Cooney Carey was established in 1985 and has six partners and more than 40 staff. Together, we help businesses of all sizes, in every industry, develop strategies for success and make better decisions by providing clarity and expertise with the benefit of experience. Our clients range from domestic startups through to global corporations.
We pride ourselves on being one of Ireland’s leading tax planning providers. Our tax team has a diversity of backgrounds – from the Revenue Commissioners to the Big Four – that supports this, giving us the breadth and depth of expertise to offer world-class advice.
As a tax partner, I deal with all aspects of taxation both personal and corporate. My areas of expertise include taxation planning, corporate restructuring and wealth preservation. I am a former inspector of taxes with the Revenue Commissioners. I have also served as chairman of the audit subcommittee of Revenue’s Tax Administration Liaison Committee and am a former president of the Leinster society of ACCA Ireland.
Client expectations have moved, of necessity, from growth planning to preservation and diversification. This has heightened their need for best advice
Tax is an ever-changing, multi-layered and complicated landscape, and my department’s focus is on ensuring our clients make the best decisions and the right decision. That isn’t always easy. A client needs to have full trust in their adviser, and we build this trust through hard work, dedication and commitment. Our clients know us as straight talkers, with a considered, empathetic and well-researched view. They also know they are in safe hands with us, as we bring both security and innovation to the management of their tax liabilities, structures and efficiencies.
Over the course of 2020, depending on the sector (but particularly hospitality, travel agencies and conference planning), many client expectations have changed. They have moved, of necessity, from growth planning to preservation and diversification. This has heightened their need for best advice. In times like this, nothing less will do. Our team directs significant time and research into understanding the pressures that 2020 brought, the competing demands and the tough choices that must be made to succeed.
We have built Cooney Carey to be the ‘right size’ to meet our clients’ needs. A key part of this is working closely together and taking a multidisciplinary approach. For us, the biggest change this year was doing that remotely. We have always invested heavily in technology and are about to commit around €100,000 to keep us ahead in this area. We saw in 2020 how our tight-knit team benefitted from this ongoing investment and are proud of how well they adapted to exceptional circumstances.
The feedback from our clients has been very encouraging and warming, particularly as the year ends. They have told us explicitly how they appreciate our proactive, professional and friendly support. One described us as ‘thoughtful, helpful, emphatic and always giving the best advice and guidance’.
The most important business lesson I have learnt is to expect, embrace and adapt to change. In recent years, the disruptors have proved this to be true and 2020 certainly reinforced the point. A business which is not adaptable and open to change will not survive for very long in current times.
