Practice Accountant in Waterlooville

Responsibilities:

• To prepare, send and submit accounts & tax returns for a portfolio of clients, including Sole Traders, Partnerships and Limited Companies.
• To provide training, mentorship and technical guidance to your accounting team (and wider businesses where appropriate).
• To communicate with clients via phone, email, social media and in person, including chasing records.
• To onboard new clients and integrate them into your portfolio – this will include bookkeeping, compliance etc to then be handed over to the relevant department.
• To assess and advise clients on their tax position.
• To optimise and plan the tax efficiency of clients.
• To review and advise clients on advisory level to include cashflow, budgets, pricing etc (further training on our advisory systems will be provided).
• To complete, review and prepare book‑keeping, VAT returns and CIS where required.
• To prepare and execute year‑end client meetings.
• To carry out and deliver client fee reviews.
• To support the Client Manager and Senior Accountant in your accounting team ‘pod’.
• To maintain electronic filing of books and records both internally as well as management of client administration and records.
• To act as liaison between clients and HM Revenue & Customs to deal with and resolve queries.
• To provide external training e.g., client bookkeeping training and as applicable as per our company values.
• To manage and maintain your professional development and learning including any relevant CPD required by your professional body.
• To ensure and update HMRC/Companies House statutory information is accurate.

Person specification:

• Must be supported by a full membership to a chartered professional body, (AAT, ATT, ACCA etc).
• Extensive experience spanning 2+ years in practice, overseeing a broad client base and delivering work directly in a dynamic environment.
• Must be able to prepare accounts & tax returns for clients to review stage, including Sole Traders, Partnerships and Limited Companies.
• Experience of working with clients utilising Xero, QuickBooks, DEXT and Free Agent to produce client work.
• Sound understanding and working knowledge of tax.

Skills:

• Able to navigate Microsoft packages, specifically Word and Excel.
• Effective at time management with the ability to work to tight deadlines and deal with newly emerging priorities day‑to‑day without compromising attention to detail.
• Confidently able to provide advice and make recommendations to clients, taking care to break down complex information in such a way as to help with understanding in both written and verbal communication.
• To proactively seek out information when needed from colleagues and clients to enable a seamless service with a curious approach and hunger to expand knowledge.

Personal attributes:

• Friendly and professional with the ability to communicate effectively at all levels, internally and externally and committed to providing exemplary customer care.
• A fun and outgoing attitude with a desire to support the growth of a thriving business, whilst enjoying professional growth at the same time.
• An advocate for continued professional development, constantly curious and hungry to learn but not afraid to ask for advice when needed and act upon feedback given.
• Takes pride in professional appearance and positively represents the brand.

Shared values:

• Relationships over numbers - The meaningful relationships we build with our clients are fundamental to the way we do business. It is not enough to perform a service for our clients, our principal aim remains to give them the best; our deep understanding of their individual needs and circumstances enables us to not just meet expectations but exceed them, time and time again.
• Learn together and often! - We share our knowledge and experience with colleagues and clients generously, this commitment to continuous learning and development is what keeps us at the top of our game, protects our credibility and sets us apart from our competitors.
• Respect Team, Time and Talents - We are a team in the true sense of the word, every person matters equally, and we leave our egos at the door. We firmly believe that everybody has something valid to contribute and every person’s time and talents are precious regardless of ‘hierarchy’.
• Balanced and beautiful - We are committed to ensuring our client accounts, book‑keeping and payroll are accurate and beautifully clean. This means the records represent the true state of the business, so owners can make well informed and confident decisions.
• Courageous and Curious - We understand that to grow we need to expose ourselves to experiences that fall outside of our comfort zones and undertake tasks that may seem difficult at first. As a team we are continuously innovating, constantly looking for opportunities to improve what we do and always asking the question ‘is there a better way?’