Prioritizing Family Life & Business: An Interview with Anneke Stender

Written by

Top Ways to Handle Family Life and Business with a Busy Lifestyle

Several responsibilities can cause stress and anxiety in family life and business.  It can be hard to find the right balance between organizing family life events and getting year-end ready with clients and other commitments at work.

Here is a list of reminders and quick tips to keep things in perspective in your busy life:

  • Schedule: Plan smaller tasks and meetings than normal.  Time management is key and keeping a clear overview of due dates on your calendar.
  • Disconnect: When spending time with your family, make it a priority to unplug from work emails and calls.  Keep everyone informed ahead of time about your unavailability or absence, and let them know when you’ll be reconnecting.
  • Plan time for yourself: It can be exhausting to keep everything going, so taking time for yourself will rejuvenate you later.
  • Avoid talking business with family or friends when they do not ask.  However, it can be helpful to discuss certain topics and events with the most important people in your life to let them know what’s going on.
  • Clear communication: Set fixed times for family and work, so both sides can count on you.  Be fully present during those time blocks, so you’re focusing on one thing at a time.
  • Work when everyone is sleeping: getting up before the family wakes up or staying up after they go to sleep, so it doesn’t conflict with family time.
  • Delegate and trust others: bring in additional resources who can help you avoid stress.

An Interview with Anneke Stender

 

With all your responsibilities at Plumb, how do you deal with upcoming family events and all the organization and planning?

Planning ahead and calendaring everything is essential for me.  I plan out the weeks and month very detailed in my corporate calendar, so nothing gets lost and everyone knows if I’m free or not. I always mark events or tasks that are not negotiable in red, so my assistant can plan and schedule meetings around those times.

Overall, the less time I have available, the more efficient I can be.  I focus on the really important things and delegate the rest to others.  I am thankful to have a great team at Plumb behind me that I count on, so I have enough time for my family.

How do you handle work during the days you are spending time with your family?  Are there any rules you set?

When I spend time with my family, I turn off my email notifications.  I want to avoid pop-up messages on my phone, so I am fully present to focus that time with my girls and my husband. I dedicate 100% to one thing at a time.

When I visit my family in Germany, I am totally unplugged from work for the duration of the trip.  Sometimes I feel that going overseas makes it easier to enjoy the time off, because I am distancing myself from work with different time zones.

Clear communication upfront towards everyone at work and from my family is the key for making this work. By setting fixed times, my availability for family and work is clear, so both sides can count on me.

What is your favorite time and place for getting work done?

My most productive time is early in the morning.  I usually wake up at 4:30AM and start checking and responding to emails in bed, then I start getting ready for work.  When the children are sleeping, I have time to work without distraction.  However, I mostly spend working time in the office in La Jolla or Orange County.

What do you do to avoid stress and how do you boost your energy levels this time of year?

Even if I only have an hour a day, I block it off in my calendar.  Pilates helps me to relax from time to time, however, I still struggle on getting better to take time for myself.  In addition, it’s always helpful to seek outside help, such as a nanny on special occasions or counting on someone to help with recurring tasks.

As a successful business leader and mother, who inspires you?

Sheryl Sandberg.  I just finished reading her second book, “Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy. I have so much respect and admiration for her and how she handles her life.

How Plumb Family Office Accounting Can Help with your Family Life + Business Throughout the Year

Recurring tasks like bill payment or handling with taxes at the end of the year, and general organization and planning take an immense amount of valuable time. Save this time and effort with the help from additional resources to spend it with your family and friends or use to refueling your energy.

Plumb Family Office Accounting excels at high-net-worth accounting and financial consulting by applying a controller-level’s financial insight to managing personal finances.

Schedule a Consultation to Learn More:



Related Posts:

Find us on

Ultra-High-Net-Worth Investor Gains Clarity with Plumb Family CFO Services

Written by

Providing an Entrepreneur with Up-to-Date & Consolidated Financial Data for a Clear Picture of Wealth

Case Study: Ultra-High-Net-Worth Investor & Business Owner

Client:

Ultra-high-net-worth entrepreneur with multiple business investments, rental properties and luxury yacht.

