In the Q: Recent Episodes
Bruce Coombes
Bruce Coombes welcomes thought leaders to discuss the best business advice for accounting and legal firms. Tune in while you're "in the Q", waiting for your coffee in the morning or during your commute to work, and be inspired to grow your practice at the start of your day.
Today we are meeting with Brent Szalay, Managing Director at Seiva. Along with his work at SEIVA, Brent has received the prestigious Henry Fox award at CPA Australia for his outstanding contribution to Accounting Public Practice and was awarded Wellness Initiative of the Year for his mindset book TryPositive. In this interview, Brent shares what drives him as a leader and how he has implemented a culture of “care” to grow his practice.
Today we are meeting with Michael Hanrahan from Hanrahans Accounting Services who has over 40 year experience in the industry. Michael shares his view on how the industry has changed over that time and how he has developed his business in what it is today.
This month, we met with Jim Covino, head of Covino & Co. Jim Covino has been advising and assisting businesses and individuals for over 30 years. He shares his perspective on how current events affect accounting firms and their clients and the importance of relationships for businesses.
We are meeting today with Sal Vallelonga from Plexus Global. Director of various private entities, board and committee member of various charitable organisations, Sal is regularly involved in fundraising and charitable events while also working as a chartered accountant. Sal's leadership style helps him empower the people that work with him within all organisations. In this episode, we'll discuss his leadership philosophy and how he succeeds to deliver on all his commitments.
In 2022, Australian SMEs are coming out of two years of the pandemic with an upbeat outlook and an eagerness to invest in their business. More companies have acquisitions in their sights. Yet many are frustrated by the traditional borrowing process and are not fully informed about the alternative options available to them.
Bruce Coombes, Managing Director at QuickFee, is meeting with Guy Callaghan from Banjo Loans to discuss the SME Compass Report and what it means for B2B firms and businesses that offer services to SMEs.
Download the report here: https://landing.banjoloans.com/banjos-sme-compass-report-2022/
In the Spotlight this month, we have nominated Corene Baird-Coetzer, General Manager at Murfett Legal. Corene has worked as an administrator/manager in the legal profession since 1991 and has been an Office Manager of various law firms since 1995. Corene has a passion for making a difference, which has brought her to become the General Manager at Murfett Legal, a young and dynamic firm led by a team of energetic and strategic directors. Corene’s supports and helps drive the firm to become a well-recognised and serious player in the market. But Corene’s passion doesn’t stop there. She has also been supporting the animal rescue efforts in Ukraine, specifically the Animal welfare work.
In this episode, Bruce Coombes and Alistair Marshall discuss:
- The importance of internal vs external referrals
- How to use your website as a lead generation mechanism
- Brand advertising, sponsorships and corporate hospitality
In this episode, we are meeting with Jon May, Director at the Chamberlains law firm. Chamberlains is a full-service law firm with niche expertise in the cryptocurrency sector, drawing on knowledge from its commercial, tax and litigation teams. The firm has been helping clients in the sector for some time but is now accepting payments in most major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Chamberlains Law Firm was the Australiasian Law Awards Law Firm of the year in 2020 and has kept cumulating industry awards throughout the years.
Bruce Coombes and Alistair Marshall are back and talk about generating leads and growing your practice. In this episode, they provide advise on:
- Accounting and legal firm sales process
- Gaining visibility and credibility
- Getting your firm and your people to focus more on business development
- Generalist VS Specialist
- Getting referrals
- Marketing - relevance in business development
In the Spotlight recognises legal and accounting practitioners who demonstrate innovation, success, and commitment throughout their work.
This month, we are meeting with David Dahm, Chartered Accountant, CEO and Founder of Health and Life. David Dahm deeply cares about healthcare and ethics and has incorporated his beliefs and principles into his accounting practice. With a passion for finance and health, David brings a different perspective on accounting services.
In this second episode of In the Q, Bruce Coombes and Alistair Marshall discuss the importance of setting your fees high enough and getting paid what you’re worth.
Find out why discounting your fees won’t necessarily help you gain more clients and how you can, on the contrary, be more profitable by charging a premium fee.
Bruce and Alistair also discuss the importance of specialisation, especially when it comes to professional services business development.
If service is a measure of how you make people feel, then professional services providers should be mindful of their bedside manner. If a client walks away from the interaction with you feeling good, they will be more inclined to offer a referral – so every touchpoint along the process should add value. In addition, they should feel like they are the only client in your firm. To have high levels of client satisfaction, your employees must also feel valued. So it follows that if you hope to have a high level of client satisfaction, your staff satisfaction levels must also increase. If your team are unhappy, how can you possibly deliver client satisfaction levels of 10/10? Our Managing Director Bruce Coombes sits down with Alistair Marshall, Director of Professional Services Business Development, to chat about all things service for SME’s. Alistair regularly consults with professional service firms to provide tailored, practical and results-driven business development strategies.