The city of Bangalore has a plethora of chartered accountancy firms. Simply looking up their name displays hundreds of candidates, from small practices with offices to bigger ones that have a dozen members on their team and are deployed across several locations. This is a lot of options in a business owner’s or individual’s eyes, which can sometimes make the choice difficult. With your finances becoming more complex, the right CA firm can help you save money, avoid regulatory issues, and really be a valuable advisor. The incorrect option can cost you much more than the fees you have. This is what’s important when making this choice.
Evaluate the Scope of Services
Keep in mind that the scope of services listed is not exhaustive.
Most websites of the CA firms will provide you with a lot of information about the services they provide and can help you with, ranging from company registration to filing of the GST, to audit services to tax advisory services. This is good breadth but provides little information about the quality of the delivery for any one service. Having a firm that deals with everything under a single roof is convenient, but does that firm actually have the depth of knowledge in the area where you require it rather than just being “trained” in a broad range of disciplines? The people involved in your specific needs, whether they’re conducting a statutory audit, a GST notice, or filing a ROC notice, etc., do they have the depth they need or just a cursory training in too many things?
Ask About Relevant Experience
Inquire about the experience that is relevant to you. The needs of a startup founder that are registering a company for the first time, are quite different from those of an established manufacturing company that has received a tax scrutiny notice, and the right firm should be able to convey a specific message in accordance with your needs and requirements.
Know Who Will Handle Your Account
Who you actually work with is probably most important.
Probably the most important is who you will actually be working with.
This is one of the aspects that is neglected and one of the important ones. Many companies will introduce a senior partner in the initial consultation, but in the course of the engagement, the real work will be delegated to the less senior team members who have less experience, and the client won’t be asked to contact anyone who is senior until there is some mishap.
Before you work for any company, you should directly ask them who will be handling your account, day to day, and who will you have the contact with if you have a really important issue that you have to submit to your company. Firms that are transparent about this, and engage in positive communications at partner or senior-level, produce more repeatable and more responsible work over time.
Look Beyond the Fees
Think carefully about their strategy for compliance, rather than their fees.
With common tasks such as monthly bookkeeping or GST filing, it’s easy to go with the cheapest option. Noncompliance with the requirements, no matter how cheap and sloppy, costs much more in the long run when it comes to late filings, wrongly filed documents, and notices that could not have been issued had it been done correctly. The documentation of a company, the internal review mechanism, and its proactive compliance calendar tracking are more important than the invoice is.
Inquire from prospective companies about how they monitor the deadlines for different GST and income tax filing types, and if they mark up upcoming due dates or just react to due dates that have passed. This is a question that often gives insights as to the level of organisation that a firm truly possesses.
Consider Industry Familiarity
The regulations and money matters involved vary by industry. A company that has had a wide range of experience in working with IT enterprises, real estate, manufacturing units or NGOs is familiar with industry-specific headaches such as conforming to FEMA regulations for companies holding foreign equity, or a specific understanding of statutory audit nuances for real estate businesses. A company that is familiar with the business that you’re in will more likely be able to quickly identify problems and opportunities in their field in comparison with the competition that isn’t in that industry.
Evaluate Communication and Responsiveness
Identify the extent to which they can communicate.
The financial and tax aspects have weight and if you can’t get them right, neither can you get your message across. The best CA firm will keep you in the loop, provide you with clear information on what is going on, and let you know and understand when certain activities or decisions are coming up. If interactions with a firm during the initial stages seem rushed, ambiguous or overly sales focused, don’t expect things to change when you are a client.
Look for a Long-Term Partnership
Be on the lookout for a Long-Term Orientation.
The highest quality client relationships do not involve transactions. A company that thinks of it as a business partnership is more likely to be aware of your business and to know how to help you on a personal level versus just applying generic best practices. It’s tough to create consistency in a firm that sees each filing as its own individual project.
How Badami & Kamath Approaches Client Service
Here at Badami & Kamath we have established our practice in Jayanagar, Bangalore on these principles. With more than a combined thirty years of experience and a team of professionals who have served on the partnership for years, our team is directly facing the clients without going through a succession of junior members. We cater to businesses from all sectors including manufacturing, IT, construction, aviation and more, and our engagements are based on structured documentation, good communication and a long-term perspective of our clients’ financial journey.
Get in Touch
Whether you are considering chartered accountants in Bangalore for looking for firms that have wide expertise and provide direct and accountable services, connect with Badami & Kamath for a consultation.