Matt Hatton

We often get questions from temporary accountants regarding how they can position themselves to be considered for a permanent accounting role. See below some steps to help transition from temporary to permanent work. For more information on temporary or permanent accounting jobs, please get in touch with Grace Caraher on 01 592 7864 or [email protected]. #tempaccounting #contractaccountants #accountingjobs

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I started today with a chat with Paul Aplin OBE. Amongst much else, Paul said the following and I nodded... a lot! "At the end of the day, tax should never be the primary driver for adoption of business software. The advantages for the business should be the primary driver, with better tax information being a natural by-product. Modern software and apps can yield many benefits for a business, including automated capture of transaction details, automated categorisation of transactions, automated debt reminders and better control of cash flow. High quality data gives better financial insights and therefore a greater ability to understand how well the business is performing and where change is needed. Even the very smallest businesses can benefit. And for bookkeepers and accountants, software offers the opportunity to offer new services that would not be possible with manual records. Cloud based software for example gives an agent the ability to look “virtually” over the client’s shoulder – with their agreement of course – to offer assistance and answer questions using live data. The run up to 2026 is not just about digitalising tax administration, but getting the best out of digital technology for businesses and individuals." Really looking forward to hearing Paul Aplin OBE Jen Staves and Paul L. discuss this more at Accountex this week. #MakingTaxDigital #Accountex

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Why Retain Trace – Expert Accountancy Recruitment for your Senior Accountancy & Finance Appointments  👉 We are experts at helping clients build great finance teams, at all levels  👉 We have a toolkit meaning shortlists are assessed before they get to you  👉 There are countless case studies of great delivery across FS, C&I and NFP  👉 Tap into our knowledge – there is so much experience you can lean on  👉 We have access to people other Competitors may not due to the strength of our interpersonal relationships  👉 We will charge less for more, if the partnership is there  👉 Our only interest is great service, zero miss-hires, and long-term trusted relationships We have a great leadership team with many many years’ experience, across various London & South East Consultancies. Our SLT may be getting on a bit (🧓), but I reckon that bodes well when it comes to our networks and abilities to consult, search, assess & manage senior appointments. You know where we are. 📲 Gareth Cowan (he/him) Gemma Smith Simon Humphreys Jessica Fryer Deniz Dervish Harry Coleman

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The benefits of a partnership or merger By combining forces, merged accountancy firms can benefit from a variety of advantages. 📈 Partnerships and mergers are powerful tools for business growth and success. They can help companies to expand their customer base, develop new products or services, and create new efficiencies. Accountancy firms are merging in ever-increasing numbers, and for good reason! 🤝 Firstly, they can pool their resources together, allowing them to provide a more comprehensive range of services to their clients. 🤝 This means that they can access more data and technology, giving them access to the latest information and trends in the sector. 💻 Secondly, merged firms can benefit from economies of scale, allowing them to reduce costs and increase efficiency when tackling large projects. 💳 A successful partnership or merger can open up new opportunities and create a competitive advantage. Finally, merged firms can tap into a larger pool of experienced accounting professionals. 🤝 This can help them to get the best out of their teams, and ensure that clients get the most from the services they offer. 🙌 When considering a partnership or merger, it is important to identify the objectives of the deal and assess the capabilities of each partner. It is also important to ensure that the deal is structured in a way that is beneficial to both parties. Merging accountancy firms is a great way to take advantage of the many benefits that this offers. 🤝 #accountancy #economiesofscale #Merger #BusinessGrowth

