Outsourcing Admin Tasks: Boost Efficiency, Cut Costs & Regain Control!

 Andy
Let’s go!  You’re listening to The Tradie Show. This is the podcast for trade business and contracting bosses like you who want to lead with confidence, make more profit and create a better lifestyle. 

Ange
We’re your hosts, Andy and Angela Smith, husband & wife team and co-founders of Lifestyle Tradie. Are you ready to have some fun? 

 Andy
Hell yeah!  Imagine, it’s a year from now. You wake up, the sun’s out, and instead of rushing out the door stressed, you’re taking your time and enjoying your coffee. Your business is running smoothly, your cash flow is steady, and your weekends are actually yours. Sounds good, doesn’t it? But if you’re like most tradies I’ve met, that feels miles away from the reality right now. I’m Andy Smith, and I know the grind. I know the late nights, the endless stress, and the feeling that your business owns you, not the other way around. But I also know what it takes to turn that around, and I want to show you. Let’s jump on a Gameplan Call. It’s just 10 minutes. We’re going to cut through the noise, figure out what’s holding you back, and build a clear roadmap  to get you to that better place. So go to lifestyletradie.com.au, tap the Gameplan Call button, or scroll down and lock in a time that suits. You’re closer than you think to building the business you’ve always wanted. One call can change everything. Let’s make sure that 2025 isn’t just another year of struggling, but the year that everything clicks. Let’s make it happen.  

Today, we’re excited to introduce Tennille Skelly from Dream Admin Services. Tennille has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the commercial building sector and has mastered the art of efficient admin support. 

Ange
Tennille started her own business to help tradies like you tackle everything from HR to bookkeeping, providing flexible and cost effective solutions. So, welcome to The Tradie Show, Tennille. 

Tennille
Um, hi, Andy and Ange. Thanks for having me. 

 Andy
It’s so good to have you here. And I know for many, many years, a lot of our members at times use you and they rave about you. So it’s so good to have you on the show here today. So just to start off Tennille, we’re going to kick it off with, tell us a bit about your background and what motivated you to start an admin outsourcing business?

Tennille
Yeah, sure. So, uh, I was born, raised, educated in Canberra, made the move to beautiful Goulburn, When I met my husband, I’ve been here for 13 years and I did the daily commute. I commuted up and down to Canberra every day for work. And when my children came along, I was like, this is not how I want to live my life. And I lost my job overnight. The business I worked for closed and I thought it’s now or never. So I went all in, followed my dream, hence the name and Dream Admin was formed. So my background is predominantly in building and construction, legal and government sectors. So all of those little things, all of those tools that I had learned over the years just helped me form, train, find those pain points for businesses and to be up.

 Andy
And how long ago have you been in business, for now? So I know your team has grown quite considerably along the way as well. 

Tennille
Yeah. Six years. We’ve been in business for six years. Um, I started off in the granny flat at the side of my house, just on my own. Um, and yeah, I now employ 15 people here in Goulburn.

 Andy
Right. Absolutely love that story. 

Ange
That’s amazing. And what I love is the history with respect to, you know, each time you gather these new skill sets, just arm you for the next responsibility or, you know, decision that you’ve made in life. And I like the fact that you actually got a nudge Tennille that made you just go all in on something that was so important to you. And, you know, quite clearly this industry is our passion too. So I’m interested to know in your opinion, what are some of the common admin pain points that trade business owners face? 

Tennille
Well, we see lots of different pain points with this, particularly in small trade businesses. So often the tradie is so on the tools, you know, on the job all the time that the admin, the bookkeeping, the HR, they’re all pushed to the side or they’ve done after hours. And that just causes more pressure, lack of time, and impacts family. So we see that day in, day out. And a lot of the time tradies don’t know what their compliance is. What is compliance? Yes. What do I have to keep up to speed with? How do I read a P&L? What does my P&L mean? What’s a balance sheet? You know, all of those things, sometimes they come to us, they’re very raw, understandably because they’re really good at throwing a hammer, right? Yes. They’re not trained in understanding how a business runs and how to have a really good functioning business. 

 Andy
Yeah. That’s right. We’ve talked about it many times. We’re all great with our hands. Aren’t we? Us tradies. But, uh, the biggest problem that we see out there is understanding how to run a business successfully and, and you guys take a lot of that stress away for these guys. So what a great job you do as well. So how can outsourcing admin tasks improve efficiency and productivity for trade business owners? Who as we touched on, they’re really stretched thin between the tools and the office. 

