Why small accounting firms are so attractive for early career professionals
Many smaller accountancy firms today look a great deal different to those of just a decade or so ago. The accountancy profession is rapidly evolving and small and medium-sized accountancy practices (SMPs) are at the forefront of this change, making them exciting places to kick off a career in finance.
Changing the profile of modern-day tax and accounting services is a foundational ethos for The Accountancy Partnership, founded by Lee Murphy in 2006. ‘Far too many small business owners were dealing with impersonal accountants and the image of the industry was old-fashioned and outdated,’ he says.
A point furthered by Michelle Westbury FCCA, director of West & Berry: ‘There is increasing diversity within the profession meaning accountants are seen as more approachable; we need clients to be able to connect and communicate with us so we can better help and advise them. The impact of new technology means the profession is more forward facing, meaning we’re able to provide advice with reference to real-time finance information.’
Variety
One of the most notable characteristics of working in a modern SMP is the variety. You can work with clients large and small, locally, regionally and internationally, and from all sectors and industries.
You’ll generally wear many hats, getting involved with all the services provided to clients, such as business tax, self-assessment, VAT returns, bookkeeping, account preparation, reporting, management accounting, payroll, and auditing. You may also have to handle more niche technical elements relating to specific industries, such as not-for profit organisations or tech startups.
Responsibility comes early
Therefore, responsibility comes quickly, often with client exposure from day one, which means you won’t just be sitting in an office doing work for a manager. ‘We really empower our staff, even at very junior levels, to have responsibility for the whole of their client, which means the relationship, the technical accounting work, presenting accounts to the client,’ says David Nicholls FCCA of Brett Nicholls Associates.
‘We expose junior staff to this very early on – trainees have their own client portfolio, they don’t just prepare the work for it to then be owned by a senior or manager, though of course they’re supported and guided all the way, but the engagement with the client isn’t funnelled through a manager, it’s theirs.’
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Very techy
As Westbury mentioned, many practices are already or are becoming digital firms, meaning you’ll be working with cloud accounting software in potentially an entirely paperless way, whereby clients submit documents and communicate digitally, and you work entirely in a software platform.
And we don’t just mean Excel, the accountant’s traditional Swiss army knife, but with solutions that automate much of an accountant’s previously very manual and time-consuming tasks, freeing them up to add more value to both clients and the practice by interrogating data, advising clients in real-time, helping them to grow or adapt, as opposed to once or twice a year simply handling their financial obligations, i.e. keeping the tax man happy.
Martin Brennan, founder and CEO of Onside Accounting, a practice with a focus on tech startups, says technology has brought a huge change to how practices operate today. 'I would say we're probably one step ahead of the majority of accountants in the UK. Working with technology businesses, one of the things that appeals to them is that we're technologically minded, we speak their language and what they don't want to be doing is sending things by post and signing hardcopies and so on. They appreciate the fact that we're completely paperless and use all of the modern tools available to us to deliver our services. They feel right at home with this technology and way of working.'
Get stuck into running a business
Furthermore, as SMPs are smaller businesses themselves, there’s also the opportunity to help out with other areas, such as marketing, recruitment, IT, sustainability plans, or corporate social responsibility. In fact, what a lot of SMPs like is for people to get their hands dirty, to get stuck in and be champions of causes.
‘Team members are encouraged to assist with running the practice, for example, work planning, IT, quoting for work, billing, credit control, marketing and social media, extending their skill sets further,’ says Westbury.
Great work cultures
Onside Accounting not only offers flexibility, it's fully remote, with a workforce spread across the UK, including their apprentices, who as well as working remotely, study and take exams online.
'When I think back to my apprenticeship in 2007, we had an apprenticeship officer who would come to the office, meet with my manager, and make sure all requirements were being met, it was very face-to-face. Now, via our education partner Kaplan, it's nearly entirely online. You could be living in Scotland working for a London-based employer and it works in the same way. That's what we stand for. We're fully remote, we have staff in Northern Ireland, Wales, England all governed by the same apprenticeship institution,' says Brennan.
'About 50% of our workforce is in and around London and we do have a very small office in Waterloo we can meet at from time to time. It is sometimes used to meet clients, do interviews or just to mix up my week. I tend to do four days at home, one day at the office. Some people really appreciate face-to-face time, even if it is just one day a week.'
And understanding working remotely can potentially feel isolating, as well as maintaining a small office, the firm gets together once every six months for a big strategy day, he continues. 'We'll get the whole company together in London for a big meeting and dinner. Last year we did something similar but with all our clients invited. It's important to keep the face-to-face going, even if it is just once every few months.'
Cause champions
Nicholls would welcome someone who was passionate about something to champion it. ‘Up to now, when we’ve gone with new products or technology, it’s come from me. It would make a big difference to me, as a busy partner, if someone stepped up and took on a project, for example, they’re interested in AI and what it could do for us. I’d 100% empower them and provide the resources they needed.’
And he means it, for example, the firm is passionate about sustainability and has achieved B Corp certification, which is quite an undertaking, and pledged to be a net zero business by 2045.
Indeed, sustainability is another area in which SMPs are at the forefront, with new laws around the world requiring businesses to report environmental, social and governance (ESG) scores. This will be an area in which accountants, supremely suited to gathering and reporting data, can step up and support their clients through the transition.
Closer to home, many SMPs forge strong bonds in their communities by specialising in or providing to support to specific sectors or groups. West & Berry, for example, specialise in charities and the not-for-profit sector, with a particular focus on women.
‘We want the firm to be female friendly,’ says Westbury. ‘A large proportion of our client base are women running not-for-profits or women business owners.’ In fact, the firm is able to offer all-female audit teams, which means that they can work with domestic abuse charities.
More information
ACCA has produced SMP career toolkits to support employers and finance professionals. Download them here