Accountants Daily Podcast Network

With recommendations from the Hayne royal commission and inquiry into superannuation yet to be addressed, CPA Australia's general manager of external affairs, Paul Drum, claims that members have grown quite sceptical of reviews. Paul returns to Accountants Daily Insider with host Jotham Lian to outline some of the issues raised by members around the current reviews into retirement income and aged care, CPA's perspective on raising superannuation guarantee contributions to 12 per cent, and how practitioners should go about dealing with all of this change. Paul also provides his take on industry anxiety around myGovID, details CPA's pre-budget submission to help those affected by bushfires and drought, and explains the implications of these businesses not having access to financial guidance on the economy at large.

In Rebecca Mihalic's experience, women in the accounting profession can often face gender bias, whether it be in the form of unintentionally discriminatory language or an underrepresentation of females in leadership roles. In the lead-up to International Women's Day this Sunday, 8 March, the businessDEPOT director, founding partner of Aptus Accounting & Advisory, and head of accounting at Practice Ignition, joins host Jotham Lian to reflect on the gender-specific challenges she's faced throughout her 20-year accounting career. Rebecca explains how the repetitive nature of certain behaviour made her feel inadequate as a young accountant, shares what helped rebuild her confidence, and provides advice for other young professionals in the accounting space.

On this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, TaxBanter's senior tax trainer, Robyn Jacobson, explains the implications of the passing of the Superannuation Guarantee Amnesty Bill, which now awaits royal assent. Robyn joins host Jotham Lian to provide her insight into journal entry practices in the industry, how the government can provide the profession with certainty around proposed changes to Division 7A, and what actions practitioners need to take in the lead-up to 1 July. She also shares what advisers need to know about a new law regarding CGT main residence exemption, impending changes to Single Touch Payroll, and legislative adjustments regarding agents' access to deceased clients' information.

While the goal of tightening regulation in the tax practitioner space is to ultimately increase the quality of the profession, the burden can sometimes be difficult and even unnecessary for certain practitioners to commit to. On this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Jotham Lian is joined by the general manager of external affairs at CPA Australia, Paul Drum, to share his opinion on the TPB's proposal of significantly increasing CPE requirements for all tax practitioners. Paul also details CPA's pre-budget submission relating to reducing the regulatory burden faced by accountants, outlines other short-term recommendations intended to stimulate the economy, and explains how the voucher proposal for small businesses to engage a professional adviser came about.

Host Jotham Lian is joined by Michael Carruthers on this episode of Accountants Daily Insider to discuss incoming legislative changes in the tax realm. The tax director at Knowledge Shop delves into the implications of the Combating Illegal Phoenixing Bill, other debt obligations that director clients can be liable for, and what practitioners need to know about the Superannuation Guarantee Amnesty Bill. Michael also shares the headline recommendations of the Board of Taxation's recent review of small business tax concessions, current trends in the training space, and what the recent acquisition of TaxBanter means for Knowledge Shop.

In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, Professor Robert Deutsch, senior tax counsel at The Tax Institute, delves into key tax issues that accountants should be paying close attention to over the next year. Robert joins host Jotham Lian to share his insights into the international activities that are likely to trigger repercussions in the Australian tax sector, the problems currently occurring in the fringe benefits tax space, and the implications of legislation regarding the denial of CGT main residence exemption for foreign residents. Robert also forecasts his predictions for this year's federal budget, recommends how to improve the relationship between practitioners and the Australian Taxation Office, and provides details about The Tax Institute's national convention, The Tax Summit 2020.

All too often, property investors are so focused on returns that they neglect to consider the tax implications of their investments. On this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Phil Tarrant is joined by the acting assistant commissioner of individuals and intermediaries at the Australian Taxation Office, Adam O'Grady. Adam dissects statistics around the property investment space in Australia, outlines key policy changes which investors should be aware of, and breaks down the process for making changes to tax law.

According to director at LMS Advisory Alexander Laureti, policy changes are a great opportunity for accountants to review and improve relationships and processes with their clients. In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, Alexander joins host Sarah Kendell to discuss the implications of upcoming changes in the accounting space, including the transition from AUSkey to myGovID, the implementation of Single Touch Payroll and the imminent rollout of e-invoicing. Alexander shares his insight around timing such transformation projects, the feedback he's received from clients in response to the changes, and the challenges and opportunities he foresees for the industry in the year ahead.