Tennille
Yeah, sure. So outsourcing allows you to focus  on your core income generating activities, right? So we want our tradies out in the field, making money through what they’re really good at. So I always say, do what you do best, outsource at rest. Yeah. So it allows you to reduce your overhead. So not all small trade businesses need an office. For example, unless you’ve got a showroom or something like that. So outsource those tasks. Do you really need an in-house admin person sitting at a desk answering a phone for you? Do you need a bookkeeper in your office or a HR specialist in your office? Most of the time we see that people don’t actually need those things and they don’t need a full time person undertaking those functions for their business. So that’s a really good way of outsourcing those tasks to somebody who’s super highly skilled in that area and who’s efficient and can save you time and money. 

 Andy
Yeah. And I find, uh, some small businesses when we talk about, Hey, you need some help, you know, their first concern is the dollars and cents and, and obviously we’re all business owners and we all need to make some money. And I know you guys are very reasonable, but when people come to you, you know, even with Lifestyle Tradie, people go, what’s the ROI, you know? And I’m like, well, you know, and so no doubt people come to you as well and go, well, what are you going to do for me? And how is it going to help me? Is there any way of measuring that potential return of investment, um, on the admin services that you do for these people?

Tennille
Sure. Look, there’s been some studies globally that outsourcing can save a business up to 30%, depending how much you choose to outsource your business. So there’s some figures, there’s some metrics in and around that, that people can look at. But I think for me, ROI is not necessarily always monetary. Right? Yeah. It’s time. It’s time with your family. Are you not working back late? You know, in the office, crunching numbers where you could be spending time with your family. So that’s one way I think you can measure ROIs. How much time am I in fact getting back to my life? Am I getting somebody super skilled in these areas? Who’s 10 times better at this than what I am? I would never dream of thinking that I know how to clear a block drain. I’m not skilled at that. I don’t know how to build a house. So, outsource those skills to people who are super efficient and really, really highly skilled at doing those things for you. I think another ROI metric that people can use is, are your customers happy? Right? Are those services that you’re outsourcing, for example, virtual reception or your admin tasks. Are your customers happy with the service they’re getting? Are you getting excellent customer service each and every time? So I know some of our tradies answer the phone to their customers when they’re on a roof or on a noisy building site. Is that the best customer experience?

Ange
I definitely would agree that now customers are far more demanding than ever. And just even talking about that aspect of answering your phones, they do have an expectation that you’re going to answer that phone real quick. And if you don’t respond immediately, they are just literally going to move on to the next other tradie in the lineup of who they’re going to contact. So I definitely agree with you that outsourcing is a good idea, especially when billable time is how these tradies actually make money. Yet that it is a trade off of ensuring that getting their business model right is ensuring that they’re on the tools making money. But there’s a lot of backhand with an office, call it, doing, you know, administrative tasks to ensure that this flow of the job is really tight. Tenille, you mentioned before the difference between having someone like outsourcing tasks versus having someone in your house, say, or someone full time that’s working with you side by side in your home. Can you articulate what are the cost implications of outsourcing versus hiring in-house staff and how can trade businesses determine which option perhaps is more beneficial for them?

Tennille
Yeah, sure. So I think one of the big things you can look at straight away is how much support do you need, really? So I think it’s a really old school way of thinking that you actually need an admin person with a bum on a seat in your office to get full return. I think if you break it down Often most small trade businesses need somewhere with bookkeeping two to five hours of support per week. That includes that full bookkeeping function. So payroll, bars, bank rec, AP, accounts receivable. It’s somewhere around there. Some businesses need more depending on their size. So do you actually need a 38 hour per week bookkeeper sitting in your office? Or do you need somebody highly skilled at five hours per week? So the math you can do really quickly. You also then can potentially save on fit out costs of your office. You don’t need to fit out a desk and a laptop and a phone, things like that for your admin person. So you’re saving these, saving on uniforms. So there’s lots of small cost savings that you can have there. And not to mention the wages costs. So wages are just going up and up and up and up super tax, uh, and, and they’re still going to continue to go up. So once you look at all of those calculations, often outsourcing can be a really cost effective option for most small businesses. 

