However I had one reply that truly astounded me. I don’t know why, because I see enough of this accountant behaviour out there, I just don’t think I could believe they were owning up to it!
The gist of it was that that he disagreed completely with me, which is absolutely fine, I don’t mind healthy debate. His view was that it’s entirely up to the company directors to tell the accountant what they want to know, what information they want and how they want it presented. And that the role of the accountant was only to “provide information as requested”
Now call me sensitive but I find that infuriating. It’s everything that I campaign against. I find that most business owners don’t naturally know what great financial management looks like –they need someone to show them. And that someone ought to be their accountant. Who else could it be?
There’s a genuine black hole of financial understanding in many small companies. As most business owners didn’t spend several years studying accountancy, they’re relying on their accountant to guide them, advise them. With long term business survival rates low and falling, businesses need more from their accountants, and they need them to be more than the traditional stereotype that just takes care of compliance and tax.
So if your accountant is leaving you in the dark, fobbing you off with Sage reports and calling them management accounts, and expecting you to know what you need to know, it might just be time to change. And if you’re looking for a recommendation then do let me know.