What I enjoy most about accountancy is the human side of it – the interaction, the relationships, the advisory role. I didn’t even realise that was part of the job when I first started out, but once I began working with my own clients, I genuinely enjoyed listening to their concerns and helping them find solutions. That’s the direction I want to take the business in.
My father is an accountant with his own practice. Growing up, I was determined not to follow in his footsteps and did a degree in physics. But I didn’t know what to do with the degree so asked my dad if I could work at the practice while I figured things out. I loved it. What really clicked for me was the data analysis, which wasn’t common in traditional practices at the time. I started my ACCA journey there as an apprentice and qualified during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Staffing is tough, so we created our academy to grow our own
At that time I was helping clients navigate the pandemic pressures: furlough schemes, bounce-back loans and acting almost like a ‘business Samaritan’ during what was a really tough time for a lot of business owners. The practice grew rapidly during that period, and I moved up through the business pretty quickly. I had my own client base and, before I knew it, I was running the business alongside my dad, even though that was never really the plan.
We’ve grown to a team of 20 and we focus on clients who want to work with their accountants all year round. Our ideal clients are those who want regular meetings and regular advice, so we built a subscription pricing model to match that type of relationship. Our clients can have multiple meetings with us in a month if they’re working through an issue, or not see us for a couple of months if they don’t feel the need.
This way of working has attracted larger clients, around the £1m-£3m revenue mark. They tend to be scale-ups rather than start-ups. And we’ve invested in more knowledgeable staff to give them the advice that they need. We’ve grown with our clients and now the firm is also in the £1m-£3m revenue area itself.
There’s a perception that the tech will handle everything for you
Staffing is tough, so we created our AGS Academy to grow our own. We take on apprentices every year and we grow them through AAT apprenticeships and then onto ACCA. We’ve found that we can no longer recruit qualified staff the way we used to from other practices; people are leaving those practices following private equity consolidation to go into industry. Instead, we’re going down the unconventional route of recruiting qualified staff from other sectors, such as the public sector, to train into practice.
One of the biggest challenges we’re facing is helping people understand what an accountant does. In today’s software-led world, there’s a perception that the tech will handle everything for you. But software doesn’t replace the insight, strategy and guidance that a good accountant brings to the table. I think there’s a real responsibility here for software companies, government bodies and professional organisations to educate new business owners – and also those who’ve been in business for years who view accountancy as paperwork once a year with a big bill at the end. They need to explain not just what accountants do, but why having one is absolutely essential for your business.
Away from work I’m a massive music fan – listening to it and playing. I’m particularly into 80s music (my dad’s influence). I was in an 80s band at one time, playing the keys and synth; I was the youngest person in the band by 25 years. I’m also a quizzer and have a weekly quiz team. I’m weirdly good at geography.