 Andy
Yeah. It’s interesting. And, the big thing that I’m saying when I’m listening to what you have to say is that when you hire staff these days, you know, wages are considerably gone up. There’s no doubt about that, but a lot of people worry about getting someone in and then they’ve got to train them. And are they going to do the right job? And are they being productive? And when you’re not around, are they doing the work? And, and all of a sudden, am I getting the benefit out of this person? And then once you have an employee, depending if they’ve been with you for three months, six months, it’s harder to move them on if you’re not happy. And, and all these kinds of things come into it where you got to pay super and this and all, or everything that comes into it, right? So, this is where doing the job like you guys are doing at the moment can just take a lot of that pressure, especially off those small business owners. So what are some of the admin related mistakes that you can see that negatively impact the profitability of a trade business and how can they be avoided? 

Tennille
Yeah, sure. So the biggest one we see is people not understanding what their financials are telling them, right? So I always say the numbers always tell you the story. And I also have another saying junk in junk out. So if your book work is not up to speed, it’s not reconciled properly. You’re going to get rubbish junky reports. So having somebody at the front line of your business, who is like, we are here registered as agents, we’re as highly skilled in our industry as we can get. You’ll understand the numbers. and can hold your hand and educate you on what they mean. That is probably one of the biggest things that we see with a lot of trades businesses is they don’t understand what the numbers are telling them. And then that then flows into not understanding cash flow. What are the peaks and troughs of your cash flow cycle? How’s that going to affect your business? What strategies are you putting in place to handle those down times? So there’s some of the key things that we see in the bookkeeping space. In the admin and virtual reception space, it’s that quality customer service every time. Is your phone being answered within six rings? Is the person on the end of your call up to speed with your business, up to speed with your pricing? Is a customer service expert? It’s going to provide your client with the best customer service experience when dealing with your business. So instead of you being on a roof answering a call and like, yeah, mate, I’ll get, I’ll get back to you. No problems. And then it falls into the never ending pile of things that you’ve got to get back to. So there are a few things that jumped to mind, not to mention the HR space. That’s a whole nother discussion that we could have in and around looking after your employees and making sure they’re the right fit.

 Andy
Yeah, it’s absolutely huge. And I know any of our long term listeners would hear it in the back of their heads ringin, Know your numbers.  I’ve been saying about it for years, but it’s very hard running a business with a blindfold on. And there’s so many things within a business that you need to know that so many people just don’t get. And majority of the people that come and work with us, they go, Oh my God, I didn’t realize business was so hard. And while you’ve been in business for eight years, mate, you probably should have realized by now, but you know, these are all the things that come in by using services like you guys that can make a real big difference. So how do business owners identify and address these issues early on? I think you touched on it. Knowing your numbers is one. 

Tennille
I always say you will feel the pain. 

 Andy
Yeah. 

Ange
So true. Right. 

 Andy
Yeah. Yeah. 

Tennille
You’ll feel the pain, act quickly on the pain, right? Don’t let the pain sit there and deal with it and think that you have all the answers. Lean on your trusted advisors, lean on people within your agency and within your group, your community, such as yourselves, who can help you find the answers. Business doesn’t have to be hard. You just need the tools in your tool belt for success. So identify those issues early on, look at the people that you’re working with. Are they delivering on the things that they’ve promised you? Hold them to account, if they’re not delivering, they’re not the right fit for your business. Move them on. Start working with people in your space that work well for your business. 

Ange
I know from working with trade business owners for years that one of the sentences is, but nobody can do it as good as I can. And hence they just keep fumbling through, even though they’ve hit this pain of, this isn’t working for me, there must be a better way. And they just keep going around on this little rat wheel. So I’m curious to know when you know that business owners who are perhaps feeling hesitant to kind of really lean on maybe admin for outsourcing versus even adopting someone inside their business, what are some of these misconceptions that we can actually get around?

Tennille
Yeah, sure. Great question. So here at Dream when we developed our purpose, our purpose is to build strong relationships with our clients, treating their business as if it was our own. And that’s, that’s our lifeblood here at Dream. So, I think a lot of businesses, it’s natural to not want to lose control and we 100 percent appreciate that it is a transition period. It does take a time to develop a strong relationship and to develop trust. But if you have done your research, you’re working with a well oiled business, who’s got good reviews, who’s got all of the qualifications and skills is registered with the Tax Practitioners Board, we’re held to such high accounts. For our business, we’re going to look after your business. We have to. It’s our lifeblood. And if that relationship is not there, if you don’t vibe with that person that you’re working with, that’s okay. Not everybody works well together and that’s okay. Find somebody that you do work well with and develop that trust and good healthy relationship.

