I am hoping to open an accountancy practice...

[Williams-NWest]

I am aiming within the next 5 to 10 years to open up my own accountancy practice. I have completed a little research and found so far, that the general advice points towards starting up part time to begin with.

I work full time and have been asking for tips and advice on opening and running a practice whenever and where ever I can. However I am only 21 and have little experience and I am currently studying towards my AAT qualification. So there is a quite a lot of scope for improvement yet.

I understand I am quite early on in the process to be thinking about how and when to open a practice but I want to ensure that when the time comes I have all angle's covered as best as I can to my control. Any advice, personal experiences or tips on 'how to open a practice, the best place to start up i.e home based / office based, and creating the balance between experience and skills' are very welcome.

Thank you

 

[accountancyextra]

Gain as much experience as possible!! And by that I don't just mean getting your qualifications and learning how to do the technical part of the job.

There is so much more to running a practice than being able to prepare accounts and tax returns (There is so much more to running any business than being able to do the technical work)

 

[MyAccountantOnline]

I am aiming within the next 5 to 10 years to open up my own accountancy practice. I have completed a little research and found so far, that the general advice points towards starting up part time to begin with.

I work full time and have been asking for tips and advice on opening and running a practice whenever and where ever I can. However I am only 21 and have little experience and I am currently studying towards my AAT qualification. So there is a quite a lot of scope for improvement yet.

I understand I am quite early on in the process to be thinking about how and when to open a practice but I want to ensure that when the time comes I have all angle's covered as best as I can to my control. Any advice, personal experiences or tips on 'how to open a practice, the best place to start up i.e home based / office based, and creating the balance between experience and skills' are very welcome.

Thank you

Hi

I remember being where you were (many years ago now) but it does no harm to think ahead.

My advice is to get as much practical experience as you can in all aspects of general practice - that's so important when it comes to running your own practice.

Often in a smaller firm you can get to see much more than you will say working in a tax or audit department of a larger practice.

For me it was fantastic experience working in about 10 different practices when I was training/starting my career but in the 1980's (I did say it was many years ago) as a trainee you could swop and change jobs with ease, and enjoy huge salary hikes each time, and I had a great time doing that before settling down. I think the job market is a tad different now....oh I do feel old

Do leave your options open though a lot can change in a few years and concentrate on getting the qualifications in place too.

Best of luck

 

[businessfunding]

From my point of view, the role of accountant can be split into 3 areas:

- Bookkeeping
- Audit.
- Consultancy / planning

Audit is a specific skill / qualification (and is also a declining market). Consultancy requires great breadth of experience and vision, seldom gained from within a singular corporate environment so will vbe a very long-term goal.

For this reason, once you have the necessary skills and knowledge you might want to launch yourself as a home-based bookkeeper early on. Apart from getting your business rolling this will give you valuable insight to various business types, the problems they encounter, how they resolve them etc.

 

[Philip Hoyle]

Any advice, personal experiences or tips on 'how to open a practice, the best place to start up i.e home based / office based, and creating the balance between experience and skills' are very welcome.

Getting plenty of diverse experience has to be the most important thing. I worked in five different small practices and did a wide mix of tax work, statutory audit, incomplete records and management accounting/forecasting as well as VAT returns and payroll.

I was in my mid thirties before I trusted myself enough to give up employment and start my own practice. Even with 17 years of experience, I still found areas where my technical knowledge/skills wasn't adequate and of course, there's no back up when you're on your own, so I had to decline to act for quite a few potential clients.

Even if you are relatively happy with your current job, I'd still advise you to move jobs every 18 - 24 months whilst you're training and learning the ropes. There is absolutely no point in staying in the same job, doing the same work for a second year running - you won't learn anything new by doing Mrs Smith's tax return for 10/11 when you'd already done it for 09/10! At the very least, you need a different position in the same firm, such as moving up from semi-senior to senior, or moving from the incomplete records department to the tax department. If your employer isn't large enough to enable that kind of development, then you have to move to a different employer. Please, whatever you do, don't stay still and end up doing the same thing year after year - you're not learning anything new which is a waste of your time when what you need is as much experience as possible.

As your plan is your own practice, then you have to appreciate that you're going to get a lot of smaller clients, at least at first, who'll want payroll, VAT returns, book-keeping, etc. They won't want statutory audits or group accounts or whatever, so try to concentrate on getting as much experience as possible on the basics and steer clear of the audits and groups that will always be the preserve of the larger, established practices.

 

[Williams-NWest1]

Thank you for all the advice that you have been very kind to share. Since my last post i have remained in the same department but undertaken more responsibility. Of course this will all change when i move into audit ( to study the ACA qualification). After further study i have realised that i would like to eventually specialise in medical accounts and have so far have had the training and have PEC forms and Superannuation certificates.

However my ACA qualification is simply a stepping stone and i do not wish to specialise or remain in audit after that. Is there anything that i can be doing in the mean time to direct my career towards Medical. I have attended a Medical Seminar in Birmingham recently and I research any new topics that come my way in relation to this. However as i am aware there are not many accountants who specialise in medical and the option of having a mentor to point me in the right direction ( of whom i would put 110% into all aspect of tasks and advice given ) are extremely slim.

I highly respect anyone who has passed the ACA qaulifcation but I aspire to be known in my field for my knowledge and be able to inspire others and teach others.

Any further advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

 

[Williams-NWest1]

Thank you for all the help and guidance given above

 

[Williams-NWest1]

I apologize for the lengthy delay in my reply. Thank you once again for all the information and guidance that you have given me above. Since my last posting i am still in the same department and i am now at the end of my aat studies (level 4).

I have spent my time researching my future since all the advice and i have realised that i want to specialise in medical accounts and have my own practice that way. I have undertaken training on PEC forms and Superannuation certificates and hope that in the future i can obtain more experience and training, However i will shortly be moving into audit to obtain the ACA qualification.

Whilst i have respect for anyone who has passed the ACA qualificaiton this is simply a stepping stone in order for me to obtain my goals and I hope to become known in my field of study in the future. I don't wish to be ACA qualified and that be the end of my studies as I hope to eventually become a medical accounts consultant. I undestand that this will take many years of hard work to achieve but i know it will be worth it.

In the mean time however i would really appreciate some guidance on what should be my next step. Is there any literature that i can get my teeth into, is there any profiles that i can take inspiration from, is there anyone in the North West that i can consult with or anyone who would be willing to be my mentor on an occasinal basis etc?

Thank you once again

 

[Williams-NWest1]

Also in terms of the 'next step' are there any books or websites that can be recommended on running your own business. I have a few at home already ( running your own bookkeeping business) as i understand that this will be the first step.

Thank you

 

[Bob]

You could try and get employment with a firm that is a member of AISMA

 

[London Bookkeepers]

Running your own business isn't for everyone but the fact that you are looking far ahead is a very good sign. The more prepared you are in all respects the more likely you are to succeed.
Don't leave it too long though! Good luck.