Audit Support Services – Decoding the Term for Growth-Focused Accountants

To sustain and grow in the accounting sector in 2022 is essentially being very ambitious on the part of accountants. The global coronavirus pandemic put a huge strain on accounting firms and had accountants stretched thin battling multiple problems at a time.

In such a scenario, the only way for accountants to grow their practice is by expanding their service portfolio.

The audit industry in the UK is currently undergoing significant changes. This has led to the creation of new opportunities for small and medium-sized accountancy practices to enter the market. Therefore, auditing is one of the services that accountants can consider adding to their offerings in 2022.

However, incorporating a new service isn’t all easy. The talent shortage in the accounting industry is real and getting graver each year. Moreover, the global coronavirus pandemic made employees aware of the importance of their mental well-being and a healthy work-life balance. This has further fueled the Great Resignation, with employees leaving jobs even before finding another.

How can accountants deal with this challenge and step into the booming audit market in such a situation? We have the answer – Audit Support Services!

What Are Audit Support Services?

In simplest terms, audit support services refer to outsourcing client audits by accountants to a third-party auditor. When you outsource accounting audit support, you employ an experienced audit professional to plan, execute and manage the entire audit process and provide valuable guidance throughout the course of action.

Several accounting outsourcing companies provide audit support services to growth-focused accountants and accountancy firms. These companies employ highly skilled and experienced auditors in countries like India and train them extensively on the UK audit legislation.

The offshore auditors seamlessly adapt to client processes and work as an extension of your team. Moreover, they bring with them unparalleled technical expertise, excellent communication skills, and vast industry experience.

Audit support services are crucial for growth-focused accountants to add a new service to their portfolio without increasing overhead costs. It not only helps accountants rid their firms of staffing issues but also cuts operational costs and boosts productivity.

The Opportunity for Small and Medium-Sized Accountancy Practices

The audit industry in the UK has witnessed a series of massive audit failures over the last few years. Alarmingly, these failures were caused or orchestrated by audit giants constituting the Big Four, giving a significant blow to their reputation.

To avoid such failures in the future and regulate each financial audit, the UK government has planned stringent moves. Accordingly, a new governing body- Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA), is slated to come into the picture. Meanwhile, the current watchdog, Financial Reporting Council (FRC), continues to monitor audit companies closely and ban failing auditors.

The accounting audit process is complex. It requires a great deal of vigilance, knowledge, and experience on the part of an auditor to execute a financial audit correctly. Therefore, it makes sense for accountants to outsource the function to professional experts outside their practice.

Further, the UK government has big plans to revamp the country’s accounting and audit sector. Accordingly, it has advised firms to hand off a part of their audit function to small audit firms.

This means the audit sector will soon witness reduced dominance by the Big Four, creating a vast opportunity for small and medium-sized accountancy practices to enter the market.

How Can Audit Support Services Transform Your Practice?

There are several ways in which outsourcing audit support and preparation services can benefit growing accountancy practices. Let’s look at some of them.

Offer a Complete Gamut of Services

As mentioned earlier, clients often look for a complete gamut of services with just one partner. This saves them from the hassle of sharing confidential data with multiple contractors and coordinating and keeping track of various jobs.

Adding audit to your service portfolio by outsourcing audit support services to a reputable partner increases your chances of retaining existing clients and boosting revenue. A new service can be an excellent source of income for an accountancy practice in the face of an impending recession.

Attract New Clients

Apart from client retention, adding audit as a new service to your offerings also opens doors to attracting new clients. With companies now having to hand over a part of their external audit to non-Big Four firms, there is a massive demand for reliable audit firms in the market.

Stepping into the audit market at this time can be highly beneficial to accountancy firms as they can easily acquire new clients and facilitate new revenue streams.

Save Costs

The soaring inflation and rising operational costs are a matter of concern for all accountants alike. In addition, accountant salaries have almost doubled over the last few years, and the cost of hiring and retaining employees has been adding to the financial burden.

To sustain these conditions, outsourcing accounting audit support can be highly effective. Outsourcing employs skilled resources from around the world at competitive rates instead of hiring new in-house staff. Moreover, accountants need not spend on operational costs for these resources as they operate out of a delivery centre from their country, thus further saving costs.

Cost savings is one of the primary reasons most accountants in the UK prefer outsourcing audit support services in India.

Beat Competition

The growing competition in the accounting world has pushed accountants to the brink of burnout. The increasing concentration of small and medium-sized practices has put a strain on the prices of services, forcing accountants to stretch themselves too thin to sustain themselves in the competitive market.

Audit support services enable small and medium-sized accountancy firms to step into the audit sector. Adding a new service to their portfolio and attracting new clients can be significant in aiding firms beat the growing competition and opening new streams of revenue for their practice.

Tailored Accounting Audit Support with QXAS

QXAS is a leading accounting outsourcing firm specialising in tailored audit support services for growth-focused accountants. With a team of 1500+ dedicated accountants and skilled auditors, we help firms battle staffing shortages, save costs, and maximise profits.

To learn how outsourcing audit support can transform your business, drop an email at [email protected] or call +44 208-146-0808. To speak to an outsourcing expert directly or avail a free trial of our services, click here.