Will Advisory Make my Practice More Valuable?

If you make it a new profit centre that more than covers the additional operating cost – then yes.  

But most accountants who put a toe in the advisory water, discover the answer to be no - and abandon the idea, never to return.  

In the end, they sell the practice for less than they wanted to someone younger or bigger who introduces advisory and gets a higher return from the same clients the poor old accountant spent years of their life assembling. 

Can there ever be a way into advisory in later life that raises the exit value quickly enough to make the effort and investment worth it?  

You probably expect me to say yes. But mostly I’d say no because it’s only for someone who enjoys business development and close relationships with key clients. 

My most successful accountant spends his days phoning clients to ask how they are and makes it known that he is in the local pub every lunchtime and again on his way home where they are welcome to be his guests. 

What he learns about their needs and those of the friends they introduce leads to a stream of advisory work that is offered to him without asking. And which he passes onto his team to deliver.  

So, could that be replicated quickly? 

Not unless you have at least 3 years in front of you before exit, and like befriending business owners. In which case here’s what you do: 

Convert your practice to a business through which you will learn exactly how to help clients with every aspect of theirs.  

The key steps are, by working with your team, to introduce: 

Finance

Budgeting, cashflow forecasting, management accounting and monthly financial performance reviews. 

Operations

Client stratification and regular business reviews with the A’s and B’s. Show them their performance history. Pricing at profitable levels for them all and be prepared to lose those that resist. Hit every deadline before it’s due.  

Systems

Use AI to integrate your existing systems for automated data sharing and production of management control data.  

People 

Pay well to attract talent. Treat each team member as a profit centre and share it with them. Give them career development. Use a performance management process. 

Marketing

Start by upselling existing clients to gain early new revenue and experience. Reorganise the website into compliance and advisory services tabs and put links to these into your marketing messaging. Have an enquiry process that quickly establishes potential and moves into a structured pitch that addresses more needs than the prospect realises they had.  

So, how long does all that take?  

Expect 3 years of 1-2 hours per week…  

Next step: to explore that and discuss how and whether it could work for you, call me…