[ Questions worth asking ]

The questions
ambitious owners ask
before they change advisor.

Answered honestly — including the ones most firms dodge. If you're working through a decision about whether to bring us in, the answer is probably below.

[ Before the questions ]

The right advisor relationship is expensive to choose poorly.
These answers are written for the version of that decision that's worth taking seriously.

[ Fit ]

Are we the right firm for you?

We do our best work with $1M–$10M owners who've outgrown a compliance-only accountant and want a real advisory rhythm. If that isn't you yet, we'll say so — and point you to who is.

01Who do you work with best?

Owner-led businesses turning over roughly $1M to $10M, where the owner is still close to the numbers but no longer wants to be the one chasing them. Trades and construction, hospitality, professional services, property and recruitment make up most of the book.

02We're under $1M revenue. Is that a fit?

Honestly, usually not for our advisory programs. The maths doesn't work for either side. We'll point you toward the Business Health Score and our field notes, and we're happy to revisit the conversation when revenue and complexity have grown.

03We're over $10M. Are we too big?

Not at all — several of our long-term clients have grown past $10M with us. Above that scale the work tilts toward virtual CFO, structuring, transactions and wealth, and the cadence is built around the leadership team rather than just the owner.

04What kind of business owner do you work best with?

Ambitious, decision-led, willing to be told the truth. The clients who get the most from us treat the advisory relationship as a forum for real decisions — not a place to be reassured.

[ Fees ]

How fees actually work.

We publish our pricing because the alternative — an opaque quote on the way out of a first meeting — isn't how this should work. The number on the page is the number.

01Are you a cheap accountant?

No. We're not the most expensive in the country, but we're a deliberate notch above commodity compliance pricing. The trade-off is a real advisory rhythm, senior people in the room, and decisions made in front instead of cleaned up behind.

02How is the work priced?

Fixed monthly fees, agreed up front, by program. There are no surprise invoices for phone calls or quick questions — that behaviour breaks the relationship before it starts.

03What's included in a monthly fee?
  • All compliance for the entities in scope (returns, BAS, financials)
  • Forward tax planning, not just lodgement
  • Scheduled advisory cadence — monthly visibility, quarterly strategy
  • Direct access to your senior advisor between sessions
  • Xero, app stack and reporting maintained as part of the engagement
04Do you charge for the first conversation?

No. The first 30-minute call is on us. If we're not the right fit, we'll say so on that call.

[ How it works ]

What changes when you start with us.

The first 90 days are the same for almost every new client — and they look very different to switching from one compliance accountant to another.

01What happens in the first 90 days?

We run our 90 Days to Clarity™ program. The financial picture is rebuilt from the ground up — chart of accounts, structure, reporting, cash and tax positions — and you finish with a written set of strategic decisions for the next twelve months.

02How often will we actually speak?

Monthly visibility check-ins, quarterly strategy sessions, half-yearly tax planning, annual structure and wealth review — booked twelve months in advance. Plus access to your advisor between sessions when something real comes up.

03Who will I deal with day to day?

A senior advisor as your primary relationship, with a small client team supporting them. You won't be passed to whoever picked up the phone — and the senior advisor will be in the strategy sessions, not just on the email signature.

04How quickly do you reply to emails?

In hours during business hours, not days. Modern systems sit underneath the relationship so nothing waits in a queue — that's the bar, and the team is held to it.

[ Switching ]

Leaving your current accountant.

Most of our new clients have been with the same accountant for years. The handover is more boring than people expect — and we do the heavy lifting.

01Is changing accountants painful?

Not really. We handle the ethical letter, the file transfer and the ATO authorities. Your previous accountant is required to release your records. Most transitions take a week or two of background work and almost none of your time.

02What if our books are a mess?

That's normal. The 90 Days to Clarity program assumes the books need real work — chart of accounts, reconciliation, structure and reporting are part of the on-ramp, not an extra.

03Can we switch mid-year?

Yes. There's no good reason to wait until 30 June. Switching mid-year often means we can recover tax positions and decisions that would otherwise be locked in by the time the year closes.

[ Boundaries ]

What we won't do.

Saying yes to everything is how firms become average. Here's where we draw the line — by design.

01Will you sign off on anything to save tax?

No. The Tax Practitioners Board number on every piece of work we lodge means our names are on it. We plan tax aggressively inside the law and explain the trade-offs — we don't sign off on positions we wouldn't defend.

02Will you be the cheapest quote we get?

Almost never. If price is the deciding factor, there are accountants who will be cheaper — and they're a better fit for that brief. We're built for owners where the cost of a missed decision is far higher than the cost of the advice.

03Do you do bookkeeping?

We don't run day-to-day bookkeeping ourselves, but we work closely with bookkeepers we trust — and we're opinionated about the Xero stack underneath the work. If you don't have a bookkeeper, we'll introduce you.

04Do you give financial advice (investments, insurance)?

We're not licensed financial planners. Wealth, structuring and tax sit inside our remit; product advice on investments and insurance does not. We work alongside planners and brokers we trust where that's needed.

[ Still working through it? ]

The next step is a 30-minute conversation —
no pitch, no pressure.

If you've got a question that isn't here, ask it on the call. If we're not the right fit, we'll say so and point you to who is.

[ Start here ]

Book an introductory call.

Three short questions, then a 30-minute call with a senior advisor — usually within the week.

Start the conversation →See pricing