What is an integrated business services partner, and why is the integration of these important areas of expertise essential to your company's success?
Recently, an international "big four" accounting, tax, and business advisory services company won a major victory in Arizona: the right to integrate legal services with existing accounting, tax, and business advisory offerings. The case required years to complete and substantial investment. Why would the company spend the time and resources to accomplish this goal? What can any business executive learn from this example?
One of the greatest challenges associated with business leadership is the need to sort through several levels of "symptoms" and challenges to identify the root of the issues at hand. Think about the old saying, "Where there's smoke, there is fire." Too many business executives, C-level leaders, and administrators waste efforts and resources on an apparent challenge, only to realize the issue's cause is much larger and often hidden.
Many important business challenges affect multiple areas of your company and its operations. It is impossible to address and resolve one aspect of the challenge without impacting several other departments and aspects of the company. This is why the recent Arizona court battle was worth fighting and an important lesson for business executives and C-level managers. An integrated business services partner is often required to get to the root of, resolve, and implement the solution associated with the challenge.
Who is your trusted integrated legal, tax, accounting, and business advisory partner? You need depth of experience and expertise across multiple business disciplines to evaluate the causes of the presenting challenges, the smoke, in order to discern the genuine challenge(s) underneath, the fire. The solution often requires a blended integration of multiple disciplines across multiple departments within the organization.
Your organization may already have trusted legal, tax, accounting, and business advisory professionals internally and externally. Have you ever noticed that recommendations for each area of expertise often conflict? This is an important business reality and the essence of an integrated strategy.
On their own, from their unique disciplinary perspective, each professional is providing the "right" answer. For example, your lawyer may provide the right legal strategies to develop and implement entities and contracts designed to "solve the problem" without realizing their best legal solution actually creates a significant (read: increased) international tax consequence. Likewise, the steps required to minimize local, state, national, and international taxation will require several changes to how information is captured, analyzed, and reported within the accounting system, not to mention the structure of the legal entity or entities associated with the solution.
A culinary masterpiece is not the result of a few great ingredients. Each ingredient must usually have specific characteristics, freshness, ripeness, and required qualities that will ultimately be blended in just the right portions and timing to create the finished entrée.
An integrated business services partner provides the experience, expertise, and depth required to assist with any challenge or opportunity. Business consulting and advisory experts offer insight into every aspect of starting, operating, growing, or selling a local, interstate, national, or international business.
The legal members of your team manage all aspects of business formation as well as ongoing governance and compliance. Attorneys create and update crucial corporate documents, shareholder agreements, business contracts, and employment agreements. They help resolve disputes, negotiate executive severance packages, and create business succession and estate plans for clients who own businesses.
The more comprehensive the business, the more complex the associated tax burden. How will you ensure all local, state, U.S., and international taxes are correctly calculated, reported, and paid? More importantly, how should your company adapt at each step in the growth process to structure your business to minimize associated tax exposures while facilitating the transactions and relationships you wish to cultivate?
A skilled tax professional or group will assist with preparing tax returns, audit defense, and international tax compliance. They should contribute to designing and implementing systems and accounting processes that capture crucial data at every step of your business operations. This information not only ensures the ability to reduce taxation and increase profitability but also informs complex decisions that must be made in real time.
Accounting is one of those "business basics." However, accounting systems and processes are unfortunately often under-valued and improperly structured. This is especially true when organizations grow, merge, acquire other entities, or enter new international or vertical markets. Accounting systems and associated reporting provide the data required for tax and financial reporting and the raw data necessary to inform management at every level of the organization.
Look for an integrated business services partner with the ability to provide legal, tax, accounting, and business advisory services across every facet of your company and its operations. Integrating these business disciplines provides a more profound and insightful perspective on any business challenge. A carefully crafted solution should not only meet and resolve problems and challenges, but it must be able to be implemented throughout your organization.