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The benefits of a partnership or merger By combining forces, merged accountancy firms can benefit from a variety of advantages. 📈 Partnerships and mergers are powerful tools for business growth and success. They can help companies to expand their customer base, develop new products or services, and create new efficiencies. Accountancy firms are merging in ever-increasing numbers, and for good reason! 🤝 Firstly, they can pool their resources together, allowing them to provide a more comprehensive range of services to their clients. 🤝 This means that they can access more data and technology, giving them access to the latest information and trends in the sector. 💻 Secondly, merged firms can benefit from economies of scale, allowing them to reduce costs and increase efficiency when tackling large projects. 💳 A successful partnership or merger can open up new opportunities and create a competitive advantage. Finally, merged firms can tap into a larger pool of experienced accounting professionals. 🤝 This can help them to get the best out of their teams, and ensure that clients get the most from the services they offer. 🙌 When considering a partnership or merger, it is important to identify the objectives of the deal and assess the capabilities of each partner. It is also important to ensure that the deal is structured in a way that is beneficial to both parties. Merging accountancy firms is a great way to take advantage of the many benefits that this offers. 🤝 #accountancy #economiesofscale #Merger #BusinessGrowth

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The benefits of a partnership or merger By combining forces, merged accountancy firms can benefit from a variety of advantages. 📈 Partnerships and mergers are powerful tools for business growth and success. They can help companies to expand their customer base, develop new products or services, and create new efficiencies. Accountancy firms are merging in ever-increasing numbers, and for good reason! 🤝 Firstly, they can pool their resources together, allowing them to provide a more comprehensive range of services to their clients. 🤝 This means that they can access more data and technology, giving them access to the latest information and trends in the sector. 💻 Secondly, merged firms can benefit from economies of scale, allowing them to reduce costs and increase efficiency when tackling large projects. 💳 A successful partnership or merger can open up new opportunities and create a competitive advantage. Finally, merged firms can tap into a larger pool of experienced accounting professionals. 🤝 This can help them to get the best out of their teams, and ensure that clients get the most from the services they offer. 🙌 When considering a partnership or merger, it is important to identify the objectives of the deal and assess the capabilities of each partner. It is also important to ensure that the deal is structured in a way that is beneficial to both parties. Merging accountancy firms is a great way to take advantage of the many benefits that this offers. 🤝 #accountancy #economiesofscale #Merger #BusinessGrowth

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The benefits of a partnership or merger By combining forces, merged accountancy firms can benefit from a variety of advantages. 📈 Partnerships and mergers are powerful tools for business growth and success. They can help companies to expand their customer base, develop new products or services, and create new efficiencies. Accountancy firms are merging in ever-increasing numbers, and for good reason! 🤝 Firstly, they can pool their resources together, allowing them to provide a more comprehensive range of services to their clients. 🤝 This means that they can access more data and technology, giving them access to the latest information and trends in the sector. 💻 Secondly, merged firms can benefit from economies of scale, allowing them to reduce costs and increase efficiency when tackling large projects. 💳 A successful partnership or merger can open up new opportunities and create a competitive advantage. Finally, merged firms can tap into a larger pool of experienced accounting professionals. 🤝 This can help them to get the best out of their teams, and ensure that clients get the most from the services they offer. 🙌 When considering a partnership or merger, it is important to identify the objectives of the deal and assess the capabilities of each partner. It is also important to ensure that the deal is structured in a way that is beneficial to both parties. Merging accountancy firms is a great way to take advantage of the many benefits that this offers. 🤝 #accountancy #economiesofscale #Merger #BusinessGrowth

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What makes an interim CFO? It’s a lot more than just being available to start a contract. Interim CFO’s have a wealth of experience in all things change management. When they say that have ‘been there, done that’ they mean multiple times, for different businesses within various circumstances. They understand the complex relationship management requirements in the PE space. They are adaptable and flexible and really not phased by much at all. If you need an interim CFO, then look for an interim CFO. Not just someone who can start next week.

