Accounting Firms Grow Advisory Services For Growing Clients2 Min Read

In a recent article by Long Island Business News, Alanna Abreu weighs in on providing expanded local advisory services for clients. 

With advances in technology and a need to handle complex business issues, there’s more to running a business today than just having the numbers add up, which is why more accounting firms are expanding their advisory services.

The demand for more “real-time” advisory work has resonated across the industry. “We have seen continued growth in advisory services as clients increasingly look to their accounting advisors for more than compliance and historical reporting,” explains Alanna Abreu, a principal at UHY Advisors on Long Island. “Increasingly clients are looking for a partner who can help them understand why something isn’t working, what needs to change and how to make that change happen.”

As businesses implement changes to enterprise software and other systems, advisors are often called upon to navigate transitions and maximize efficiency. “A company may have successfully implemented an ERP system, for example, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it is getting the value it expected,” Abreu says. “We work with clients to improve financial reporting, data flow, month-end close, reconciliations and system utilization, always with the same question in mind: ‘What information does management need to make better decisions?’”

Abreu predicts continued growth of advisory and outsourced services for accounting firms, particularly in the middle market, where the costs of keeping an in-house staff could be prohibitive. “Companies are being asked to do more with limited resources while navigating increasingly complex technology, reporting requirements, transactions and regulatory expectations,” she says. “It doesn’t always make economic or operational sense to build every capability internally.”

Yet while advisory services are expanding among firms of different sizes, more localized firms may offer businesses a comparative advantage over larger nationals. “When clients have a problem, they want to reach someone who understands their business, not just their accounting system,” Abreu says. “A local or regional team can develop a deeper understanding of a client’s operations and relationships, which puts us in a better position to address the underlying business issue rather than simply treating the accounting symptom.”

Read the full article on Long Island Business News.