In a period of so much change is it also time to change your accountant?
Business owners and directors place a great deal of trust into the hands of their bookkeeper and accountant. But how do you know if they are doing a good job, let alone doing the right job, doing the work your business actually needs?
A big challenge if you’re running a business is how to review your accountant’s work effectively. What are the appropriate checks and balances? What timescales should you expect? What information? What technology?
What does best practice look like if you’ve never seen it?
Why should you change your accountant?
Good financial information is the foundation every business needs. Financial information that’s up to date, easily available, consistent and understandable!
Financial information that’s relevant to your business, not a “one-size-fits-all” set of reports from central casting.
Financial information that helps you track and improve profitability and cashflow. Information that helps you make money.
If it doesn’t feel like that’s what you’re getting then maybe it’s time to change?
How do we make a difference?
These are the common themes we see with new clients:
- make sure the bookkeeping is correct!
- redesign workflows and processes to be more efficient and, hopefully, paper-free
- understand the drivers for profitability
- customise financial reports and ensure they go to whoever needs them
- make sure cashflow is sound and take action if needs be
- look hard at credit control
- question whether the right technology is being used (spoiler alert: there’s a lot of hype about some of the shiny, new tech out there)
We want to make sure that day-to-day bookkeeping is thorough as this is the foundation for good financial management. Then, things like VAT returns, paying PAYE, saving for annual tax payments are all visible, easily managed and won’t get in the way.
And once the day-to day work is running like a well-oiled machine, year-end tasks – accounts and tax returns – are much more straight-forward.
Sounds a bit more like what you want?
Institute of Chartered Accountants Business Advice Service
The ICAEW Business Advice Service (BAS) connects owners of small and medium-sized businesses with ICAEW regulated firms who will provide a free initial consultation, without obligation.
We’re a member firm of the BAS service which means we offer that free first meeting.
And we’re happy to meet in the real world – so why not give us a call and pop in to see us?
Want to know more? This 2 minute video explains our approach to bookkeeping for business:
And remember – a poor quality accountant is like KGB sleeper, you may not know you’ve got one until it’s too late.