 Andy
Let’s get into technology and what tools and technologies are you seeing out there at the moment that’s really streamlining trade businesses at the moment and their admin tasks? 

Tennille
There is so much cool software out there at the moment, like it’s just exploding in the admin bookkeeping space of these incredible pieces of software that are just revolutionizing, making business life easier for tradies. Some of the things obviously that we work with here are obviously Xero, Myob, QBO, but then in the trade space, obviously ServiceM8, Tradify, AroFlo. These are some really cool pieces of software that can completely revolutionize your business when they’re implemented well and they’re used for purpose. So there’s some cool things there. Other things that we’re using here in house and in house technology advances that we use, we’ve got live lead sheets. So every call that comes into our business, we’re populating into a live lead sheet that our tradie can access anywhere at any time to see who’s called into their business. What are they calling about? What’s that called converted to a job? Um, and we’ve implemented our own technology in and around that to give our tradies more visibility on what we’re doing here and how that’s affecting their business positively or negatively. Is their pricing not right? Things like that. It’s such a cool piece of software that then lets them market to more people as well. 

 Andy
And that’s critical. When you’re spending money on marketing, you want to make sure you’re getting the results when that phone rings, right? So the fact that you’re doing that can really help with them understanding the data.

Ange
Absolutely. One of the other really cool things that have come to market quite significantly, of course, is AI. So we’ve been talking to our members about new AI answering services. For instance, Tennille, and we even recently heard about a new AI phone service that calls people and chases up invoices. There’s actually an electrical business using one called Curious Things by Lucy that even has an Aussie voice. What’s your take on AI in the trade industry? 

Tennille
Look, I think AI definitely has its place in business. It’s revolutionizing and changing the game in terms of making us more efficient, you know, within our businesses. So I think it definitely has a place. However, I don’t think it can come at the cost of the human element, especially when it comes to dealing with things like debts. Like your debtor follows up. I think that really needs a human element. Picking up the phone, having a conversation with your debtor. You know, are they experiencing some hardship? Can we put a payment arrangement in place? What are some of the things that we can do to get that money in the door? I don’t think an AI bot can replace that. And I also don’t think it can replace your ability to form relationships with your clients. I know personally, if I rang up and got an AI bot when I’m trying to book a job or resolve an issue or I want to speak to somebody, it’s frustrating. We get it with Telstra. I don’t know if you’ve dealt with Telstra recently, but you get it with Telstra and it can bring an element of frustration to your client. So I think you need to do some research in and around how AI can help support your business, not hinder it. So I think it definitely has its place. But used in the right way. 

Ange
I think the beauty about our trade industry is this human element is never going to go away. This relationship building and trust building is critical. And to your point, relationships with understanding empathy goes so far. So I definitely agree that AI is a great base and can be injected into a business. But you definitely need to have your business model right to ensure that the AI is doing the right thing so that you are far more efficient and productive in your trade business. 

 Andy
Well, I think we all know that the sales, sales, when you talk about your business and everyone needs sales, um, it all starts from the moment they look at your website, they find out who you are to that phone call. And if you’re not building that instant connection. They’re a bit like, Oh, what am I getting myself into? But I know we’ve been listening to things in America where they’re using them in businesses and they use it to buy a subway, for instance. And yeah, I think if you ring up and you’re buying a subway, it’s not a, it’s not a problem. Right. But in this day and age, when you want to feel like you’ve got an issue, And you want to be heard. You really want to have that emotion attached around that. So we’re just not there yet. I’m not saying we won’t get there, but we’re not there yet. So I agree with what you’re saying there Tennille. So what advice would you give to trade business owners who are considering outsourcing their admin tasks, but are a little bit unsure where to start?

Tennille
Yeah, cool. Great. Great question. Uh, it’s such a minefield out there when trying to select your right outsourcing model. If you’re looking for an outsourced bookkeeper, straight away, check the Tax Practitioners Board. Make sure they’re a registered BAS agent. 

 Andy
I love that. 