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The volume of CFO vacancies on-market or off-market is gradually increasing. Executive churn is on the rise. CFOs are moving - why? - In some cases, equity may be under water. - They may being replaced (CFOs often are those who suffer if a PE asset isn't performing) - Growth / Optimism: deal flow has seen a slight up tick, resulting in new positions being created. - Restructuring: CFOs with restructuring skills are in demand within struggling assets. I was speaking to an experienced CFO today about the PE market. They said it's a tricky dynamic. When selecting a role, you're putting all your eggs in one basket, hoping the business you choose reaches the exit they desire. Whilst an experienced CFO with multiple exits under their belt can afford to take a risk or for one cycle to not reach the successful conclusion throughout a challenging market, it's so important to make the right choice if you're looking at your first CFO role... As a CFO, it's important to really build your personal scorecard and that first CFO position carries a lot of weight when you look at your next role. Do... - Get to know the team really well. This is so critical. Are they good people? - Dive deep into the realism of the investment thesis. - Move laterally on comp. This first CFO role shouldn't be about cash. - Explore opportunities in a less glamorous / less preferential industry to prove yourself in the CFO seat. Don't... - Take a hugely risky role just to become a CFO. Patience is key! - Work with leaders you don't rate just because of the CFO title. - Believe figures without seeing the numbers yourselves. - Take a role because it is the best paying position you can find. Any thoughts? Camino Search

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Reason to hire an Interim CFO: Gap Management, or is it? Sometimes not everything is as it seems. The COO of a business that had an astronomical growth journey was looking for a CFO to provide cover over a busy period and hold the fort whilst a permanent search for a CFO was undertaken. We introduced a CFO with a similar blueprint of recent career history to the business, to maintain business as usual and free up management to focus on recovering recent world events. Within a few months it was announced that the business had exited to a strategic secondary buy out and the newly appointed permanent CFO announced not long after. The profile of the new CFO was not that of a standalone PE experienced CFO as this isn’t what the new group required. #ceo #leadership #business #entrepreneur #management #strategy #innovation #startup #executive #success #finance #founder #businessowner #corporate #visionary #strategicplanning #businessmindset #leadershipdevelopment #businessgrowth #ceolife #interimcfo #interimFD #privateequity #venturecapital #privatecapital #familyoffice #CFO

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A Personal Guarantee on an invoice finance agreement is primarily to get directors’ and shareholders’ buy-in if the business were to fail. Here’s how it works: if your business stops trading, invoicing ceases, and your clients pay the invoices due, this should cover the balance funded by the invoice finance company. Typically, they allow 90 days for these funds to be repaid. However, if there’s still a balance after this period, you’d only owe up to the value of the personal guarantee. For example: 🟣 If the personal guarantee is £30k and the invoice finance company is owed £3k, you'd owe £3k—not the full £30k. 🟣 But if the balance is £50k, you'd only owe the £30k stated in the guarantee. This setup protects you, but it’s important to fully understand the details. (more info https://lnkd.in/eGkG94dg) I've opened up more slots in my diary for the next couple of weeks and I want to speak to recruitment agency owners/Directors. Let’s chat about how to manage cash flow and minimise risk effectively, keeping your personal finances safe while growing your business. DM me & let's get that call booked in!

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A friendly reminder to accountants and/or business owners on the below. HMRC introduced a new 'notification' regime which is a necessity to fill out if a company intends to claim for R&D. Please reach out if you'd like clarification or support. ASWATAX #rannd #researchanddevelopment

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Why do so many in-house tax professionals change jobs every 3-4 yrs? I can't speak for every move but, by and large, there's one core reason... Progression. ...Or lack of it! Tax professionals have long felt that the grass is greener when working in-house but, lets be honest, one its major flaws is that career progression is harder to achieve & far less transparent than what you get in practice. Typically you're waiting for the person above to leave, retire, or get promoted. In professional services, you've got visibility all the way to the top. Yes, there might be some bureaucracy & politics creep in along the way but, in general, if you do XYZ, you can make that promotion. And this is why I have such a fantastic opportunity for the Scottish market! Lo & behold, I actually have a pure advisory in-house indirect tax role with a mature global tax function where #careerprogression is ingrained into the culture of the company. And the proof is in the pudding: the Head of Indirect Tax was once a junior in the team, the current Senior Manager was once an Analyst, other Managers were once Analysts. So, if you're based in Scotland (or open to relocating to Edinburgh - visa required) & like the sound of a pure advisory & global role where you can actually progress, we should be speaking! This role can be tailored accordingly to those who are currently at the following grades: ✅ Associate / Assistant Manager ✅Manager ✅Early Senior Manager Drop me a message for more information!