On this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, George Morice outlines the key issues that accounting firms and their small business clients will be facing in 2020. The accounting director of Prime Partners joins host Sarah Kendell to shed some light on how accountants can support their struggling business-owner clients, the importance of technology in increasing productivity, and why his firm is providing complementary strategic resources for SMEs seeking growth. George also explains how firms can future-proof their businesses, why adding value and bettering client relationships is the most critical aspect of a successful practice, and how accountants can play a role in helping their rural clients rebuild in the aftermath of Australia's bushfire crisis.

With the devastating bushfire crisis currently gripping Australia, 2020 is predicted to be a turbulent year across all industries and the accounting profession will not be exempt from these challenges. Director of Smithink David Smith joins host Sarah Kendell on this episode of Accountants Daily Insider to share his insights into the types of issues that accounting firms might face in attempting to rebuild from the impact of the fires. David also emphasises the importance of a strong digital marketing strategy for accounting firms, suggests how business owners can combat the challenge of recruiting and retaining employees in the industry, and provides recommendations on the most beneficial new initiatives that accountants should consider in 2020.

On this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Sarah Kendell sits down with the executive manager of SMSF technical and private wealth at SuperConcepts, Graeme Colley, to discuss recent regulatory developments in the SMSF space and the subsequent impact on industry professionals. Mr Colley shares his views on whether claims made by ASIC in their fact sheet on SMSFs are exaggerated or misleading, runs through the standard costs for servicing different types of funds, and explains the difficulties in comparing performance figures when considering SMSFs versus APRA funds. He also outlines SuperConcepts' involvement in the consultation process with the ATO and the new non-arm's length income (NALI) laws, suggests how the regulations can be amended to provide a more practical solution for accountants, and responds to the contentious topic of the ATO's campaign around investment strategy.

Accountants working with clients investing within their SMSF will be familiar with the recent ATO campaign sent to around 17,000 trustees warning that they may not have adequately considered diversification in their investment strategy. In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Sarah Kendell is joined by the director of Tactical Super, Deanne Firth, who will discuss how the campaign has impacted the SMSF audit space and considerations for accountants to be aware of. She will share how the campaign has led to her surveying her clients, explain how some clients are in fact more diversified that they seem on paper, and unpack the role of financial advisers in overseeing the diversification of their clients' investment funds.

2019 has been a period of technological transformation in the accounting industry, and according to general manager at MYOB, Blake Collins, it's only going to expediate in the coming year. Blake joins host Sarah Kendell on this episode of Accountants Daily Insider to provide insight into how accountants can optimally embed technology into their businesses; what firms can do to prepare for the transition to myGovID; and how new tech platforms will enable a simplified, more efficient way of working for accountants.

Traditionally, clinical psychology focuses primarily on the faults, failings and weaknesses of patients in order to effectively treat psychological disorders. Positive psychology represents a shift away from this deficit approach to one that concentrates on emphasising strengths and happiness as a means to mental wellbeing. On this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, chief happiness officer at The Happiness Institute, Dr Tim Sharp, joins host Jerome Doraisamy to outline the key benefits offered by positive psychology, explain the generalised principles that professionals can implement in their daily lives, and reveal how he personally adopts this model of psychology in his own life. Dr Happy breaks down the difference between popular psychology and positive psychology as represented on social media, debunks the common misconception that so-called negative emotions should be avoided, and suggests the importance of using flexible methods of thinking in different circumstances.

In part two of this special episode of Accountants Daily Insider, brought to you by the Governance Institute of Australia, the general manager of policy and advocacy at the Governance Institute of Australia, Catherine Maxwell; the principal of PKF Australia, Kym Reilly; and the director of people and advisory services at EY, Mathew Ronald, once again join host Sarah Kendell to further delve into the findings of the Australian Ethics Index survey. They will discuss how the accounting sector fares comparative to other professional associations in Australia, the role that culture plays within an organisation, and the importance of dealing with "bad apples". The panellists also discuss artificial intelligence within accounting, how AI will integrate with human roles, and the impact that it will have on ethics within the sector.

According to recent data, banking and finance professionals are publicly perceived to be the least ethical professional service in the country. In this special episode of Accountants Daily Insider brought to you by the Governance Institute of Australia, host Sarah Kendell is joined by the general manager of policy and advocacy at the Governance Institute of Australia, Catherine Maxwell, PKF's principal, Kym Reilly, and Mathew Ronald, director of people and advisory services at EY. The panel break down the key findings of the Governance Institute's Ethics Index for 2019 pertaining to banking and finance professionals, suggest reasons for public distrust in the financial services sector, and provide advice for accountants to improve their ethical perceptions.

