As accounting and advisory firms seek independent SMSF auditors ahead of 1 July, it pays to narrow down the choice by knowing what to look for. Trust, scale and experience are high on the list – but so is a human touch.
David Goldsmith CA, Business Development Manager at specialist SMSF audit firm Evolv, explains the key features to look for when selecting an SMSF auditor.
Look for a sense of trust
According to Goldsmith, the search for an SMSF auditor should begin with the goal of forming a partnership based on trust.
He explains, “At Evolv, we have a strong belief in the value of forming a long-term relationship based on mutual trust. This sense of trust is critical to delivering a simple and streamlined process for all parties. Without trust, the audit has the potential to become weighed down by bottlenecks.”
So, how can accounting and advisory firms recognise the potential to build trust? Goldsmith says it can come down to the auditor explaining the different ways accounting and advisory firms can benefit from the audit firm’s support.
“Our accounting and advisory firm clients regularly contact Evolv with technical questions,” notes Goldsmith. “They know we will respond quickly and accurately to their queries, and this is an essential aspect of a successful business relationship.”
Experience and scale deliver credibility
There is also a lot to be said for credibility when it comes to choosing an SMSF auditor, and it’s something that can be driven by both experience and scale.
Goldsmith notes, “Evolv has been conducting SMSF audits since 2006 – and we have the experience that goes with this. An auditor that has come to the market only recently to tap into the new SMSF audit independence rules and simply may not have the level of expertise, nor the systems and process that Evolv has built up over many years.”
He adds, “The scale of our business is a real plus for our accounting and advisory firm clients. We specialise in SMSF audits – it’s all we do, we don’t compete by offering other accounting or compliance services. The volume of SMSF audits we complete annually means our audit teams encounter complex issues on a regular basis – issues that other firms may come across only once every six months.”
This level of experience matters because when it comes to SMSF audits, there are always grey areas. Goldsmith agrees, adding, “We’ve certainly seen an uptick in grey issues during COVID, especially around matters such as the treatment of commercial properties and rents.
“In many ways, SMSF audits can be easy when things are black and white. But it’s when you encounter those grey areas that you need a trusted relationship with an experienced SMSF auditor,” says Goldsmith.
A combination of high tech, high touch
Evolv has forged a powerful reputation for streamlining the SMSF audit process through its clever use of technology – in particular, Evolv’s in-house designed SMSF audit software.
However, audit still calls for a human touch, and this is definitely something to look for in an SMSF auditor. It’s an area where Goldsmith says Evolv combines scale with a ‘small business’ approach to customer service, treating each of its accounting and advisory firm clients as VIPs.
“One of our great strengths at Evolv is an effective onboarding process,” notes Goldsmith. “We have a specialist onboarding team, who ensures the relationship is built on a foundation of trust from the very beginning.
“But our approach to service excellence doesn’t end there. Moving forward, our accounting and advisory firm clients know they have access to dedicated audit directors, who they can pick up the phone and call at any time. That’s extremely reassuring, and it speaks volumes about Evolv’s commitment to each individual relationship.”
To help you choose your perfect SMSF audit partner we’ve created an SMSF auditor due diligence checklist. It outlines some of the key factors to consider when comparing auditors. Click here to download your free checklist today.
To learn more about why Evolv is the right choice of SMSF auditor for your practice, contact David Goldsmith at Evolv on dgoldsmith@evolvsuper.com.au or call 1300 886 536.
This kind of commentary assumes accountants are trying to do the wrong thing by their client. Quite the opposite. Most accountants do the bulk of the audit process anyway, and have been doing a more than satisfactory job of it since inception. Cheapest and quickest is reasonable, and aligns with representing clients as well as possible.
Most SMSF Trustees don’t get a choice, their accountant usually picks the cheapest and the quickest. Time for trustees to have a re-think and question their accountants
Cheapest and quickest is not the best option. Accountant and auditor is a bitter sweet relationship, unfortunately, accountants don’t like audit queries and always want an easy access to audit report approval. I have been involved in the SMSF industry over the last 17 years and I have stared doing the audit since 2018, I must say it is not an enjoyable journey.
Whilst I see where you are coming from, how often does a trustee say to their accountant, ‘I want to use John Smith etc as auditor’? This can often be the case where they change accounting firm and want to maintain continuity with an auditor, but its really only trustees that prepare their own financials that would actively seek out an auditor in my experience. In deed most trustees would have no direct contact with their auditor in my experience as all correspondence would go through the accountant.
Agreed. I’ve been working with SMSFs for over 20 years now and not once has a client ever cared who their auditor is. They see it as an additional cost of running and SMSF imposed on them by the government, and just suck it up. The vast majority are doing the right thing. If ever there is a “breach”, it is usually an inadvertant error that is corrected as soon as they are made aware of it.