Net-Worth:

$150 Million +

Background:

An entrepreneur who recently sold one of his businesses needed help with his personal accounting, tracking of income, cash flow reporting and bill pay. As he started to invest in additional businesses, he was also looking for an accounting team who could provide him with accurate GAAP compliant financial statements for his new investments.

A snapshot of his financial life included multiple operating businesses, existing holdings, and real estate assets.

Referencing an article in the New York Times, “Inside the Minds of the Ultrawealthy” by Eilene Zimmerman, she asked psychologist Brad Klontz about what it’s like to work with billionaires.

What can the rest of us learn from how the ultra-high-net-worth work through their problems?

The ultra-high-net-worth are not afraid to ask for help. They are more likely to have an internal locus of control, where they are quick to take credit for their successes and admit their failures, at least to themselves. In managing their very complex lives, they have had to rely on a variety of experts to help them along the way. When they run into problems, they are less hesitant than most of us to seek help from someone who is an expert.

Solution & Deliverables:

Plumb Family CFO delivers a customized approach for every client, depending on their needs and complexity of their financial lives.

This Client’s concerns revolved around the accuracy of the data his property management company was providing. He was also seeking accounting assistance for a newly acquired construction business that needed cleaned-up financials and advice moving forward with company performance and strategy.

Personal Reporting & Outsourced Accounting:

  • Create a consolidated trust balance sheet every month
  • Track all transactions and properly allocate
  • Implement calendar of financial due dates for all rental properties to ensure mortgages, property taxes, insurance and utilities are paid on time
  • Work in conjunction with property management firm to receive accurate data
  • Set-up internal controls and accounting procedures to track new business entities, trusts and partnerships
  • Track and consolidate investment funds
  • Reconcile all balance sheet accounts, including Cash, AR, AP and credit card liabilities
  • Project work for establishing up-to-date and accurate financial statements for newly acquired business
  • Maintain yacht slips and make sure invoices are paid on time
  • Ongoing strategic advice on company performance

Outsourced Bill Pay:

  • Forwarding bill statements to client-specific PO Box
  • Sending the Client a comprehensive list of bills for approval of payment
  • Paying bills out of a POA designated bank account
  • Processing checks that Plumb signs as Power of Attorney
  • Performing monthly bank and credit card statement reconciliations
  • Electronically filing invoices to a secured client-specific cloud folder
  • Setting up bill pay schedule with financial calendar of due dates
  • Integrating bill pay schedule into Plumb’s proprietary task management software
  • Implementing vendor management reporting
  • Creating weekly cash flow reports
  • Properly tracking income & expenses

Results – How We Help:

The Client was able to offload many personal accounting and bill pay tasks to Plumb Family CFO. He gained financial clarity and peace of mind knowing that his day-to-day transactions were being handled With consolidated reporting every month, he was able to see a clear picture of his net-worth and had more time to optimize his investment strategies.  With ongoing corporate outsourced accounting and strategic advice on a CFO-level, the Client receives recommendations on industry-specific trends with the companies that he has ownership in.

Ready for financial peace of mind?



Related Posts:

Request a Quote for Bill Pay Services:

Oops! We could not locate your form.

Keys to a Successful Onboarding of a High-Net-Worth Client

Written by

The “White-Glove” Experience of a High-Net-Worth Client Starts at Onboarding for Plumb Family CFO

The onboarding of a high-net-worth client sets the tone of the entire relationship according to Plumb Family CFO, which provides family bill pay, consolidated personal reporting and cash flow management services exclusively to the high-net-worth.  As you can image, there is a lot of financial data and vendor information to collect upfront in order to provide these services, so Plumb Family CFO has developed a system to make the onboarding process easier.  It’s simple; it starts with a conversation and customized approach.  White-Glove: marked by special care of attention: meticulous | white-glove service.

“By taking the time to schedule a meeting and get on the phone with a new client or their designated assistant, it makes a huge difference,” said Robert Scherer, President of Plumb. “By walking them through the details and getting answers over the phone, it’s much more efficient than just sending over stacks of paperwork in hopes that it eventually gets filled out correctly,” he said.

Plumb Family CFO has been working with high-net-worth clients for many years, ranging from busy entrepreneurs and investors to even busier affluent families.  They decide to utilize the services of Plumb to make their financial life easier, so onboarding should be as painless as possible. The process for a client to be formally onboarded can happen quicker with the help of a personal assistant or their single family office team. To help answer questions upfront, here is a list of FAQ.

