By Richie Lennon
Choose an accountant by the work your business needs, not the size of the firm or the software badge on its website. Check professional credentials, experience with your business model, the written scope, who answers questions and how the handover works. A good selection meeting should leave you clear about the service, the cost and the decisions it will help you make.
Ask a prospective accountant how they would help you decide whether to hire someone in March. The answer tells you more than a promise to be proactive.
They need to understand your cash, commitments and expected receipts. They also need to explain whether that kind of support is included in the service you are buying. Preparing the annual accounts and helping you plan the next hire are different jobs. Both matter, but one does not automatically include the other.
That is where we would start when choosing an accounting firm in Ireland: what work do you need done, and what will you receive?
Understanding the Landscape
An owner with a handful of straightforward transactions needs a different service from a business managing stock, overseas sales and a growing payroll. A large international firm, a local practice and an outsourced finance team can each suit different requirements.
Write down the problems you need solved before making a shortlist. Are the books behind? Do you need reliable monthly figures? Is tax advice arriving after the decision has already been made? Are you expanding into another country?
This keeps the conversation focused on your business. It also helps you spot when a firm is offering something useful but different from what you need.
How To Choose an Accountant
Use the first meeting to test five things:
| What to test | A useful question | What you need back |
|---|---|---|
| Relevant experience | What usually goes wrong in a business like ours? | Specific issues, explained without revealing other clients’ private affairs |
| Service scope | What happens each month and at year end? | Deliverables, timing and exclusions in writing |
| Responsibility | Who prepares, checks and answers questions? | A clear route for routine work and technical escalation |
| Commercial usefulness | How would these figures help us make a decision? | An explanation connecting records to cash, margin or another relevant problem |
| Handover | Who completes the current returns and takes over the records? | An agreed cut-off, responsibilities and any cleanup work |
You do not need a rehearsed perfect answer to every question. You do need a firm that asks enough about your business to give a meaningful answer.
Why Expertise and Specialisation Matter
Relevant experience changes the questions an accountant asks.
For an agency, it could mean distinguishing fees earned from client money passed through to suppliers. For an online retailer, it could mean checking sales, fees, refunds and VAT rather than treating the bank payout as revenue. For a software company, it could mean understanding recurring revenue and the evidence needed for a potential R&D claim.
Ask for an explanation of the process, not confidential stories about other clients. A firm should be able to describe how it tackles familiar problems without sharing private details.
A responsible referral is a positive sign. No accountant knows every specialist area. Ask when outside advice is needed, who coordinates it and how the cost is agreed. A vague answer with no follow-through is the problem, not the referral itself. Our tax-adviser selection guide goes further into that distinction.
Reputation and Track Record
Reviews and recommendations are useful starting points. Look for comments about the work you need: clear explanations, reliable reporting, a well-managed handover or help understanding cash.
Check the individual and firm behind the recommendation. IAASA recommends choosing a full member of a professional body within its supervisory remit. Ask about current membership and the approval needed to practise. If you require a statutory audit, confirm the separate auditor authorisation rather than assuming an accounting qualification covers it.
Awards and software certifications add context. They do not replace evidence about the service you will actually receive.
Where possible, speak with an appropriate reference, with their consent. Ask what changed after appointment and what the owner still has to do. That is more useful than asking whether they like the firm.
Client-Centric Approach
Good communication needs a process. Agree where questions go, how urgent issues are flagged and who steps in when someone is away.
Ask what happens when a tax question falls outside the monthly scope. Will the firm identify the issue, explain the work needed and quote before proceeding?
Your responsibilities matter too. If you send purchase invoices late, the reports can be late or incomplete. A useful engagement explains what you must provide, when you must provide it and how missing information is followed up.
Being easy to contact is valuable. Being available at any hour is not a sensible service promise to rely on.
Technology and Innovation
Ask to see the workflow. How do invoices reach the books? Who checks the bank reconciliation? When is the month closed? What report will you see, and what will still need explaining?
A dashboard can show tidy figures while the purchase invoices are missing. An app connection can work while the tax treatment is wrong. Software makes the work easier; it does not remove responsibility for completing it.
We use Xero as our core accounting platform. That standard approach helps us build a repeatable process around the work. If you already use another system, discuss whether a change is appropriate and what the migration would involve. Do not assume a logo on a website means every platform is supported on the same terms.
For the practical distinction between imported transactions and completed books, see our guide to Xero bank feeds.
Transparency and Communication
Compare written scopes before comparing prices.
One quote might cover annual accounts and tax returns. Another might also include regular bookkeeping or payroll. Monthly management reporting, forecasts and specialist advice may be separate. Ask about setup, cleanup, software subscriptions, VAT on fees and charges for additional work.
The important distinction is between work missing from the engagement and work included but not delivered. You cannot solve the first by expecting the accountant to do more than you agreed. You should challenge the second.
Before appointing the firm, check that the engagement answers:
- What is included, how often is it delivered and what does it cost?
- What information do we supply, and by when?
- Which deadlines and returns will each firm handle during the change?
- What triggers a separate quote?
- Who keeps access to the accounting records and supporting documents?
For a Revenue agent link, use the formal authorisation process. Revenue’s guidance explains the client approval steps. Agent access is separate from your software subscription and from the transfer of the accounting file.
Deciding whether Around Finance fits
We work with Irish business owners who want the accounting process to support how they run the business. The starting point is an honest discussion about the work needed, the current records and the scope we can agree.
Read about our outsourced accounting services. If your business turns over €250,000 or more and you are reviewing the arrangement, book a Finance Fit Call.
FAQs
Check professional membership, relevant reviews and references where available. Ask about work comparable to the service you need. Awards are useful context, but the written scope and delivery process matter more than a badge alone.
Relevant expertise helps the firm recognise the transactions and decisions that need attention in your business. Ask it to explain a familiar issue and how it would handle it. Also check when specialist input is needed and who coordinates that work.
Technology can reduce repeated data entry and make information easier to share. The useful test is whether it supports complete records, a checked close and clear reporting. A software connection alone does not prove the books are reliable.
A team familiar with your business model should ask more relevant questions and recognise recurring problems sooner. Confirm that its experience translates into the deliverables you are buying, rather than assuming sector knowledge means every advisory service is included.
Choose the scope that meets your needs at a price you understand. A lower quote is not automatically poor service; it may cover less work. Compare responsibilities, reporting frequency, exclusions and additional charges before deciding.
Often the accountant and software decisions can be considered separately. Discuss access, subscription ownership and the incoming firm’s requirements. Agree any migration and handover before cancelling the existing arrangement.
