business focus 15
Chartered accountants Haines Watts presents a series of articles based on their blogs. They offer analysis, reviews and comments and welcome your feedback at
www.hwca.com/blog
of the month
Outsourcing: a good tactic in today’s climate?
In recent years, many businesses have done the basics to drive costs down: reducing headcount, rationing capital expenditures, sharing infrastructure and improving procurement. For some, the need to achieve further cost reductions remains. Outsourcing can be an effective cost-saving strategy.
In tough times outsourcing all or part of your finance function can help control costs directly by reducing headcount, on- going training costs or the need to upgrade software. A case in point is the costs employers are incurring to ensure their BACS software is compliant
Lawyer makes Awards finals
Jane Masih, partner with specialist lawyers Owen White Solicitors in Slough, has made it through to the finals of the prestigious 2013 EWIF Awards.
EWIF (Encouraging Women into Franchising) is a not-for- profit organisation that seeks to encourage women to buy a franchise business, to franchise their existing business or to help existing franchise operations to attract more women as franchisees. Masih has reached the finals in the ‘Service Provider of the Year’ category.
She is a specialist in franchising law and has led Owen White’s acclaimed franchise team for over 10 years. With 25 years’ experience in helping people on both the franchisee and franchisor side of the industry, she is widely regarded as one of the UK’s foremost legal experts in the field and is also a board member of franchising’s self-regulatory body, the bfa (British Franchise Association).
with recently introduced Real Time Information (RTI) for PAYE.
Outsourcing a function like VAT can reduce the likelihood of late filing and incorrect returns and potentially save you substantial penalties. There are also indirect cost savings which arise from receiving accurate management information, cashflows and profit forecasts on time.
While outsourcing all or part of a finance function remains a legitimate strategy for reducing costs, it is important that you do not outsource based on cost alone. If, for example, you have ambitious growth plans and in a few years expect you will have expanded substantially,
writes Jane Wills, partner at Haines Watts
you may want to develop some in-house ability in preparation. Taking into account benefits like increasing flexibility and enabling key people at the heart of the business to perform strategically, are important considerations in building a broader business case for outsourcing.
Some businesses are comfortable managing routine functions like payroll and day-to-day bookkeeping in-house but prefer to outsource higher-level management accounts. You should have a clear understanding of the benefits you expect to achieve from outsourcing and the functions in your organisation which are best suited to it.
Trust and communication are key to ensuring a successful outsourcing partnership that delivers long-term savings and benefits. Make sure both parties understand what is expected and how the relationship will be managed.
For details on financial matters visit the website.
Details:
www.hwca.com
Henmans Freeth partner wins top national ‘Contentious Solicitor of the Year’ Award
Angela Bowman, head of the charity probate litigation team at Henmans Freeth, has won the 2013 ACTAPS (Association of Contentious Trust and Probate Specialists) Award in the category of ‘Contentious Solicitor of the Year’.
On reaching the finals of the ‘2013 EWIF Service Provider of the Year’ award Masih said: “Naturally I’m delighted. Owen White Solicitors has been at the forefront of providing legal services to the UK franchise industry for many years now and I would be thrilled if we are recognised for our contribution as lawyers to this exciting and fast- growing industry.”
Owen White Solicitors is a leading Thames Valley firm offering legal advice to businesses in areas including company and commercial, disputes and litigation, employment, franchising, property and social housing.
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – MAY 2013
The ACTAPS Awards were inaugurated in 2012 to mark outstanding contribution in the field of contentious trust and probate work. ACTAPS was established in 1997 and is a membership body for solicitors, barristers and legal executives who are substantially involved in contentious trust and probate disputes throughout England and Wales. It has a membership base of specialist lawyers from some of the largest law firms and barristers’ chambers in the UK.
Bowman and her team deal with trust and probate disputes on behalf of a large number of national and local charities, including British Heart Foundation,
Cancer Research UK, Cats Protection, Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, Macmillan Cancer Support, National Trust and RSPCA.
Bowman joined Henmans (now Henmans Freeth) upon qualification in 1997. She became a partner in 2004 and head of the charity probate litigation team the same year.
www.businessmag.co.uk
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