10th November is International Accountants Day
Whether you’re an accountant yourself, a business owner or neither one of these, you should be giving a big high five to the accountancy profession today. While they may have an image of being unsociable, process-obsessed introverts, the reality is very different.
Here are three good reasons to celebrate:
Accountants have been a life support machine for businesses throughout the pandemic.
Who processed the furlough payments that kept many businesses afloat? Who explained the complex, ever-changing system of grants and loans? Who was there to listen and advise when the going got really, really tough? The accountants we work with at AVN have never worked harder to support their business owner clients. They helped them to adapt to the stark new world and even to start new businesses when the old one wasn’t viable anymore.
And the pandemic brought something else into sharp focus.
Accountants have much more than just an economic impact.
If stressed business owners work 80+ hours a week, they don’t have enough time or energy for anything else. Their family and friends miss out. Their health suffers. They don’t have time to recharge their batteries and the risk of burn out is high. A great accountant helps these business owners to operate more effectively and more profitably. And that means they don’t have to spend every waking hour at work. The benefits for their children, for their partners, for their local communities are huge.
Where would high flying entrepreneurs be without their accountants?
Grounded, that’s where. A business without a solid financial footing, without accurate systems and data on cashflow and tax, will not succeed for long. It may not be the most glamourous side of things but accountancy is critical. And business owners recognise that. Recent research found that 84% of 1,450 business decision-makers believe that chartered accountants have the skills and expertise to make businesses thrive. Even as cloud technology makes it easier and easier for business owners to do their own bookkeeping, they still need the support and advice of human accountants to grow and develop.
So this International Accountants Day, raise a glass (or a spreadsheet) to this modest but essential profession and its hard-working, wonderful people.
Photo by NeONBRAND on Unsplash