A small business can't succeed if the books don't get balanced.

And unless you're an accountant heading out to start your own firm, there's a good chance you'll want to seek professional help very early in the business -- perhaps before you even open your doors.

So join Work It, Richmond on Wednesday, April 24 to hear from some industry experts.

One of our speakers will be Greg Jones, CEO of BookKeeping Express. The company is based in Northern Virginia and has a major processing center in Newport News, as well as operations in Richmond.

Jones will share his expertise on how small businesses can "outsource" their accounting and bookkeeping to help the business owner focus on the core aspects of the business.

Also joining us is Cathy Mueller director of operations at Richmond-based Peoples Income Tax. In that role she oversees both the income tax and small-business services divisions. She has also taught tax preparation courses and seminars around the region.

And our final panelist is Julie Stepp, a senior consultant at Fahrenheit Finance. Julie has 22 years of accounting and systems implementation experience. She'll be helping us understand how small businesses can manage the transition to more complex accounting and finance systems without letting the moves derail growth.

The panel will be moderated by Jacob Geiger, director of Work It, Richmond

As always, the event will include time for networking and socializing. We're meeting this month at Capital Ale House's downtown location. 

Thursday's event is brought to our readers by Bookkeeping Express.