Reconciled takes cloud accounting to new heights
Photo: Michael Ly, Owner and Founder of Reconciled. Photo by Danny Monahan.
Online bookkeeping for entrepreneurs.
It’s a very simple sentence needing no explanation. Those four words are the first a visitor reads when visiting the home page for Reconciled, an online bookkeeping company headquartered in Burlington, Vt.
“People visit the website because they have a problem. I wanted the website to tell them immediately ‘Reconciled can help you with that problem,’” said Michael Ly, owner and founder of Reconciled.
The website, www.getreconciled.co, doesn’t just get to the bottom line up front, it is a very appealing sleek website that is easy to navigate.
“Having a modern great looking website was essential when I first envisioned Reconciled. So much of accounting is based on trust. When you are asking someone for their financial statements, you are asking for very personal information. Your website has to be trustworthy, so clients know Reconciled will provide consistent, accurate remote accounting services,” said Ly.
Ly hatched the idea for Reconciled while working as an accounting consultant. Ly noticed many of his clients had poor bookkeeping records. Rather than constantly asking for more financial documentations and making corrections, Ly felt he could serve them more effectively if he did their bookkeeping for them online.
In 2015, Ly launched Reconciled. It started as a two-person outfit and a Small Business Administration guaranteed loan for a revolving line of credit. Less than four years, the company has experienced substantial success. Reconciled has 20 employees, more than 100 clients and annual sales in excess of $1 million. Growth has been so significant, Reconciled opened a second office in Charlottesville, N.C. In 2018 the accounting software company Intuit, whose products include TurboTax and Quickbooks, named Reconciled a finalist for its annual Firm of the Future Award. In addition, Reconciled provides discounted services to nonprofit organizations in Vermont.
Reconciled only hires U.S.-based accounting professionals who possess an accounting certificate from an accredited institution and/or equivalent bookkeeping experience. Ly said when clients talk with his accountants he wants them to know the person on the other line or computer screen is an expert in Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
“I’ve been very intentional in recruiting employees state-wide to work for Reconciled and leveraging technology to allow flexible work from home opportunities as well as employ a demographic that includes working parents, young professionals and immigrants.”
Reconciled’s Director of Revenue Operations Ian Bouchett feels Ly’s leadership is a tremendous assets for Vermont.
“Michael is running a terrific company that empowers a diverse group of employees and supports entrepreneurs across the state,” said Bouchett
Ly says he understands the importance of having a diverse workforce because he himself is the son of Cambodian immigrants. His parents were both entrepreneurs and his sister started a real estate company and his brother sells consumer electronics online.
Due to the company offering cloud-based services, several of Ly’s employees do not reside in Vermont, though Ly stresses he gives priority to Vermont candidates. Reconciled is actively seeking to fill two positions, a bookkeeper and a manager.
Although it is not unusual for small businesses to offer some employee benefits, Reconciled offers an array of highly valued benefits, including vacation, 401(k) plan, and health, dental and vision care.
“I want Reconciled to be a place I want to go work for. When explaining the benefits to a prospective employee and then remind them, ‘by the way, you get to work from home,’ I want them to they know this is a great place to work,” said Ly.
For its financial and employment growth, Reconciled was recently named the 2019 Vermont Minority-Owned Business of the Year by the Small Business Administration.
This article originally appeared in Vermont Biz and was written by Danny Monahan
https://vermontbiz.com/news/2019/july/04/reconciled-takes-cloud-accounting-new-heights