INTERVIEW Brett is quick to point to the people and culture as
playing a huge part in his decision to take up the role and, nearly three years later, that culture is certainly striking as you enter the PKF Cooper Parry's premises. “I’d had a few years of going back to my old company to
try to sort things out and that went OK but I didn’t really enjoy it. I also took up a few non-exec roles for a few other businesses which I did enjoy. “A big thing for me is the way the company embraces
entrepreneurs. There’s the freedom here to take holidays when you want, come in when you want; releasing employees to have the freedom to crack on and do what they are good at. The past three years have been the best three years of my working career by a mile.” Of similar importance is the company’s embracement of
an ever-changing technology landscape where adapting and thriving and ensuring clients do likewise is clearly a great motivation to Brett. “The IT team has skillsets here that I didn’t have at
Orchid. We’re up to 60 people now and this year we will probably turn over between £8m to £10m. When I first joined we had turnover of just over £1m so we have had good growth in that time but I do want more out of it.” So what is the vision moving forward for Brett’s team specifically and PKF Cooper Parry generally, how does the company position itself and how prominent a role will digital technology play moving forward? “In terms of being number one in the Midlands, this is
something we challenge quite a lot in our regular management meetings. The landscape is changing quite a bit, so you can’t really define a ‘number one’ IT business because IT businesses do lots of different things,” he argues. “To me, being number one is being the best at what we
do and then it’s about defining what we do, which in itself has been quite a challenge. “As a business we’re not just a firm of accountants, we’re
business advisers, so what we do is get under the skin of our clients in all areas. For example, I had a meeting recently with an IT client we’re doing a lot of development work for. They weren’t aware that you can get R&D tax credits against software development for the work they are doing, which is a significant saving, so not only are we helping them with their IT strategy but we’re now helping them fund it too.” In terms of competition, Brett believes that PKF Cooper
Parry’s multi-faceted approach is a significant unique selling point for the company. “We’ll act as an FD for one client, helping them with their
audit and offering tax advice, then we’ll help them sell the business, then once they have sold it, we’ll invest their wealth so that they can make more money off that. It’s everything from start-up to a finish and that’s something that I don’t think many businesses out there can offer. “If you silo it down into auditing, tax, restructuring, IT
and so on then yes, there’s a lot of competition but nothing that comes together comprehensively.” The comprehensive nature of PKF Cooper Parry’s
offering is, as well as its culture, underpinned by one thing – technology, and for Brett, this is only the start. “Technology should be driving the business forward. We’re looking at bot technology at the moment,
for example. There is a lot of work which is repetitive and that’s something that artificial intelligence and bots can do. Why not free up some of the great people you have to do the things they are really good at and let computers do the repetitive and easy stuff? “For us, it wasn’t that long ago that we were printing out
audit work, going to see the client, getting them to sign off the audit, bringing it back and filing it in a secure room. Now, we are working on moving this completely online on Cloud-based systems such as SharePoint and we’re now starting to share documents over the internet in a more collaborative way.” While many companies realised the power of technology
and its seemingly unlimited scope long ago, the idea of digital capabilities can still be viewed with suspicion and apprehension by some – unsurprising given the relentless pace of its advancement. Brett, though, believes that digital technology doesn’t
have to be complex or something to be feared and points to the way in which it can enhance practically every area of a business as a major reason for embracing it. “We still see businesses that are using technology from ten,
15 years ago and they are reluctant to invest but those that don’t won’t be able to keep up with the times,” he argues. “I use a product that shows me the latest trends, how
well the business is doing, how happy our customers are, how happy our staff are, how well the helpdesk tickets are doing, whether everybody is paying us on time and I have an app that gives me all that in real time. Even if I am not at work for whatever reason, I can look at my phone and I have every bit of the business there in front of me working immediately. Why shouldn’t all business people have that? “Once people actually invest in the latest tech it makes it
a lot easier for them to invest in great stuff that can be used to really power the business forward.” Given the digital technology landscape can seemingly
change from day to day, how easy, or difficult, is it for Brett and his team to keep abreast of all developments and stay ahead of the curve as a business? “It’s pretty easy for us because we’re immersed in it. We
do it, we live and breathe it and embrace it every day, so does PKF Cooper Parry as an organisation and, through that, so do our clients.” So what is the next phase for the digital age? Can the
pace of evolution continue exponentially or will there eventually be a plateau? Brett is unequivocal in his response. “There’s always new tech happening and it will continue
Culture and innovation is key to PKF Cooper Parry's vision 36 business network December 2017/January 2018
to change and evolve massively. If you go back three years here at PKF Cooper Parry, we weren’t doing what we’re doing now and we didn’t predict some of the areas we are working in. It will be the same in three years’ time and in another three years after that. The businesses that thrive will certainly be the ones that continue to embrace digital technology moving forward.”
Brett believes embracing technology is crucial for businesses if they are to realise growth potential
‘To me, being number one is being the best at what we do and then it’s about defining what we do, which in itself has been quite a
challenge’
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