With the ATO now visiting about 10,000 Australian companies every year, should business owners have anything to fear? ATO assistant commissioner Peter Holt speaks straight from the source. Mr Holt joins host Adam Zuchetti in this episode of Accountants Daily Insider to share insights from the business visits program, dispel misconceptions around what employers can expect, and discuss the current trends in business compliance. Tune in as Mr Holt reveals why the ATO is making such a big deal about the black economy, what inspectors have discovered by visiting Aussie businesses, and what the Tax Office really thinks about discounts for cash payments.

According to Hot Toast founder and director Sarah Lawrance, CFO services are an essential offering of any forward-thinking firm. In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, she joins host Sarah Kendell to discuss why accounting practices should incorporate CFO services, suggest ways of implementing them into an established firm, and detail how her company prices these capabilities.

Recent figures show that over 800,000 small businesses are currently on payment plans with the ATO to help them to pay off their tax debt in instalments. On this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Sarah Kendell is joined by My Business editor Adam Zuchetti to delve into the reasons why this statistic is so high, whether pervasive fears of the ATO from small businesses are justified, and how accountants and regulators can help support SME cash flow to create better outcomes.

On this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Sarah Kendell and Gary Weisz, director of strategic accounts and alliances for accountants at Sage, discuss how the implementation of customisable software can assist firms in bettering relationships with new and existing clients and improve efficiency, communication and collaboration. Mr Weisz also recommends ways that accounting firms can overcome resistance to technology, stemming both from clients and from within their businesses.

With the introduction of digital requirements such as Single Touch Payroll, accounting practices are being encouraged to embrace the paperless movement. However, not all firms are enthusiastic about the inevitable switch to digital. In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, the strategic partnerships manager of Receipt Bank, Christopher McColm, shares his insights with host Sarah Kendell about how accounting firms can change their attitudes towards going paperless, talks about the importance of empathy for historical businesses that have already been through abundant change, and addresses the widespread misconception that accountants might lose revenue due to technology replacing so many aspects of their role.

CPA head of public practice Keddie Waller joins us on this week's episode of Accountants Daily Insider, speaking with host Sarah Kendell on the rising costs and regulatory burden for accountants providing holistic advice. Ms Kendell talks about the complex regulatory regime that currently exists, why the accountants' exemption is not the answer, and some recommendations to ease the burden on accountants.

BDO partner Ben Renshaw joins host Sarah Kendell on this episode of Accountants Daily Insider to discuss the resurrection of the SG amnesty bill. Mr Renshaw details key dates to take note of, explains why even businesses with the best intentions might make mistakes, and explores how the introduction of single touch payroll will give the ATO greater visibility over non-compliance than ever before.

On this week's episode of Accountants Daily Insider, Inspector-General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman Karen Payne joins host Sarah Kendell to talk all things about her agency and unpack the IGT's corporate plan for the next four years. Ms Payne explains how her office can assist tax practitioners and clients with various issues, shares what compliant trends she is noticing at the moment, and explores some possible reviews in the pipeline.

On this week's episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Katarina Taurian is joined by the deputy editor of SMSF Adviser Sarah Kendall to discuss the current issues and challenges the SMSF space is faced with. Sarah and Katarina discuss the ATO's decision to look into diversification for SMSF's, the discussion around physical signatures versus electronic for documentation and the importance of broader estate planning.

On this special episode of Accountants Daily insider, R U OK? non-executive director Graeme Cowan explains what it means to identify, trust and act on the signs and symptoms of ill-health in the workplace - not just today, but every day.

This week's episode of Accountants Daily Insider sees host Katarina Taurian joined by Scottish Pacific chief executive Peter Langham, and Cohen & Krass director Tony Cohen to discuss why the new Business Funding Guide is useful for the accounting profession. Mr Langham explains why the Business Funding Guide was developed in conjunction with the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO) and why it is such an important tool amid the credit crunch. Mr Cohen also talks on why the guide is so useful for his graduates and why the accounting education landscape has to change to accommodate the changing needs of small business clients.

On this week's episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Katarina Taurian is joined by the honourable Bruce Billson, former minster for small business, to talk all things financing in the SME space. Bruce discusses the critical issues facing SMEs when trying to obtain funding, what life is really like for SMEs on a daily basis, and what needs to happen at a government level for changes to kick in. He also shares why some Australians are turning back to traditional forms of lending.

In this episode- brought to you by Accountants Daily sister title, Smart Property Investment Chief Economist from AMP Capital, Dr Shane Oliver joins host James Mitchell to discuss the recent rate cuts and the Australian share market. Dr Oliver discusses the current economic situation in Australia, the rate cutting cycle and the impact on the housing market. He also shares what impact the rate cuts will have on the share market and his main predictions for the Sydney and Melbourne markets.