Before starting a new relationship with a prospective high-net-worth client, Plumb sets the expectations of the onboarding lifecycle upfront.  After the initial information is gathered, it is immediately entered into a task-specific software system, complete with a financial calendar of due dates. Within 30 – 60 days, the family bill pay service is fully automated and operates on an ongoing basis.

High-Net-Worth Client Onboarding Process for Plumb Bill Pay:

Plumb has a Client Relationship Manager that leads the efforts for a new client onboarding. With a sense of ownership over a new account, the tasks get taken care of by one dedicated team member. During the duration of the setup phase, Plumb provides weekly status updates with the client or family office team in regards of the progress and items needed to finalize the transition. By having a conversation with the prospective high-net-worth client, Plumb can identify their reporting and transactional needs.

Step 1: Request for information – Gather client details

Step 2: Determine invoice approval process

  • Setup for invoices to be received via email or Plumb-specific PO box
  • Frequency of bill pay
  • Set thresholds and parameters for recurring bills
  • Limits for signing authority

Step 3: Create reporting requirements

Step 4: Plumb to prepare new client schedules – Setup system map into internal task management software

  • Calendar of financial due dates
  • Client insurance schedule
  • List of assets (properties, funds, etc.) that require bill payment/capital calls
  • List of loans that require bill payment

Step 5: Plumb to prepare electronic filing procedure

  • Create remote access or read-only access to documents on accounting software
  • Ability to produce customized reports to download

 

 

Bill Pay Process

Once the onboarding phase is complete, Plumb will engage in the following tasks on a weekly/monthly basis:

  • Bill payment
  • Vendor management
  • Bank and credit card reconciliations
  • Track all bills / due dates in proprietary task management software
  • Monthly cash flow reporting
  • Ad hoc reporting (i.e. GL detail reports)
  • Customized reporting for trusted advisors  – Read: Top Ways that Plumb Works with Trusted Advisors
  • 1099/1096 filings
  • Year end reconciliations and general ledger review
  • Supply supporting documents for taxable deductions to the CPA

Confidently manage your monthly expenses with personal bill pay service from Plumb

Landing Page Contact Form

Related Posts:

Find us on

Plumb Family Bill Pay Services: Organize Your Financial Life

Written by

Plumb Bill Pay Family & Personal Bill Pay Services

Family bill pay services is a featured offering of Plumb Family CFO.  Depending on need and the complexity of your financial affairs, family or personal bill pay can be a stand alone service or used in conjunction with financial reporting, budgeting or expense tracking.  See full list of services. 

As a professional and reliable firm, in business for over 20 years, Plumb sets up processes and procedures to execute family bill pay.  It first starts with collecting bills and vendor information, resulting in a comprehensive list of vendor and account information.  In the client setup phase, a financial calendar of due dates and bill payment procedures are produced.  Not only are your bills paid on a timely basis, but monitored, reconciled, and reviewed.

Family bill pay pricing >> click here

“Thank you for all that you have done for my family.  Your team is proactive and trustworthy and has provided us with such great confidence now that our finances are in order.  What a relief!” – HNW Family Bill Pay Client 

 Why Use Family Bill Pay Services?

  • Do you have too many bills to keep track of all the time?
  • Do you want to spend more time with your family and enjoy your wealth?
  • Are you a frequent traveler and need help paying your bills while out of town?
  • Are you disorganized or overwhelmed with paperwork and financial organization?
  • Is anyone in your family suffering from an age- or disability-related challenge?

Bill Payment Procedure:

Plumb Family CFO created a 4-step bill payment process with segregation of duties and different levels of review. By following checks and balances, clients can enjoy peace of mind knowing that their assets and bills are being monitored by an independent firm with a long history of continuity and confidentiality.

Financial Calendar of Due Dates:

Vendor Information Sheet: In order for Plumb Family CFO to handle the bill pay services of clients, information is collected at the beginning of the engagement, including a comprehensive list of vendors and account information.

Personal Vendor List: A detailed chart of all incoming bills, divided by property is set up.  This vendor list is used as a reference  for each bill, with due dates, payment methods and any special notes.

