The thing about business is – nearly every event that occurs throughout the year will have an impact on your company’s tax liability. Thus, the tax filing date is just the culmination of all those events.
The truth is, most business owners don’t launch their business to become a tax-genius or financial analyst. Their original goal was to provide a product or service – not scramble on the eve of tax day to find expenses that may qualify as a deduction or a credit. If this describes you – you aren’t alone. A recent National Small Business (NSBA) Taxation Survey reports that one in three small businesses spend in excess of 40 hours annually wading through mountains of documents to file taxes.
Business leaders need smart and trusted financial and CFO advisors to help them assess different facets of their business and optimize tax-saving strategies, adopt the right accounting practices, and in turn get the qualified tax benefits they deserve.
Unlocking the Value of a CFO Advisor
Astute has a rich blend of knowledgeable on-demand CFO Advisors who can deliver all the services of a full-time CFO year-round – but at a fraction of the cost. Another gem: A CFO Advisor’s insight can help you reduce your tax liability. They accomplish this by assessing and supporting the business in tax credit strategies and savings with R&D & ERTC. A CFO Advisor will also help get an accurate top line of your income by complying with revenue recognition standards before tax filings are due. Additionally, a CFO Advisor assists with contracts for Licensing/Royalty Compliance audits and conducts assessments to determine whether the right accounting methods are being utilized. We have drilled down on each topic below.
Benefits of a CFO Advisory
At tax time, every organization feverishly tries to bring all the loose ends together. When you engage an Advisor, this expert will demonstrate how you can reduce your tax planning involvement to just a few steps. While you focus on growth-driven business decisions, we’ll function as an extension of your team, providing business advisory services such as:
1. R&D Tax Credit & ERTC
Finding unexpected tax credits can be a pleasant surprise, as these can potentially lower your tax liability. The R&D Tax Credit and ERTC are prime examples – but a company must first make a comprehensive review of qualified wages. Astute’s Advisors can help optimize the value that you receive.
2. Revenue Recognition
Any time a business makes a change in their accounting standards/methods, they will face many deep-rooted challenges. The FASB/ IASB standards (ASC 606) have issued a five-step process for making revenue recognition decisions and an Astute CFO Advisor/subject matter expert can help you maximize revenue management efficiency through automation.
3. Royalty Audit
Many businesses are unaware that they are missing out on collecting royalties – thus leaving money on the table. Astute can decipher the language found in a license agreement and present it to you in understandable terms. A Royalty Audit performed by an Astute expert will help you identify errors in reporting, quantify and recover lost revenue.
4. Forensic Services
Organizations occasionally find themselves in the midst of actual or anticipated disputes or litigation. With the aid of technology, Astute Advisors conduct an extensive review of accounting processes to determine if they performed with accuracy and validity. A forensics assessment will also pinpoint where and how revenue is misappropriated or lost.
The importance of each of these services needs to be defined properly not only during tax time but year-round for a business to avail benefits. We’ve brought in the CFO Advisory aspect because a CFO advisor functions like a project manager/expert who can ensure all these strategies are applied and a business gets the advantage.
Astute Helps you Take Control
With a CFO Advisor as your partner, tax time doesn’t have to be intimidating; Astute can provide a broad array of services year-round – eliminating that last-minute rush. You will have direct access to our experts with their vast knowledge and years of expertise. Further, our technology will give you greater visibility into your business, allowing you to steer toward a more profitable future. If you are ready to talk about an optimized solution, let’s have a conversation. You will discover multiple ways we can help set you up for greater success.
Please connect with me if you have questions.
