ESS BIZTOOLS Podcast (Accountant's Minute)

Are accounting firms doing enough to support SME clients beyond tax compliance? In this episode, Peter Towers explores why accountants, bookkeepers, and business advisors need to embrace advisory services, predictive accounting, business planning, cash flow forecasting, KPI monitoring, and capital raising support. Discover how firms can strengthen client relationships, create new revenue opportuni...

In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers explores why accounting firms, bookkeepers and business advisory firms are at a critical crossroads: remain focused on compliance or begin building structured advisory and Virtual CFO Services . Peter reflects on the original FMRC vision for accountants to become trusted business advisors to SMEs, then compares that ambition with today's...

Why are so many firms struggling to attract and retain accountants? In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers explores the talent challenges facing accounting firms in Australia, and why younger accountants are looking for more meaningful, advisory-driven work. He discusses how broadening your services beyond compliance can help your firm build stronger teams, deliver greater va...

Discover why only 15% of SMEs see their accountant or bookkeeper as a Key Strategic Partner, while many firms believe they are already delivering that level of service. In this episode, Peter Towers explores the disconnect, the missed advisory opportunities, and the practical questions firms need to start raising to become more valuable to their SME clients. You can also access our podcast on: Ama...

How do you start offering advisory services without disrupting your firm? In this episode, Peter Towers explains why advisory services are too important to ignore – and how accounting firms, bookkeepers, and business advisory firms can begin with a simple, practical step-by-step approach. Discover how to start small, deepen client relationships, and position your firm as a true Key Strategic Partn...

Advisory services can create significant value for clients, but they do not sell themselves. In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers of ESS BIZTOOLS explains why accounting firms, bookkeepers and business advisors need to actively position, communicate and sell advisory services if they want to be seen as true Key Strategic Partners . Featuring insights from the Intuit QuickBo...

In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers of ESS BIZTOOLS and Darren Gleeson   of TaxFitness discuss the growing need for accounting firms to move beyond compliance and deliver real advisory services. They explore benchmarking, business improvement opportunities, and practical ways accountants, bookkeepers and advisory firms can strengthen client value and work towards becoming...

In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers (ESS BIZTOOLS) and Darren Gleeson (TaxFitness) explore how benchmarking transforms client conversations, drives behavioural change, and unlocks measurable profit growth. Discover why comparing clients to the top 20% in their industry provides the clarity, context, and commercial focus that traditional financial reports often miss. If you...

Only 15% of SMEs rate their accountant as a Key Strategic Partner . Why is that – and how do we change it? In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers (ESS BIZTOOLS) and Trevor Marchant (The Boss Factor Library) unpack what it truly means to move beyond compliance and become your client's go-to advisor for growth, strategy and innovation. From debtors management and cash flow fore...

Only 15% of Aussie SMEs see their accountant as a Key Strategic Partner — the go-to advisor driving growth and success. In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers, Managing Director of ESS BIZTOOLS , is joined by Darren Gleeson (Founder, Tax Fitness ) to show how top 20% benchmarking turns "advisory" into a repeatable system – fast, evidence-based, and built for quarterly client...

In this final Accountants Minute Podcast episode for 2025, Peter Towers is joined by Darren Gleeson , Managing Director of TaxFitness , to explore how benchmarking and virtual CFO services can transform struggling SMEs into top-performing businesses. They discuss why benchmarking against the top 20% (not the average) is critical, how to turn profit gaps into advisory opportunities, and why account...

In this episode of the Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers explores how predictive accounting reports turn a business plan into a live early-warning radar for SMEs — with budgets by operation, key drivers, cashflow forecasts, projected balance sheets and KPIs all working together. You'll hear real stories of how weak communication, poor debtor and creditor management, and hidden inventory or...

In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers introduces Stage One of the Innovation Journey — where every breakthrough begins with a simple idea. You'll discover how accountants and bookkeepers can guide SMEs from that first spark through R&D eligibility, record-keeping, prototype development and commercial planning. This is your roadmap to becoming the internal auditor, advisor an...

