By Shaun Pegler, client director at Randall & Payne 

"There are things we don't know we don't know." Not only are there gaps in our knowledge, but often we don't even know it.

This classic quote describes how prospects can feel when I run through a list of questions in order to understand their business and their aspirations for the future.

Not knowing how the numbers can be used to make your business work better is possibly the biggest thing they didn't know that they should know. Your accountant is/should be your trusted advisor with the expert advice and experience to ask the right questions to benefit your business.

I always start by checking that you have monthly figures which are timely, accurate and understandable. Quite often we find that errors in the reporting are leading to the wrong decisions being made as a result. This is where our Management Services team can help to get clients set up on or transfer to a software package which best suits their business needs.

It's also important for me to understand right from the beginning what success looks like to you and whether you need help to bring your vision to life. Our mantra at Randall & Payne is to make your success our priority so it's our aim to be clear about what your goals are and how we can help to achieve them. We can then involve the relevant expert when required, whether it's our Business Advisory team to help with your strategy and plans, or our Tax team to help you with the structure of your business if it's not set up in a tax efficient way.

We can act as a sounding board for your ideas and can help to find the solution based on our wealth of experience and large bank of knowledge. Many clients benefit from our external expert opinion, acting as a fresh pair of eyes on your business to highlight any opportunities which may have been missed previously.

There are so many areas to consider which may have been in place for years, such as checking you are on the correct remuneration package or that the structure/shareholding of the business is appropriate. When is the last time you looked at overall tax planning for you personally and the business? Are you protecting your wealth in the most efficient manner?

With the challenging times businesses are currently going through, whether connected to the pandemic or Brexit, businesses are understanding the need to be agile so they are able to adapt quickly to changes in their market place. We can help you with a plan for the coming twelve months and beyond.

It might be that you feel that things have stalled, or you know that a change needs to happen, but don't know what questions need to be answered to help, then a conversation with an expert who knows how important it is that you know what your numbers mean could make a huge difference.

If you can spare an hour of your time to meet with our team free of charge to find out what you don't know that would benefit you if you did, that one hour could be the start of a new era for your business and yourself!

For more information about Randall & Payne and the services they provide or to book a free advice clinic, please visit www.randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.