindsided.
- Accurate reporting. Whether it’s W-2s, overtime pay, or benefits, we make sure everything is calculated and reported correctly so you’re always in good shape.
The goal here is to keep things clean and avoid mistakes that can cost you time, money, or penalties down the road.
It Saves You Time and Money
A lot of people assume that using one provider for both payroll and accounting will cost more, but it usually saves money—and always saves time. Here’s how:
- Automation does the heavy lifting. Payroll data flows directly into your accounting system, eliminating manual entry and cutting down on errors.
- Lower accounting fees. When payroll is handled through Whirks and connected to your accounting with us, we’re not wasting time reconciling data, which means your accounting fees stay low.
- Straightforward pricing. Whirks charges the same payroll fees whether or not you use Patrick Accounting. You’re just getting the added benefit of everything working together.
We’ve done the math on this, and our rates are competitive with the market. You’re not just getting convenience—you’re getting efficiency that adds real value.
We’re Proactive, Not Reactive
When we handle both payroll and accounting, we’re not just cleaning up after problems—we’re catching things before they happen. For example:
- If you’re hiring employees in new states, we’ll let you know what needs to happen before you’re non-compliant.
- If we see an opportunity to adjust tax withholding to save you money, we’ll bring it up before year-end.
- If there’s an issue with a payroll notice or tax filing, we can fix it quickly because we already know the full story.
Making Your Back Office Work for You
One of my favorite ways to explain what we do is this:
Imagine you have a big box of LEGO bricks, and you want to build something amazing. But if your pieces are scattered everywhere and you don’t have clear instructions, it’s tough to put it all together.
Patrick Accounting and Whirks help organize all your financial “LEGO pieces”—like payroll, bookkeeping, and taxes—so you can see exactly what’s happening in your business. Once everything is in order, you can make smart decisions and build your business successfully without wasting time searching for missing pieces.
Why We Do Things This Way
From the very beginning, our goal has been to simplify your back office so you can focus on running your business. Payroll and accounting are two of the biggest moving pieces in that system, and keeping them together is the best way to make it all work.
- Your data is all in one spot. That means no delays, no missing info, and no need to coordinate between providers.
- You save time and money. Automation, accurate mapping, and streamlined processes mean you’re not paying for extra effort or fixing unnecessary mistakes.
- You get a clear picture of your business. With payroll and accounting working together, your financials make sense and give you the insights you need to make decisions.
With Whirks handling payroll and Patrick Accounting managing the books, you’re getting two parts of the same team working toward one goal: making your business easier to run.
If you’ve been frustrated by juggling multiple providers or feel like your back office is harder than it needs to be, we’d love to help. Let’s get everything organized and working the way it should—so you can focus on building the business you want.
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