No accounting for growth

I love accountants. Truly. My dad is an accountant , my brother is an accountant and I am pretty sure my son will be an accountant, although it is seen as a daggy career by Gen Zs so for some misguided reason he tells everyone he wants to be a lawyer. Anyway, I was talking this week at the CPA Congress in Brisbane, telling the SmartCompany growth story.

I always start with what we got right and then run out of time before I get to the huge what-I-did-wrong list. That means of course I leave everyone with the impression I am a genius.

But what astonished me was the low-level presentation of one of the speakers. Don’t get me wrong. This guy is handsome, smart, intelligent and spoke well – in fact your typical accountant. But he specialises in addressing other accountants and telling them how to improve their skill level and the services they offer to business owners.

Now, I meet a lot of accountants who have set up very successful businesses. And accountants are always great on risk and what not to do. So I was under the assumption that your average suburban accountant knew a thing or two about strategy and business growth. But no. When I suggested to the presenter that in effect he was telling accountants how to suck eggs he made the point that many simply focus on tax returns and compliance. They don’t think to sit down with the business owner and ask some really relevant questions.

For example, you have just added a new website. Is that a separate business? Is the business name registered? Or this: You have expanded really fast. It’s time to update your business structure. Or this: Your growth is stalling. I think it would be very beneficial to have a strategy session or set up a board….

For a start that gets the accountant at least several days work. It also means they are really adding value. And it is a great service to offer entrepreneurs who run too fast and can find themselves in trouble because their structures don’t keep up.

The presenter also suggested a great solution for companies without a board. Ask your accountant to be on your board. May I also suggest that you also ask another successful entrepreneur who is good at strategy? Then you are set for future grwoth and to manage future risks.

Have a great weekend.