Eye on Profile
Alistair Cooke is director ASM Chartered Accountants… Q:What is your role: Director, ASM Chartered Accountants based in Dungannon Office Q: Years in this role: Too many to want to count! ASM acquired an existing Accountancy business in Dungannon in 1999 where I was already employed. I became a director in 2006. It is now one of the largest accounting and management consultancy firms in Ireland, with offices in Belfast, Dublin, Dundalk, Dungannon, Magherafelt and Newry. Q: Tell us about yourself and your company: I started Accountancy straight from school, the modern equivalent of an apprenticeship. I qualified as an Accounting Technician and then went onto become a Chartered Accountant. This was all done by studying on day release or at night/weekends. Although it was tough at the time I have no hesitancy in recommending this route and do so on a regular basis when chatting to students. I have been very lucky to have the opportunity to progress through the ranks to the positon I hold today. I am responsible for a large part of what happens in the office, be it staff recruitment, attracting new clients or ensuring we provide a professional service to our clients. Q: What does an average day look like for you? No two days are the same which is part of the reason I enjoy my job so much. I have a responsibility for a wide range of clients and so within the same day I could be assisting clients with obtaining new bank finance, dealing with HMRC correspondence, meeting clients to put in place some tax planning initiatives as well as dealing with the endless telephone calls that seem to come in on daily basis. I could also be attending local networking events such as Up for Business which
30
I am involved in which seeks to Make a Difference to local companies through networking and mutual support and advice. Alongside this, I am also running the commercial side of ASM so I get to experience, first-hand, how business-owners feel when there simply aren’t enough hours in the day! Q: What is the most enjoyable part of your job? I really enjoy being able to help solve a situation which a client has seen as a problem. I also enjoy the numbers and really being able to dig down through the figures and understand how a client’s business operates and what makes it tick. Q: How is the business landscape in Dungannon? It largely depends on the sector you are in. Dungannon & Mid Ulster people are always very positive when it comes to business. Agriculture plays a large part in the local economy and is going through a very tough patch, however, I have no doubt it will recover. Other sectors such as engineering and food production have also been traditionally very strong in the area and continue to prosper, although some organisations have been affected by the recent fluctuations in exchange rates following the Brexit vote Q: What one thing would you change about business to make your role easier? The amount of red tape, compliance and paperwork that a small business has to look after. It can be overwhelming and for most business owners they see no value in it, be it continuous Governmental surveys, or constant changes in legislation. Small business owners, although they understand the need for regulations, just want to be able to take on with running their businesses. Although part of
our job is compliance-based we seek to add value where possible so that clients can see a real benefit from it. Q: How has Brexit affected business at ASM? To date, Brexit has not really affected business. Some clients have obviously experienced difficulties arising from the exchange rate fluctuations in the immediate aftermath of Brexit, whilst for others this has provided an opportunity. Many farmers for example were in favour of Brexit whilst many other businesses have a keen interest in it due to large number of international workers based in Dungannon. Depending on the outcome of the Brexit negotiations, the whole situation as we know it, with regards to VAT, tax etc. on exporting and importing, may change and this will provide us with an opportunity to re-educate our clients on the new system and hopefully give our own business a boost. Q: Have you any unfulfilled ambitions? Not really. ASM has done fantastically well since it launched back in 1995 and today stands as one of the biggest accountancy firms in Ireland – for which
I am very proud to work for. Outside of work I was involved in the 2012 London Olympics as a volunteer and really enjoyed this experience. However, with a young family at home Rio was just too far away to even think about repeating that experience this year. Q: How does the future look for ASM? The future is very bright for ASM. We have a fantastic group of people, from the senior management at the top of the organization, to the newest trainees who have just started with the firm. Everyone plays their part in helping to drive the firm forward. Although we have come a long way, we are in no means sitting back on our laurels, as a management team we want to continue to provide clients with top quality service and advice and are continually seeking new ways of doing this.
To contact Alistair Cooke,Director, ASM Chartered Accountants, email: Alistair.cooke@asmdungannon.com or call 028 8772 2139 www.asmaccountants.com