ExamopotamiaWhy test a bookkeeper before hiring?
Many small businesses hire one bookkeeper and trust them with everything. If that person posts payments to the wrong side, records drawings as an expense or works out tax from the gross the wrong way, nobody notices until the accountant prepares the year-end accounts, and then it costs money to unpick. A practical test with real day-to-day entries tells you quickly whether a candidate has the basics, whatever software they have used before.
What this template covers
- Everyday entries: credit sales, customer receipts and supplier payments.
- Assets and liabilities: classifying common balances, and owner's drawings.
- Petty cash and bank: checking a float and handling bank charges in a reconciliation.
- Tax arithmetic: working back from a gross amount to the net figure.
- Checks and reports: duplicate invoices, suspense accounts and aged receivables.
How to run it well
Twelve questions with a 15 minute limit is a fair screen. Most employers set the pass mark at 70%, since these are everyday tasks. Turn on question and option shuffling. If you hire often, add more questions to your bank and let each candidate get a random set of twelve, so the test stays fresh.
Most questions are single choice, with a multiple-select on assets and a true/false on source documents. When you read results, check the two hard calculation questions (petty cash and net from gross) and the duplicate invoice question. A candidate who gets those right is usually careful in the way bookkeeping needs.
Who this test is for
Use it for bookkeepers, accounts assistants, finance administrators, and office managers who will keep the books. Accounting practices can use it when hiring bookkeepers to work on client records. Business owners who are about to hand over their books to a freelancer can also send it first, as a simple, objective check before sharing bank access and supplier details with someone new.
Make it yours
The questions are software-neutral and avoid any country's tax rules. Add questions on the accounting package you use, your local sales tax return and your payroll process if the role covers it. You might also add questions on your own chart of accounts, or on how you treat common transactions such as card fees or online sales. Keep the questions practical: the best ones describe a transaction your bookkeeper will really see in their first month.