Kickoff to M&A

A few columns back I waxed on about how it could not possibly have been the onset of the Labor Day weekend and the traditional curtain call on another summer, as it seemed like just the week before I was cleaning the Weber and refilling the propane tanks in preparation for a season of grilling.

And now that the NFL schedule has officially launched, that sort of sends a clarion that the accounting profession (and ancillary folks like us) is gearing up for a final rush before the tax organizers begin going out.

So between now and December there will be a surplus of conferences (both on a national and local level) the 9-15 and 10-15 filing deadlines and the inevitable 11^th rush for CPE (provided this is a reporting year for your state.)

And one more thing: it’s also the ideal time to begin the process of M&A if you’re firm is leaning toward that strategic direction.

Many of our mergee clients find that philosophy more than a little counterintuitive considering all the above-mentioned events. One of the most FAQs we get peppered with is how you can possibly carve out the time to affiliate with another firm and augment that detailed-laden process with the arduous task of client transition?

The truth is that come December – between the holidays and prepping for filing season, you will need all the resources that you can marshal. Often that means hiring per diem personnel to help through April.

But consider this: if you’re a $500k tax-centric practice, you’re encroaching on the time when you see the majority of your clients. And in January when things really begin heating up in the form of 10-hour days and free weekends being reduced to a nostalgic memory, it would go a long way in being able to summon all the extra help on both 1040 prep and administration.

So you see my point. I had a tempered argument (more like an energetic discussion) with a client who told me that after the 10-15 filing, he is basically in the witness protection program until the first week in May. I assured him he would not turn into a pumpkin (or any other garden vegetable) should he field late October visits from interested buyers.

But to no avail.

But for more progressive-oriented firms not constrained by 1960s thinking and mulling an upstream merger, there’s inarguably no time like now.

You may even find yourself with a free weekend or two later on.