Transforming from "tax technician" to true key strategic partner is no longer optional. In this episode of the Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers unpacks the uncomfortable gap between what 75% of accountants think they deliver and what SMEs actually say in the Intuit QuickBooks SMB Navigator Report . You'll explore why so many firms are still seen as "transactional", how to test your own cl...

In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers unpacks why only 15% of SMEs currently see their accountant as a true Key Strategic Partner – and what you can do to change that. You'll discover how to reposition your firm from "tax return provider" to virtual CFO , delivering Financial / Commercial / Management Accounting advisory services that help SMEs survive, thrive, and scale up....

In this episode of the Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers explores why so many SMEs are still failing – and how accountants, bookkeepers and advisors can change that story. Drawing on Michael Gerber's "Dreaming Room" concept, real client case studies and the ESS BIZTOOLS Starter Package , Peter shows you how to build systems, introduce virtual CFO-style support, and position your firm as th...

Turn "it's a buyer's market" on its head. In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers shows how advisors can double an SME's sale value by planning early – embedding systems, documenting IP, driving weekly performance, building real business plans, and running annual valuations – so the multiple moves from "average" to outstanding. If you help clients prepare like a listed company...

Crowd-Sourced Funding (CSF) Equity Raising: a real, underused pathway for SMEs – and a powerful advisory opportunity for your firm. In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast, Peter Towers busts the myth that only unlisted public companies can raise via CSF, explains the ASIC-licensed intermediary model, and shows how accountants, bookkeepers and advisors can prepare SME clients to raise up to...

When smart corporate leaders buy small businesses, they often discover hidden gaps—pricing by margin instead of markup, giving credit too freely, weak debtor follow-ups, and zero cash-flow rhythm. In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers unpacks a real case study and shows how accountants, bookkeepers, and advisors can step in as the strategic partner: install weekly performanc...

In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers busts the myth that R&D is "only for engineers" and shows how accountants and bookkeepers can lead as the internal-audit partner—keeping evidence tight, forms right, and AusIndustry-ready. Learn how to spot eligible clients, ensuring at least $20,000 was spent on approved R&D work in the financial year being claimed, and turn refundable...

Only 15% of SMEs see their accountant as a true strategic partner. In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast, Peter Towers unpacks why – spotlighting MYOB's findings on poor debtor practices (no credit vetting, weak follow-up, rising DSO) – and outlines how firms can flip the script. Learn practical, billable ways to implement robust debtor systems, set clear terms, use pre-due reminders, and...

Selling advisory isn't about luck – it's a system. In this  Accountants Minute Podcast episode, Peter Towers reports on discussion with master sales trainer Trevor Marchant to unpack how firms can move from transactional compliance to true "key strategic partner" status. Learn the internal prep you need (team training, SME needs analysis, rhythm of reporting), how to frame value around dominant bu...

Peter Towers – Managing Director of ESS BIZTOOLS , and Darren Gleeson – Founder of Tax Fitness , presented a live podcast on moving beyond once-a-year compliance to true strategic partnership. The podcast covers the following: ✅ Why so few SMEs see their accountant as a key strategic partner—and how to change that. ✅ A simple advisory rhythm: quarterly/monthly reviews, onsite conversations, and...

Andrew Geddes – FMRC co-founder, long-time Chair of Greencross Ltd, and renowned industry mentor – joins Peter Towers to cut through the noise on where the profession really stands three years after Chris Jordan's Xerocon warning. We unpack why many firms remain "compliance factories," and lay out a practical four-step pathway to advisory: ✅ Set clear revenue, profit, and weekly activity targets...

Profitability isn't a matter of luck—it's the result of smart, deliberate strategies. In this episode of the Accountants Minute Podcast , Peter Towers, Managing Director and Founder of ESS BIZTOOLS , unpacks why pricing is one of the most critical levers for small business success. Peter challenges the traditional "historian's role" of accountants, urging professionals to step forward as trusted a...