CEO of Licensing for accountants Kath Bowler joins host Katarina Taurian on this week's episode of Accountants Daily insider to discuss all things FASEA and what it means for the financial advice space. Kath shares what steps accountants need to take to ensure they are able to continue to provide financial advice, reactions from industry professionals around the changes and her top 5 tips for nailing the implementation of the changes.

This week on Accountants Daily insider Katarina Taurian is joined by Matthew Pisarski from Intuit QuickBooks to discuss change management and why it is so important for firms to be able to adapt to new technologies. In the accounting world technologies are forever evolving Matthew shares key themes in change management the importance of having a plan in place and how he tackles people who aren't as receptive the new technologies as others. They also discuss what is in the pipeline for intuit and technology in the accounting space.

Self-proclaimed hype girl for accounting apps and thought leadership finalist at this year's Australian Accounting awards Heather Smith joins host Katarina Taurian on this week's episode of Accountants daily insider. Heather shares her definition of thought leadership, why she lives by the saying "my practice lives in my handbag" and change for the next generation coming through the ranks. The pair also discuss the image of the accounting profession, why it is no longer appealing to students and the quality and relevance of what is being taught in schools and tertiary environments.

Founder and director of Hot Toast Sarah Lawrence has had a varied career. A love of storytelling saw her involved in everything from documentary making to children's television, and only a few months ago, Sarah was on stage accepting an award for CFO of the year at the Australian Accounting Awards. In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, Sarah joins host Katarina Taurian to reflect on this journey, explain how a mentor made her fall in love with the financial sector and unpack the role of a CFO. She also discusses the birth of the "Hot Toast" brand, the type of clientele that she is working with and why not every potential client makes the cut.

Public practitioner of the year Teddy Kosasih partner at Pitt Martin, joins host Katarina Taurian on this week's episode of Accountants Daily Insider to talk about what made him take the public practice path. Teddy reflects on taking out the practitioner of the year award at the Australian accounting awards, his thoughts on what makes a good practitioner, how he hires for public practice, the skill sets he looks for to be able to tap into different markets, and how he started his own practice.

In this week's episode of The Accountants Daily Insider host, Katarina Taurian is joined by Amanda Gascoigne, to talk about how she shifted her career as an accountant to coach and mentor small and solo accounting practices. Amanda shares her accounting journey and how she has gotten to where she is today, she talks about being awarded a Fellowship of Charted Accountants ANZ in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the accounting profession and she shares her secrets on how she encourages accountants to see their potential.

Grant Quick, Senior Solutions Engineer at Intuit QuickBooks, joins host Katarina Taurian in this episode of the Accountants Daily Insider to talk all things Single Touch Payroll (STP) compliance, what it means after June 30 and what is on the horizon for FY20. Grant reveals the key dates around STP compliance, how business will be affected, and his thoughts on how STP will streamline processes. The pair also talk about what is next from a tech prospective and why businesses need to embrace changes to become more efficient.

Chris Balalovski partner, Business Services at BDO Australia, joins host Katarina Taurian in this episode of Accountants Daily Insider to discuss key dates for end of financial year and why accountants are moving away from bread and butter accounting work into advisory. Chris reveals why accountants need to be diversifying their practices to cope with changes, considerations for property investors and the weirdest requests clients have attempted to claim.

Jonathan Tefal, director and senior accountant from Senior Advisory, joins host Katarina Taurian in this episode of Accounts Daily Insider to reveal how they are tackling the evolution of technology within the accounting sector, and to reflect on recently taking out the award for Boutique Firm of the Year at the Australian Accounting Awards. Jonathan reveals how they endeavour to continually set their firm apart from the rest, what's next for Senior Advisory, and his thoughts on creating the perfect balance between technology and human touch.

In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, finalist in the Thought Leader of the Year category at the recent Australian Accounting Awards, Edward Chan, joins host Katarina Taurian to discuss his career in accounting and reveal how he ended up running an accounting firm "almost by accident". Edward will discuss how setting up an accounting firm in a time when computers were just making their way into the industry differs from setting one up in the current technology climate, share his thoughts on what makes a strong leader, and how he is giving back to the sector through means of mentoring and coaching.

With the 1 July Single Touch Payroll deadline looming, Lielette Calleja, director at All That Counts, joins host Katarina Taurian in this episode of Accountants Daily Insider to reveal what she wished she had known when starting the planning process with her clients, and to discuss the exceptions for microbusiness. Lielette will reveal how she has approached an internal audit to best prepare herself for the changes, why she thinks it will be a learning curve for all involved parties, and will share a word of advice for those yet to start the process.