Tennille
Same goes for your accountant. Check the Tax Practitioners Board, ensure that they’re a registered tax agent. It’s so important. It means that we’re as highly skilled as you can be to undertake those services in that space. I can’t emphasize that enough. There are a lot of rogue bookkeepers out there who are not skilled enough to be doing the work compliantly to report to the ATO. Super important. That’s number one. Give your business and your outsourcing model time to develop, right? Rome wasn’t built in a day. We’re not going to step into your business overnight and say, we’ve got all the answers and we can fix all your problems within 24 hours. Like anything, a good relationship takes time. Invest the time. And your outsourcing business will invest the time back. It can take, sometimes four weeks to get all the wheels in motion, but once it’s in motion, it’s going to be such a massive time saver for you and your business. Research the business. What type of business are they? What services do they offer? Can they grow and scale with your business? Do they have the manpower to help you take your business to the next level? Are there a one stop business solution shops like we are here? Can they help you with all aspects of your business services, HR, bookkeeping, marketing, admin, virtual reception, all those sorts of things. See if they’re the right fit for your business. And do they have good testimonials? Do some research. What are their other clients saying about them? 

 Andy
Yeah, I, 100% agree. And I will say there are, and we will touch on it as you did, there are some rogue bookkeepers out there. And I know there’s a lot of people that got themselves in a lot of trouble. So that is some amazing advice. Make sure you’re going to the experts. There’s no two ways about that. 

Ange
Definitely. So Tennille, any final thoughts or advice for trade business owners? 

Tennille
Look, I think everybody is doing it tough these days. So, I say to my trainees all the time, take the time to smell the roses and invest in the areas of your business where you need the help most. Right? Sit down, have a chat with your family. Where can you free up time? Where are the things that you can do that are going to help you grow your business to the next level? Spend more time on the tools. Have those discussions and be honest with yourself. Be honest. And whilst every transition is scary, if you’re working with a really good trusted advisor, it’ll pay dividends for you. So give it some time, put some thought into it. 

Ange
We’ve definitely seen when trade business owners have come and worked with Lifestyle Tradie and their eyes have been opened around what needs to happen to perfect the flow of a job. And they go, Oh, I’m not doing so many parts of that. And actually it’s not even my skill set. It’s not my strength. So it is a really good sentence to say when you understand business well and you realize what must happen, then where do you need to maintain focus so that your business is profitable and efficient at all times? And therefore, what are you prepared to let go? So stop being the control freak, understand what needs to go elsewhere so that you now understand what skill sets you need to outsource. So, uh, all great advice Tennille. It’s, uh, it’s great to hear your thoughts. 

Tennille
As I said, remember that slogan, do what you do best, outsource at rest. 

 Andy
Yeah. Love that. Love that. So today we’ll play a little bit of a game on our podcast. So we’re going to hit you with three rapid fire questions. You’re going to have around 10 to 20 seconds to answer them. Are you ready?  

Tennille
I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. Let’s go. 

Ange
Alright, let’s do it. First question. What is one strategy you use to start your day right? 

Tennille
Coffee. 

 Andy
Oh, I have to say, that’s me too.

Ange
How do you take your coffee, Tennille?  

Tennille
Oh, just white. Just a nice, good, strong, flat white. 

Ange
Love it.

 Andy
Love it, love it. And what is something that has made you smile recently?

Tennille
My kids. 

 Andy
Yeah, family and kids are an amazing thing. They’re either making you smile or cry.  

Ange
At the moment, ours are maybe making us cry. 

 Andy
Oh, no, they’re amazing. They’re just hard work. 

Tennille
Yeah.  Do you know what? I always said that being a mom is a much harder job than running a business. 

Ange
A hundred percent. 

Tennille
It’s, yeah, I completely get it, but they bring me so much joy. 

 Andy
Yeah, they do. 

Ange
Fantastic. So, Tennille, last question, what’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Tennille
Just for the job that you want, not the job that you have. 

 Andy
Yeah, I love that. 

Ange
Profound.

 Andy
It’s great, it is, it is. Well, awesome stuff, Tennille. It’s been a cracking episode today. I think everyone would agree. So thank you so much for joining The Tradie Show and sharing all of your wisdom and insights on outsourcing and admin for trade businesses. I know this would have inspired a lot of people listening to this podcast today. So get out there, start implementing or streamlining this part of your business now. 

Tennille
Thanks guys. Thanks for having me. It’s been a pleasure. 

Ange
Thanks, Tennille. We totally appreciate your time. So, crew, that’s it for us this week. Make sure you tune in next week for another great episode of The Tradie Show.

 Andy
Have the best week. Hell yeah!

Subscribe to The Tradie Show, wherever you get your favorite podcasts.  Rate and write us a review or for more information about Lifestyle Tradie, head to lifestyletradie.com.au.