Attaining that perfect business-accountant partnership

It’s 2023, but are you still partnering with your accountant like its 2003?  GoFi8ure’s Lisa Martin says a new year demands new thinking on both sides of the table.

2022 was a watershed year for GoFi8ure. The transformational accounting advisory firm celebrated 20 years in business, and in November its executive director Lisa Martin achieved her long-held goal of becoming a Certified Practising Accountant.

This achievement provided an excellent opportunity to reflect on her own personal and business journey, and how it led to her nationwide business becoming one of the most sought after by SMB owners for advice on financial and accountancy matters.
Achieving a financial goal as a teenager stood Lisa in good stead for both life and business, she believes. By the age of 15 she was holding down four part-time jobs, all the while performing well above average at school.

“If you want something badly enough you have to work for it,” she says. “This applies to business as well.” Lisa was determined to have the resources she had learnt to subsequently purchase her house and start her own business. And she’s
self-funded everything through her own efforts.

This self-determination and discipline still plays out when advising clients too, and with 2023 already shaping up to be a challenging year for business owners, this is especially a good time to sit down with your accountant, she says.

PREDICTIONS AND STRATEGIES
Comparing 2023 to 2022, Lisa predicts “more of the same”, but her advice is don’t just do more of the same with no clear plan. Focus on generating revenue-earning activities. Seek advice about business strategies.

Is your plan to exit the business within the next decade? Then start educating yourself on succession planning.
This new year will have its share of headwinds for businesses, and we’re not just talking about severe weather events. There’ll be recessionary pressures, interest rates will continue to push up inflation, and disposable income will shrink.

The question is – how will these factors impact your business?

Also, how can you keep earning income for the business to survive, and have those tough conversations with staff?

“In the face of all these threats your overarching goal should always be to secure a better financial position. At the end of the day, both you and your business need to be stronger and fitter,” says Lisa.

“So how do you achieve that? Well, ensure that what you own is worth more than what you owe. “Your assets may be greater than your liabilities, but you need to know what they are. Can any assets be turned into cash to pay bills?”

Focus on revenue-generating activities so you and your team are as billable and/or productive as possible, isolate any inefficiencies and wastage in your resources, and invoice regularly, Lisa suggests.

“And when money comes in, remember it’s not all yours. Put some aside.”

These are some of the basics around managing cashflow that you simply must get right, she says.

Digitalisation awareness:
Digitalisation is a word you hear a lot when the subject of business growth is being discussed.
“Digitalisation requires you to take a step back to assess your business, learn what new technology can do for its
performance, and then implement and test the technology itself,” says Lisa. “But it may simply be a case of not having
the quality time to invest in it due to other commitments. New technology can also put you well out of your comfort zone.
“Therefore, again it’s important to contract outside experts who can take any technology pain away for you.”

TAX AND OTHER ISSUES
In 2022 the IRD announced it will be relaxing the rules around record-keeping for GST returns on April 1st, 2023. Completing GST returns is now so easy you can jump online and do it yourself. However, GoFi8ure was one of the companies that pointed out the one big oversight of that decision. Receipts still need to be recorded when you’re completing your income tax return. This is one example of why you must partner with a trusted advisor who has a finger on the pulse of what’s really happening in the business world. Advisors such as GoFi8ure are there to hold Inland Revenue to account if a proposed ruling has the potential to create confusion or issues for New Zealand’s business owners.

PERFECT PARTNERSHIPS
What would a perfect partnership with an accountant or bookkeeper look like to you?

Lisa poses the following questions:
• Is your current accountant available to answer your questions?
• Do you want a relationship where he/she responds to your emails quickly? One where a meeting can be organised within a couple of weeks? Do you want a proactive relationship? One that looks to improving future results not just back at the results of 2021/22. That’s history!
• Do you want to build an honest, value-based relationship with an accountant who demonstrates integrity and does the right thing (even when no one’s looking)? “There are horror stories of accountants who simply tick boxes and fill in forms but never explain anything to clients,” says Lisa. “Or just email financials and expect you to read and understand, sign, and send back. “Good accountants talk, educate, go on the journey with you, and demonstrate they can build a business so you can build yours. If yours does none of this, perhaps you should find somebody else.”

TIME FOR AN ASSESSMENT
A good way to start the year is to first take stock of where you are.
At what stage are you at in your business’s lifecycle? Still struggling in start-up phase?
Perhaps you’re in growth phase but it’s taking you longer than you thought to make progress?
Or are you a mature business with no real issues?
“It’s vital that you understand your progress,” says Lisa, “that you maximise your strengths and opportunities in business and minimise any threats and weaknesses.

“GoFi8ure focuses on SMBs because we are an SMB. We understand what you’re going through. We would have an entirely different conversation with you at a strategy or quarterly planning meeting than a large corporate accountant would – or that accountant who never returns your calls.

“Always keep in mind that a good accountant works with you, she says. “Not for you and not against you.”

www.gofi8ure.co.nz