In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Katarina Taurian is joined by a colleague and editor of both Momentum Media's suite of wealth titles James Mitchell to discuss their thoughts on the federal election campaign and outcome. James will reveal the sentiment on the ground within the financial advice community, why he believes the campaign did not convey clear messaging. He will also address how unexplained reform may have impacted the election outcome.

In this special episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Katarina Taurian is joined by a colleague and editor of both Mortgage Business and The Adviser publications to reflect on the result of the federal election, with Scott Morrison holding his position as Prime Minister. They will reveal how outcomes of polls across their platforms for mortgage brokers and accountants always showed a clear swing in favour of the Liberal Party, begging the question: are accountants and small businesses a better barometer than traditional polling?

In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Katarina Taurian is joined by STP program lead at the Australian Taxation Office, John Shepherd, and director and founder of All That Counts, Lielette Callleja, to discuss the small business uptake of STP in light of the forthcoming July 1 deadline. Busting common STP myths surrounding business portals and myGov accounts, they unpack the employee benefits and capabilities that the myGov platform offers and discuss the opportunities that STP provides small business. Finally they address the special provisions for those without the supporting infrastructure to implement STP, and discuss the ATO app, which is now complete with voice activation.

In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, journalist for both Lawyers Weekly and Wellness Daily Jerome Doraisamy joins host Katarina Taurian to discuss how professional service firms' failure to accurately measure levels of staff productivity is impacting both their bottom lines and the efficiency of their staff. Jerome will reveal why this issue is often unaddressed, taking into account community stigma surrounding mental health and wellness, why measuring the issue is the first step in managing it, and how companies can take that first step to create an environment where staff feel empowered to take individual responsibility for themselves and their work output.

Accountants have a seat in the boardrooms of Australia's most powerful companies, and they're a huge chunk of, and a trusted adviser to, the SME community. As a profession, accountants are among the most influential in the country. At a time when accountants and tax are an election issue, it's more important than ever to have your voice heard. Both the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader are locking horns over the deductibility of tax agent's fees. Without both sides of government correctly understanding the nature of what accountants do, detrimental policy could get over the line. How do you have your say? Sequel CFO founder and managing director David Boyar - a thought leader finalist in this year's Australian Accounting Awards - and editor of Accountants Daily Katarina Taurian talk through how you can influence the future of your profession.

It has been almost a year since the notifiable data breaches legislation came into effect, and in this time the ATO has been working on introducing various new security measures, many of which will impact accountants. In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Katarina Taurian is joined by Jamie Beresford, CEO of Practice Protect, and Ron Lesh, managing director at BGL, to discuss the impact of these changes on individuals within the sector and also the role of the accounting firm in managing the passwords and security of their practices and staff. They will discuss a potential future shift away from password authentication, the different "levels" of passwords that people tend to use in different circumstances, and whether further education is needed in the field of cybersecurity.

Away from the hype of cash splashing and tax cuts, there were some proposals in this year's federal budgets which will be welcome news to accountants and their clients. Our head of editorial Katarina Taurian is joined by the Institute of Public Accountants' Tony Greco to run through the headline changes impacting tax practitioners, including how accountants "can be heroes at tax time" by taking note of some key income tax changes.

Accountants and small businesses in their droves are finding it tougher than usual to secure finance for the personal and business activities. In this sponsored podcast, Accountants Daily chats to Spotcap about their experience in the current market with finding new credit options, and their thoughts on what the short to mid-term outlook is for accountants and their clients. In particular, they talk through the experiences, wins and struggles of some of their new and existing clients, and what their plans for 2019.

After years of delays, the tax office has finally begun its rollout of new online services for tax and BAS agents. Assistant commissioner at the ATO, Andrew Watson, gives exclusive insight to Accountants Daily Insider about the current, planned and proposed features for the online services platform. Mr Watson also talks big picture - the ATO is charging towards a digital-only environment, which has a significantly knock-on impact to both tax and BAS agents and their end clients.

With the federal election drawing closer there are a number of proposed issues which could impact those within the accounting sector. In this episode of Accountants Daily Insider, host Katarina Taurian is joined by Geoff Stein, partner at Brown Wright Stein Lawyers to unpack these potential changes and discuss some which have been recently announced. Geoff will take an in-depth look at the proposal to cap the deductibility of accountant fees and some of the issues that it will likely cause, and further discuss trust structures following the announcement surrounding trust income interest rates.