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😵 Staggering how many companies are formed annually. Great for accountants😄, but this puts pressure on resources in the industry and yet again pushes up the cost of the commodity which is accountant time...🤨 When will software come in and reset the industry? https://lnkd.in/gaM67Y3X #accounting #company #business #finance

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Today's blog post is about budgets and forecasts 😴 BUT, before you fall asleep over this topic, there are some great tips for you to implement to ensure you don't run into stormy waters with your business finances.

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HOW VITAL IS SECTOR SPECIFIC EXPERIENCE FOR AN INTERIM CFO?   I’m not talking about FS or other areas with very specific regulatory requirements. I mean a ‘text-book’ pre or post deal contract – due diligence, 100 day plan, process and procedure review. Do you really need to have undertaken a similar contract in professional services to get a contract in professional services? It’s a conversation I’m having increasingly, with push back being more and more challenging. So, does it really matter? I get that having sector experience has potential benefits – if you speak the lingo, stakeholders might be more convinced by you. But is that the be-all-and-end-all? When I talk to my client about what they need in their interim CFO, I start with what they want them to achieve and who are they working with. Being able to create the right impact in a business has as much to do with the approach of the individual as it does the experience. It’s a given that the interims I represent know what they are doing. My primary objective is identifying the skills and personality to succeed, entirely dependent on the situation they are going into and who they’re going into with. So in answer to the original question… I don’t think it is. What do you think?

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Recruiting an interim finance professional can be a strategic move for several reasons: ➡ Immediate Expertise: interim professionals bring a wealth of experience and can quickly integrate into your team, providing immediate value without the lengthy onboarding process of permanent hires. ➡ Flexibility: Hiring an interim allows you to scale your workforce up or down based on current needs, giving you the flexibility to manage peak workloads or specific projects without long-term commitments. ➡ Specialised Skills: Interim professionals often possess specialised skills or expertise that may be required for short-term projects, such as mergers, acquisitions, or financial system implementations. ➡ Cost-Effective: While the daily rate for an interim may seem higher, the overall cost can be lower as you avoid expenses related to benefits, long-term salaries, and the recruitment process for a permanent hire. ➡ Continuity: Having an interim in place ensures that your finance team continues to function smoothly, maintaining productivity and meeting deadlines while you search for the perfect permanent candidate. 💁‍♀️ Can anyone use the skills of this candidate? Immediately Available.

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Reward card schemes are gaining attention, but all that glitters is not gold, especially regarding tax clearance. At RJF, clients often ask us about these, and our stance is clear: if there's no explicit HMRC approval, it's best to avoid it. Got questions about a scheme you've encountered? Leave a comment or send me a message. #Business #Startup #LeanStartups

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Brand new salary guide information for Business Services Accountants at every level. See below how salaries have changed in the last two years. A lot of Accountants are getting well paid in today's market relative to what salaries were quite recently. This puts even more expectation on billings and emphasis on profitability. If you want a higher salary, as long as you can show you have the technical ability to take on complex work and therefore warrant a higher charge out rate, along with an appropriate productivity rate, then billings will be high and profitability can be sufficient to get the salary you want. Asking for an increase because your friend got one is not enough. If you can jusitfy it, you can get it. For a more detailed discussion on the right salary for you, message me on LinkedIn or [email protected]. #lawsondelaney #accounting #recruitment #consulting #accountingjobs #salaryguide #salaryinformation #growthmindset #charteredaccountant #cpaaustralia #rcsa

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