Of all the professional advisers you are likely to need when running your own business, a good accountant is perhaps the most important one to have.

His help and advice will be sought practically right throughout the life of your business, and his experience, tips and support will see you through the tough times as well as propel you towards the good times.

There is nothing more guaranteed to push stress levels through the roof than feeling less than total confidence or trust in your accountant and conversely there is little to beat the comforting feeling that you have a financial wizard on the team.

So where do you start? How do you make the right choice?

Here are some basic tips designed to help you choose the right accountant for your own small business:

1. Determine what your specific needs are. If you have a small business with only a handful of transactions each month then choosing a multi-national such as KPMG may well be going over the top!
2. Start early and, and wherever feasible, select an accountant prior to starting your new venture. This way you will access to his expert advice during the search phase and you will also have an opportunity to establish a relationship with your accountant.
3. Do not assume; check the accountants’ qualifications and credentials. Is he registered; CPA, Chartered or Certified? If not he is not an accountant but just a book-keeper and as such may not meet the minimum legal requirements current in your area to certify or audit your business accounts. Do not feel uncomfortable to ask about credentials – only those with something to hide would take offence!
4. Make sure that your accountant has experience in dealing with your type of business. Every business has its own peculiar nuances when it comes to accounting needs, so again do not leave to chance and check any claims.
5. Get a recommendation from someone you know whenever possible. If you have a friend or a relative who raves about their accountant, then that’s a great starting place! If it is not possible to get a personal recommendation, then try the internet for searches on the accountant’s name or his business’s name, you will be surprised how much information this can turn up.
6. Make sure that you know up front what the likely charges are to be. Is there a set charge annually or monthly? Do they charge on an hourly basis? What about travelling time and telephone calls? Check several accountants for their fees to get some idea of what the average charges are likely to be. You do not want to be paying too much!
7. Speak face to face with at least 3 accountants. It is imperative that you are able to communicate very well with your accountant and that you are on the same wavelength. Developing trust and a good relationship are essential requirements to making the liaison work. After you have made your choice, meet with each of the accountant or accountants. Tell them exactly what it is that you require from them and ask any questions that you feel you need to. Observe and listen; you are looking for clear concise answers that answer the question, in a manner that you find easy to understand. Do trust your gut instinct and make sure that you have ‘good vibes’! 6) What other services does the accountant provide – can they complete your self assessment returns?, do they provide business advice or further information to help grown your business?
8. Often you will find that the best accountants for smaller businesses are also likely to be smaller in size. They will have a better understanding of what it takes to run a smaller concern and should have the time, skills and relevant experience to match your needs more closely.
9. Asking to be able to contact existing clients before you make a decision is always a good idea. Again, beware of any accountant not willing to arrange this – it begs the questions what are they afraid of?
10. Get a commitment up front from your accountant on how regularly you will be seeing each other. Once a year is not going to be enough and once a month to review accounts and get some feedback and analysis will give you so much more confidence that things are on track. Who else could be in a better position to give you advice and you will want that advice as often as possible.

Once you have made your choice of accountant, ensure that all the commitments given up front are covered in a letter of engagement. Better for both parties to have covered all the bases up front and before any problems can occur.

So now you can relax a little, safe in the knowledge that you have expert professional advice on the team. One more check box to tick on the way to running your own successful business.

This article was written by Brian K Fitzgibbon CPA.

Brian is an experienced accountant and small business consultant. He runs his own business, lectures extensively on small business topics and has checked out and valued many hundreds of small businesses for buyers.

Brian is also the author of the highly acclaimed and invaluable
"How To Value A Business And Buy It Without Fear"
A do-it-yourself guide for first-time and experienced buyers alike.

To download a FREE Chapter from Brian's book please follow this link: "HowToValueBusiness.com"

June 21st, 2009 | Tags: 10 tips accountant, business tips, buy a business, choose an accountant, small business advice, value a business | Category: articles | Subscribe to comments | Leave a comment | Trackback URL  |