In business, customer service and client experience are paramount – so building a team that continues to deliver to a high standard means attracting and retaining the very best people.
When KRW Accountants took home the Accountancy Firm of the Year title at the Northamptonshire Business Excellence Awards in 2023, Managing Director Alex Beattie put that success down in no small part to the ‘relentless work ethic of our ever-expanding team’.
This year, the Towcester firm’s dedication to its employees was further cemented with another win, this time for Employer of the Year.
Alex Beattie said:
“We decided to go for a different award this year because we believe we go the extra mile to show our people that we are looking after them. Recruiting and retaining staff is one of the biggest problems businesses face, and people’s expectations and values are very different today and we’ve tried to meet those. We’re doing as much as we can, and winning this award shows us that we must be doing something right.”
KRW Accountants offers a full suite of accountancy services including accounts and tax for both individuals and businesses, day-to-day support with payroll and bookkeeping, as well as providing auditing services for larger clients. In addition, a financial planning arm supports clients with pensions and investments.
Delivering these services is a team of 35 people, including five new members of staff who’ve joined in the past few months, and the firm’s goal is to increase staff numbers to between 50 and 60 over the next five years.
Employee wellbeing is a serious concern and a number of initiatives have been introduced over the years including professional counselling for work or personal matters, gym membership, extra-curricular activities and financial support in the shape of free mortgage advice.
Alex said:
“We’re often recruiting from a generation that has a very different set of values to a few generations ago. Salary isn’t everything, although we believe we are more than competitive, and the ethos and values of a company, and the benefits available are increasingly more important.
“And so we’ve done things like teaming up with a mortgage adviser to offer free advice to our team, a few of whom are in the process of buying their first houses at the moment. We also invite external professionals in throughout the year for things like yoga sessions, or nutrition talks, and we have lots of fun competitions and games, as well as an annual ski trip, to make sure staff morale remains high.
“Where we can see that’s working is in the fact that most people come into the office, even though we have been flexible since the pandemic and they could work from home if they wanted to. The fact that they want to come into the office is fantastic and if they are happy and healthy then that is going to feed through to clients.”
KRW Accountants believes that while the services it provides to clients will ensure their business and personal finances are running as well and as tax efficiently as possible, it’s also important that clients don’t simply put everything in the hands of the professionals, but take an interest in their accounts, keeping a tight grasp on the figures that can make or break a business.
“We provide all the tools and information they need to achieve that,”
said Alex,
“but it runs deeper and that is why we need a team that are ready to do their best for our clients. We tell them that we will look after them if they look after our clients, and it seems to be an approach that works.
“Everyone has issues, hopefully not too much within the workplace, but at home, in their personal lives or financially, and any support we can give them makes a difference.
“That’s why we were incredibly proud to be a finalist in the Employer of the Year category at the NBEAs and bring a table of people along to celebrate with us – and, of course, it was amazing to win it. There was an incredible atmosphere on the evening, meeting up with people from the business community and then celebrating our win and shouting about it on social media.
“And then the buzz in the office since the win – it’s a great feeling.”
To find out more about KRW Accountants, as a client or a member of the team, email abeattie@krwaccountants.co.uk or call 01327 810373. More information is available at KRW Accountants at www.krwaccountants.co.uk
