Allow me to start with a question.
A very important question for you…
Does your accountant work proactively for you and your practice?
What’s clear as I speak to dentists across the UK is that this is an issue for many.
Here’s the thing…
It’s common for accountants to promote their services as being ‘proactive’. You see it often. It’s likely yours did too. But is this the reality in every case?
What I am told, and told often, is that accountants leave dentists in the dark financially. Provide little or no help to predict their financial future. Or work with them to improve it. Look up the meaning of ‘proactive’ and you see:
‘taking the initiative’
‘tending to initiate change’
‘acting in anticipation of future needs or changes’
Is an accountant who leaves you waiting for your accounts ‘taking the initiative’?
Is advising you of your tax bill four weeks before the payment is due an example of someone acting in anticipation of your future needs?
So how should ‘taking the initiative’ translate for your practice?
Imagine the financial year end of your business is 31st March. I propose that a proactive accountant – in the true sense of the word – will start to prepare your accounts no later than the end of May. That’s a maximum of eight weeks after your year end. And deliver them no more than 20 days later.
Seem excessively fast?
Not when you consider the positive ramifications for you:
More knowledge
You know what profits you have made over the year and where they have come from.
Less uncertainty
You can put together a meaningful financial forecast for the following year based on this profit history (doing this six months into the next year is too late!). Your financial forecast will help you plan for any potential bumps in the financial road. It will also make sure the funds are set aside for you to extract to give you and your family the life you want throughout the year.
More clarity
You can keep your accounting software up to date with your actual profit figures against your forecast each month – so you always know the financial ‘score’ for your practice.
And then you can make informed decisions and take great actions for your practice based on your ‘scorecard’.
Less stress
A whopper of a benefit to many dentists, you’ll know in advance what size tax bill you are facing! So you’ll have chance to do some tax planning to mitigate the bill. And you can set aside the necessary cash to pay it. If you’ve been landed late with an unexpectedly large tax bill in the past, you know how tough it is to come up with the payment!
Your trusted business adviser
On top of these significant benefits, a proactive accountant will become your business adviser. They will help to generate more profit in your practice by calculating the profit margins you currently make. On your treatments and products, via each of your clinicians. And then apply sound commercial knowledge to show you how you can improve these figures.
Plus they will communicate regularly with you to make sure you get more happiness. They’ll call to see how they can help at that point in time to get you more of what you want. To achieve your personal goals. They’ll provide a shoulder to lean on. They’ll get in touch simply to see how you are doing.
Proactive – to be or not to be…
How would you feel with less uncertainty and less stress in your life?
How would more clarity, more profit and more happiness suit you?
You pay your accountant whether they are proactive or not.
Make sure you invest in one who brings you all the benefits that genuine proactivity provides. They do exist.
Rob Walsh
