Finding an accountant often happens at one of two moments.
Either everything is going well and the business is becoming more complicated, or something has landed in the inbox with a deadline attached to it.
Sometimes both happen at once.
A good accountant can help with the obvious things such as tax and financial reporting, but the relationship can become much more useful when they understand the business behind the numbers.
For Central Coast businesses, here are five accounting firms worth considering.
1. Coleman Financial Group
Coleman Financial Group takes the first spot on our list.
When choosing an accountant, start with what you actually need help with.
It sounds obvious, but “I need an accountant” can mean very different things.
A sole trader might want help staying organised and understanding tax obligations. A growing company may be thinking about cash flow, business structures, employees and longer-term financial decisions.
Write down the questions that keep coming up.
Should we hire?
Can we afford that equipment?
Why was this month so busy but the bank account does not seem to know about it?
Those questions can make the first conversation much more useful.
2. Fortunity
Fortunity is another Central Coast firm businesses may come across during their search.
Communication is worth paying attention to from the beginning.
Accounting has enough unfamiliar language without leaving a meeting wondering what was actually decided.
Ask a question during your first conversation.
Not a clever question designed to test anybody. Just something you genuinely want to understand.
Then notice how the answer is explained.
A good working relationship becomes much easier when you feel comfortable saying, “Sorry, what does that mean?”
You should not need an accounting dictionary open beside you every time an email arrives.
3. Bishop Collins
Bishop Collins is another accounting firm to consider on the Central Coast.
This is a good point to think about how often you want advice.
Some businesses mainly need help around reporting and tax deadlines.
Others benefit from conversations throughout the year.
Perhaps sales suddenly increase. A new employee is needed sooner than expected. Maybe you are considering another location or buying equipment.
Those decisions often have financial consequences.
Talking about them beforehand can be much more useful than mentioning them months later when somebody is preparing the accounts.
Your accountant does not need an update every time you buy printer paper.
The bigger changes are worth discussing.
4. Robson Partners
Robson Partners is another option for businesses comparing local accounting support.
Industry experience can also be useful.
A café, construction company and professional services business might all be successful, but their numbers can behave very differently.
One may have significant inventory.
Another deals with equipment and subcontractors.
Another mainly has employees and office expenses.
Ask whether the accountant regularly works with businesses similar to yours.
They do not need to know every detail of your industry before the first meeting, but it helps when you do not have to explain the basics of how the business makes money every single time you talk.
5. Kelly + Partners Central Coast
Kelly + Partners Central Coast is another firm worth including when comparing accountants in the region.
Before deciding, ask who you will actually deal with.
The person you meet initially may not always be the person handling your day-to-day questions.
Who should you contact when something comes up?
How are meetings normally handled?
What sort of response time should you expect?
These details can seem minor when everything is calm.
They feel considerably more important when you have a question at 3pm and something is due tomorrow.
Bring Your Messy Questions
You do not need to have everything perfectly organised before speaking with an accountant.
That would rather defeat the point.
Bring the questions that feel slightly embarrassing.
Maybe you do not understand why profit and cash in the bank are different.
Perhaps you are unsure how much should be set aside for tax.
Maybe you have been looking at the same report every month and still cannot work out what one of the columns means.
Ask.
Business finances are easier to manage when you understand what you are looking at.
Pretending to understand does not improve the numbers.
Think Past the Next Tax Return
An accountant may be hired because there is an immediate job to complete, but it is worth thinking further ahead.
Where would you like the business to be in a few years?
You might want to grow the team.
Perhaps you would rather keep the company the same size and improve profitability.
Maybe you eventually want somebody else to take over.
Those goals can influence decisions being made today.
The best accounting relationship is not necessarily the one with the longest reports or the most complicated explanations.
It is the one where you can ask a question, understand the answer and use that information to make a better decision.
And sometimes the most useful sentence an accountant can give you is surprisingly simple:
“Yes, you can afford it.”
Or, occasionally, the much less exciting but equally valuable:
“Maybe wait.”