Financial and Administrative Calendar of Due Dates: This report tracks bills that occur during a quarterly, yearly or semi-annual basis.

 

Could your family benefit from Plumb bill pay services?  Fill out this form for a customized pricing quote.



Family Bill Pay Services – Related Posts:

10 Reasons to Work at Plumb

Written by

1. Location:

Plumb has multiple office locations in California, including downtown La Jolla and Newport Beach.  The main headquarters is in La Jolla, only steps away from the famous La Jolla Cove.  With the expansion of office space outside of La Jolla, Plumb is able to conveniently work with clients throughout Southern California.

 

2. Plumb Approach:

Since 1996, Plumb’s growth and reputation has flourished as a direct result of our team’s capacity to address client needs and execute creative and effective solutions to a number of complex organizations.  Throughout the years, Plumb’s operational efficiencies not only lent itself to Plumb’s growth, but they have allowed Plumb to create a staffing structure for optimal pricing.

Plumb employees enjoy working on a number of different clients, in different industries, at any given time. This gives them more exposure to various tasks in accounting and increases their skillset.

The Plumb Structure for an Outsourced Accounting Client:

  • CFO
  • Controller
  • Senior Staff Accountant
  • Junior Staff Accountant
  • HR/Recruiting

3. Team Building Events:

To make the Plumb approach work effectively, Plumb gathers all employees, from all office locations, every quarter for company-wide updates.  At these meetings, each division shares some highlights, including new clients, staffing news, marketing activities, software certifications and charity involvement.

Plumb consists of three distinct divisions: Corporate Outsourced Accounting; Plumb Family Office Accounting and Bill Pay; and Sage Construction Certified Partner.

The best part about these team building meetings is that they are centered around a fun and competitive event.  Accountants and software consultants do NOT like to lose! Plus, Rob Scherer always grills up his famous prime steak sliders.

 

4. Plumb Clients:

Plumb provides accounting services and software solutions to a variety of companies, industries and high-net-worth families in Southern California and across the United States. With various divisions, serving startups to small and mid-market companies, there is not a “typical” client for Plumb.  Here is a list of some clients and case studies within each division at Plumb.

Outsourced Accounting:

Plumb Family Office Accounting:

Sage Construction Software:

5. COIs – Center of Influence:

Plumb works closely with our client’s center of influence (COI) or trusted advisors.  We believe that a collaborative implementation with all of our client’s COIs leverages their total expertise and gives everyone the backdrop to make better financial decisions and achieve business goals.

 

6. The Food:

Plumb may consist of a bunch of accountants and software consultants, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t all foodies at heart.  We love to eat! Thankfully, the kitchen is always stocked with snacks, desserts and more snacks.

Every month, Plumb hosts a New Employee Luncheon to introduce new team members and enjoy pizza or a local La Jolla catered meal.

In addition to the monthly luncheons, Plumb also hosts Quarterly Potlucks. This is an all-time favorite event at Plumb. Every quarter we come up with a new ‘theme’ to be added to the sign-up list. Plumb has employees from diverse backgrounds and it’s fun to try different food from different parts of the world.

 

7. Networking:

Since many Plumb clients are referred by COIs (see number 5), we believe in the power of networking. Plumb employees are members of organizations, such as ProVisors, BIA, ACG, CFMA, CalCPA and the list goes on.

In addition to attending networking events, Plumb also hosts “Lunch and Learns”, “Educational Workshops” and “Webinars”.

 

8. Parties:

The executive management team at Plumb likes to host parties!  Plumb hosts holiday parties, client appreciation parties, open house parties and parties to celebrate employees and divisions reaching goals.

 

9. Out-of-Town Conferences:

As a leading software partner for Sage Construction Software, Plumb sends software consultants to annual conferences to learn the updated features and latest requirements.

10. Employees:

Last, but not least, one of the top reasons to work at Plumb are the employees = Plumb!  We call ourselves Plumb, because, regardless of what division, or who our clients are, we work together as a team.  Our clients depend on our expertise, and appreciate the fact that we are an accounting team, consisting of CPAs, and Controllers who are knowledgeable in many industries.

Most importantly, we like to have fun!

 

 

 

Want to learn more about Plumb?  We are hiring.  See our job listings here. 

