More than 520 franchisees, partners and staff helped make this year’s TaxAssist Accountants’ Conference on Saturday, 21st April its most successful to date.
Hosted at Celtic Manor, near Newport in Wales, the day started with a busy exhibition, at which franchisees were able to browse the 62 exhibitor stands and meet service providers and staff from TaxAssist’s Support Centre.
After lunch, TaxAssist’s Directors presented their vision for the organisation’s future direction, focusing on a new software suite, as well as the importance of advisory services and client experience.
Sarah Robertson, Group Operations Director, used the conference to deliver an overview of the new recommended software suite for the network.
“Having spent the past year heading up a research group, we now feel confident we have the very best in technology available for our network to use,” she said. “This will give our franchisees and their staff multiple benefits in terms of time and financial efficiencies and we are pleased our buying power has enabled us to pass on significant cost savings.“
Steve Checkley, Product Director of TaxCalc, one of the new recommended software suppliers, was invited on stage to explain how the changes and challenges that HM Revenue & Customs’ Making Tax Digital project will affect the network, and the importance of using the right software to keep abreast of these developments. His informative presentation highlighted the fact that accountants will be in demand more than ever, due to this industry evolution.
James Mattam, Group Business Development Director, discussed the competitive edge afforded to the network by the national marketing initiatives including the new TV advertising campaign, unrivalled social media presence, a switcher campaign and a fee bank purchase scheme.
Daren Moore, Group Commercial Director, was pleased to meet and address the network for the first time and focused on why accountants should be introducing advisory services as the earliest opportunity.
“The future of our industry is to embrace the developments in software and technology, but not lose sight of the fact that accountants offer the vital link between this and advising clients on how best to use and interpret the information. If a client can understand where they are now, they will be better informed about where they are heading in the future,” he said.
A black tie gala evening rounded off the conference, and included entertainment provided by Gareth Malone’s The Naked Choir winners ‘Sons of Pitches’ followed by ‘Diversity’ the 2009 winners of Britain’s Got Talent.