The closing months of 2020 look set to be a repeat performance of what we all experienced earlier in the year. It is likely that we will see many people working from home again, so what do accountancy firms need to be aware of when preparing for a winter of lockdowns?
Keeping in touch with clients
As we saw in the first round of lockdowns, the temporary closures of many businesses caused much uncertainty and distress for many clients. Those accountancy firms who took a proactive stance in keeping in touch with their clients by phone calls, video calls, emails, newsletters, webinars etc. created a much deeper (and long-lasting) relationship with their clients than those firms that didn’t. How will you keep in touch with your clients over the coming months? Do you need to do more than you did earlier in the year?
It is unlikely that we will see the raft of business support measures being issued as we did earlier in the year, but we may see small amendments made to the Chancellor’s winter economy plan. Where new announcements are made, be sure to notify your clients immediately. Don’t assume they will see the relevant information on the news and do something about it.
Self Assessment
The build-up to tax season typically sees a lot of clients visiting the office to drop off or collect their financial records and to have meetings about their tax liabilities. If your practice is situated where there is a local lockdown, or indeed if we all experience another national lockdown, what steps can you set in place to ensure you receive all the information to complete tax returns, end of year accounts and so on?
Could COVID-19 be the springboard you need to move all your clients onto a paper-less (or less-paper) system?
Should you consider offering a collection and return service, whereby you agree to visit their home/business premises to pick up their financial records, whilst adhering to social distancing guidelines. This could be particularly useful to any clients who are shielding and cannot leave their house to drop off their tax return information.
How can you create a safe environment in the office for clients to drop off their records?
How will you get client records out to staff who are working from home, whilst taking into account GDPR compliance?
Whatever steps you take to assist with self assessment, make sure these are well documented and communicated to all staff and of course your clients.
Equipment and Technology
Earlier in the year, everyone was plunged into lockdown with little or no time to prepare. Based on your experience first time around with staff having to work from home, what (if anything) will you do next time around to ensure they have the resources they need to do their jobs efficiently and continue to service clients?
Things to consider are:
- Looking at phone systems such as VOIP to help ease communication between staff, clients and potential new clients. A VOIP system could mean the usual business direct dial numbers could be transferred to some staff, meaning that several people could be answering the phones and handling client enquiries, rather than having to rely on one person fielding all the calls and asking clients to email their queries in.
- Considering WiFi boosters and extenders for staff who don’t have particularly fast broadband at home, which can make video calls ineffective and downloading and uploading client documents very slow. I have found this WiFi booster product to be very good.
- Seeing if staff have suitable work desks and chairs to work from home. If lockdowns could be with us for at least 6 months, do your staff have the appropriate basic infrastructure to be able to carry out their roles safely and effectively?
If some staff previously struggled to work from home, you may also want to consider making changes in the office, so they could continue working there. Any changes would have to adhere to the guidelines been issued at the time. You may also want to consider an office rota so that staff can work in the office on set days each week.
Keeping everyone productive
Previously during lockdown, there were some job roles within the office that were furloughed rather than asking those staff to work from home. Admin staff and trainees were among these groups. However, going forward, if we go through another lockdown, there are many tasks which these staff can still carry out from home. Our article ‘Ideas for keeping staff productive at home’ gives some suggestions for several tasks which can continue even if staff cannot work from the office.
Mental health
Last and definitely not least, employers need to consider how their staff are coping with any changes which lockdown may bring. Keeping staff connected to the rest of the team whilst working from home is vital, so consider implementing ways of keeping in touch via video and phone calls, for both work and social reasons.
Also, be mindful that some people cope with change better than others. Observe staff behaviours and listen proactively to see if they are coping alright. The NHS’ website ‘Every Mind Matters’ is a useful resource to issue to all staff (and to look at for yourself!)
When we went into the national lockdown in the spring, one of the things which made that time more bearable was the lengthening of the days and the glorious weather we all experienced for several weeks. We’re now moving towards winter, with the daylight hours shortening and the weather worsening, so keeping everyone happy, healthy and positive will be more of a challenge. However, with good communication links, this can be achieved.
Support with your communications
If you’d like assistance with communicating to your clients or staff over the coming weeks or months, give me a call on 01822 833300 or email vicki@momentumforprofessionals.co.uk and we can discuss the best steps forward for your practice.