Follow us on Social Media:



Paperwork Relief after a Natural Disaster: Guidance on How to Start Managing the Chaos

Written by

4 Steps for Paperwork Relief:

After experiencing devastating natural disasters in the past weeks, those who were affected are trying to get back on track and find paperwork relief. Besides numerous other steps, victims need to document their losses and damages, checking their records and embracing lots of paperwork. Since various issues need to be managed in such times, any guidance can be helpful for getting things done. The following methods give an idea on how to reconstruct documents as a first step for claiming benefits and organizing financial records.

1. Support by the IRS

For helping the victims, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is providing support from reconstructing records to a variety of tax relief. Free tax return transcripts for taxpayers are available on IRS.gov or with the smartphone app IRS2Go  or via phone (800) 908-9946. The documents can give an overview of the information required to claim the offered benefits.

Extended tax deadlines can help to relieve stress and anxiety for those affected. Detailed information on paperwork relief can be found on the website of IRS or in the Disaster Resource Guide published by IRS.

2. Documentation and Records

For claiming benefits like tax relief or financial support, verifications and documentation of personal property or belongings are required to establish values. The following methods help to capture damages and losses:

  • Photos and videos right after the disaster can be used to verify ownership and record the extent of damages. Also lost belongings that are captured on pictures taken before the disaster help to verify.
  • Another possibility are online purchases, where invoices can be found in the buyers account on the website or in the emails.
  • Credit or debit card purchases will also help to give an overview on the bought property.
  • Service providers like financial institutions or contractors can also provide copies of necessary documents to verify costs or investments.

3. Auto Damage

If a vehicle was damaged, independent sources could help to estimate a realistic and fair value. Services can be found online, for example at Kelly Blue Book or National Automobile Dealers Association.

4. Insurance Coverage

Depending on the extent of coverage, insurances often take care of replacements and financial support. Especially real estate owners should check their insurance policies and the stated value to calculate a base figure for replacement.

How Plumb Family CFO can help

Paperwork can be overwhelming at such times of crisis, and starting is never easy. A good understanding of financial services, tax deadlines and accounting services help to fully realize losses and damages. You can obtain financial relief through insurance, tax deductions, and other sources. In case you do not have time to handle these issues, an experienced and reliable accountant is recommended.

Plumb Family CFO provides assistance and paperwork relief by collecting and organizing documents and financial records. Due to consistent communication and interaction with all of the client’s professional advisors, an overall view on accounting and financial documents can be provided. The services mentioned below show how Plumb can offer guidance, no matter if in good or in bad times.

 

Are you looking for paperwork relief?  Schedule a consultation to learn more.

Landing Page Contact Form

Tax Deduction Survey for Tax Season

Written by

Take the Tax Deduction Quiz!

Just in time for tax season

Do you think you know what qualifies as a tax deduction?  Here at Plumb, an outsourced accounting firm in San Diego and Orange County, we have a full team of accounting professionals who organize our client’s financials to get prepared for filing tax returns.  We are not a CPA firm, rather a company that supports businesses and high-net-worth families with their part-time and outsourced accounting needs.

Whether you are a CPA, tax professional, accountant or simply handle your own personal tax returns, test your knowledge with this quiz!

 >> Tax Deduction Quiz! <<

Plumb works in partnership with our client’s CPAs to handle all the preliminary tax work for year-end.  With our customized 7-Step Process, Plumb delivers an Annual Tax Organizer, consisting of a one-page tax summary sheet outlining information sent to the CPA.  With our pre-tax accounting services, it ensures accurate record-keeping, and reconciliation of all asset accounts.  For more information on our Annual Tax Organizer, click here.

Pre-Tax Accounting Services:

  • Tracking and recording 1099’s,
  • Tracking and recording charitable contributions
    • Any contribution over $250 must have a letter or receipt
  • Tracking and recording medical expenses
  • Tracking and recording sales of stock
    • Enter gross proceeds and gross cost basis
  • Record and calculate Gross Distribution, Taxable amount and taxes withheld from Wages, Pensions or Gambling Winnings
  • Re-classify income per 1099
  • Verify 1099-G; money received from State & Local Tax Refunds

If you want to experience financial peace of mind this tax season, Plumb is here to help.  

Landing Page Contact Form