I’ve found accountants are my least favourite aspect of running my own company.
When I fiirst started using an accountant, I found that I saved perhaps a day’s work on top of the usual collation of receipts, statements, invoices, etc., from the previous 12 months. Obviously I was aying for improved accuracy too, so it wasn’t a problem, but I felt the load might have been lightr.
Especially for the cost.
As I progressed from sole trader to limited company, I thought it might get easier still, but no. Same effort from me, higher price paid. Not a big deal – after all, having your accounts right keeps you out of prison.
But then the accountant sold up to some faceless conglomerate, and suddenly it all started getting a bit “in my face.” Which was somewhat inconvenient, as I was paying for it to be in the accountant’s face, as it were. I can manage a bank account reasonably well. But I’m not a numbers person.
If I was, I’d be a freelance economist.
An unwanted asset
I try to spend an hour or two each week on printing invoices and statement for forwarding to my accountant. I’ve never been offered an electronic option, and to be honest given some of the haphazard emails and general bewilderment of the people I’ve communicated with there, my account seems to be a bit of a burden to them.
Like buyer’s remorse, perhaps.
So, after their last mistake, I’ve opted to look for a new accountant. I placed a post on LinkedIn and had a surprising amount of respondents. Many seemed to be (or were referring) companies as anonymous and cold as Faceless Accountancy Conglomerate (which I’ll refrain from referring to as FAC). What I want is a more personal relationship with the accountant – preferably a small business like me.
Who’s next?
At this stage, I’ve narrowed it down to two candidates. It was three, but one ruled themselves out by declaring they’re not inviting new clients (despite replying to my LinkedIn post…). I don’t know how this will turn out or if I’ll ever return to this topic, but suffice to say, it’s been taking up much of my thinking lately.
Actual “Accountancy Shanty”
As this is quite a dry blog post, I’ll end it on a lighter note: Monty Python’s “Accountancy Shanty” from their underrated incompletably jigsaw of a movie, The Meaning of Life…
