TOA GLOBAL delves deep into the corporate philosophy of Locmans Advisors and sits down with Associate Director Damian Lococo to discuss industry shifts and the solutions offshoring provides.
Sometimes, success is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, you know you’re doing something right when the clients start rolling in. On the other, sustaining the same level of service across the board is the challenge you now face.
Such a conundrum was faced by the accounting and advisory firm Locmans Advisors based out of the Melbourne CBD. The fast-changing landscape has been both a blessing and a curse for the industry, and being situated in one of the wealthiest cities in Australia has certainly created opportunities for growth for the company.
The Locmans Idealogy
Established in 1991, the firm has grown significantly through decades to become one of the most proficient boutique advisory firms. Focusing on providing a tailored, timely tax and accounting service, increasing their clients’ financial position is paramount.
With the key word being “boutique”, Locmans is less interested in size and instead concentrates on quality. Yet, as their clients’ businesses grow, so do their needs. And at that point more than ever, it was no longer enough to just do the work. They needed to go back to the core – providing thoughtful and attentive service and that meant, scaling manpower.
But how do you scale and still keep it intimate? Clearly, outsourcing was the way to go.
The Outsourcing Experience
In a chat with Damian, the appeal of the offshoring model was too attractive to resist.
“Our main reason for engaging TOA… was to create opportunities and more value to our clients.”
By allowing the offshore team to take care of the day-to-day requirements of the business, the onshore team will have every opportunity to be more client-facing and nurture the relationship.
Starting off with two offshore members, the firm quickly realized the benefits of such an engagement and has since expanded their team to six.
“The offshore model, for us, is working”
Reaping and Sowing
With the misconception that an offshore team is merely a human data processor still rampant in the general consciousness, Damian quickly discovered that was not the case. Like any situation, teamwork – both from an onshore and offshore perspective – is crucial to making any business work.
“It’s easiest when everyone works as one big team”
True enough, that is the predominant aspect in any offshoring endeavor. These are not outsourced individuals, these are members of your company. And like any employee-employer arrangement, it requires a certain amount of professional intimacy.
“If you think it’s going to happen easily, it won’t. You need to put the time in. But if you do, it’s extremely rewarding and the process is really worth it.”
By treating the venture with the courtesy and attention it requires, it will result in one of the most satisfying business decisions your firm will ever make.
The Outsourced Accountant helps accounting firms from all over the world grow their capacity, margins and profits through global outsourcing. Contact us to find out more about how we can help your firm.
