What is an integrated approach to solving business problems? Why is it important for businesses, especially those with multiple offices or entities and/or cross-border interests to partner with an integrated legal, tax, accounting and consulting firm?

Today's business questions and problems are much more complex than even five years ago. Business decisions must be made within a shorter window of opportunity when change is happening at an increasingly rapid pace. The complications of cross-border, interstate and international business and competition has sharpened the need for accurate business insight and decision making and increased the value of an integrated business service partner who can help to guide you through any potential opportunity or challenge.

How can an integrated approach to solving business problems prove to be a valuable resource for your company? Let's approach a common business challenge. The question on the table will affect not only how you track the integration of components and services as you prepare products and services for market, but the distribution of those products and services to an increasingly competitive marketplace. A decision may require the input of a business attorney, tax specialists and/or attorneys, accounting professionals, financial professionals, and expert business consultants.

Each professional will understand the question from their limited perspective and provide advice and counsel based upon that one disciplinary perspective. A business attorney has no understanding of the tax implications the decision may have or how the internal accounting systems must be changed to capture additional detailed information. The tax specialist and accounting professional cannot provide sound counsel on how the challenge or problem will affect the corporate structure of your entity or entities or the impact of the decision upon production or distribution. In fact, in many cases professionals provide conflicting advice as they do not understand the nuances associated with each different professional perspective.

After more than 25 years of service one thing is abundantly clear: businesses approach our office with a problem or challenge, but the real issue lies hidden beneath it. The original problem is large enough and important enough to have attracted their attention and warrant an answer. However, the presenting issue is merely the visible impact of a much deeper and broader challenge.

If it is a simple problem, a single professional should be able to quickly diagnose the problem and implement a solution.

The real challenge arises when one must unwrap the corresponding pieces of the puzzle and blend the legal perspective, tax consequences, market and sales factors, internal management issues and related accounting changes to understand the broad picture, as well as its integrated intricate components?

No one professional can solve the problem. Each puts forward their recommendation(s), however they seem to compete against one another and the customer is left trying to discern which piece(s) (if any) to implement.

An integrated approach to solving business problems puts a stop to the finger pointing, the circular references (one thing leads to another, and another, etc., and nothing gets done!), the quandary of how to best implement the recommendations on the table and even internal excuses. The integrated solution is what actually delivers the benefits of solving a genuine business challenge.