Kelly+Partners Culture Book 2012-2013

culture

A LOOK AT 2012/2013

2012/ 2013 welcome to our first ever culture book

After 7 years in business we thought it would help our growing team, clients, suppliers and friends to better understand why we are in business and how we make a difference by collating some information on our activities and approach!

Our number one priority has always been attracting, developing and retaining the best and brightest talent in the market to serve our clients – the outcome of pulling together great people is a really special culture that has developed in its own way.

Our culture is based on the following core values:

Want the best for others

We do what we say

Every client a raving fan

One team, one best way

Our mission: Kelly+Partners exists to help business owners get from where they are to where they want to be.

We do this by helping clients to:

Get control of their financial universe

Understand their financial objectives

Achieve their financial goals while providing an opportunity to members of the firm’s team to achieve personal goals, and as an organisation, improve the communities in which we work

We continue to experience rapid growth as we are asked by clients and professionals in our industry to help them get somewhere using our unique systems, approach and understanding to serving clients – delivering a service that allows our clients to achieve their financial goals so they can live their lives less concerned about money matters.

Rather than me proscribing what and how we are – this book shows the reality in a small way of the difference Kelly+Partners is making. Thanks for helping us make a difference.

LIFE EVENTS

You want to work with an employer that can give you career progression. Kelly+Partners can definitely offer that just purely because we are such a growing firm.

Our growth is about serving our clients by creating opportunities for our best people to stay with us and grow.

COMMENTS

CLIENT COMMENTS

My business is a General Dental Practice. It was set up about 11 years ago and has become quite a successful solo practice specialising in implants, orthodontics and cosmetic surgery. was referred to Kelly+Partners by a colleague of mine for a business transaction and they were seen as a specialist in that field. As a result, they negotiated a good deal for me with an excellent result.

It has been about 18 months since the original transaction and since then have used Kelly+Partners to delve more into the business side of things. One of the things we originally started negotiating has sort of transacted into another deal that they have managed to put together for me, something which I didn’t even think of. So it developed our relationship a little bit more, gave me more insight, opened more doors for me.

definitely would recommend Kelly+Partners. They are very professional, very specialised in their field – which in my sort of line of work is important. I mean, we are specialists ourselves, so it’s good to find someone on the other side of the fence to be able to hand over the reins and certain needs to.

We are a digital print business based in North Sydney. We have been around for about 25 years. We predominantly service corporate clients around the area. Our old accountants were ‘reactive’ – I would say that would be the word to describe them. They basically did what we told them to do. They were fine at doing the grunt work and basic book work but provided us with no advice.

Kelly+Partners are definitely proactive in terms of providing us with advice and responding to our queries very quickly. We find it a pleasure dealing with the people who have been assigned to our accounts. They are easygoing and great to get along with.

The key thing for me, personally, is that if something comes up, any piece of information that I need and want to be answered quickly by someone friendly to talk to, I find can always pick up the phone and don’t have to wait a day or two, like I used to, to have my phone call returned. My accountant answers the phone and is always available and responds to emails virtually instantaneously. It’s a great working relationship in both ways. would highly recommend Kelly+Partners and have recommended them to many of my colleagues and friends in the past.

My husband and I have operated our Gloria Jeans franchise for just over 4 years. We bought the business when we were based in Sydney and used a Sydney-based accountant initially for setting up the company structure. 6 months later we switched to Kelly+Partners, so basically everything for the last 3 ½ years from our first end-of-financial-year tax return has been done by Scott and his team on the Central Coast.

definitely do think they are proactive. We get emails on a weekly basis from the team at Kelly+Partners informing us of any seminars that they might be running regarding changes in any laws that might affect our business, whether it’s taxation or workplace agreements or workers compensation, etc.

Kelly+Partners have been highly effective. At the end of last year, we needed a quick turnaround on our tax return, as we were buying our first house on the Central Coast, and they did it within two weeks, which was great. Their overall service is friendly and they are very approachable. never get the impression that they are too busy to talk to me or that any of my questions are silly, which is a good thing because accounting is not my area of expertise. Overall they are very, very helpful. would definitely recommend Kelly+Partners to any of my friends needing accounting services.

DR FADI YASSMIN BROADWAY DENTAL RUSSELL KAVNAT DASHING PRINT LISA ENTWISTLE GLORIA JEANS

When we started dealing with Kelly+Partners about 4 years ago, we had around 60 staff. So, in the last four years we have grown to around 110 staff and we have doubled our turnover in that four year period as well.

Kelly+Partners provide us with an external tax advisory and accountancy service. We are a National Engineering business with five offices around Australia, so we rely very heavily on external accounting advice for our tax planning and for a number of our regulatory requirements. Kelly+Partners provides all those services for us.

Well, think as the business of Kelly+Partners has grown, so has ITC. So, Kelly+Partners while they were originally just doing our tax advisory, they now provide us with a number of insurance services as well. They assist us in insurance advice and look after a number of our policies. We are also able to get a number of other professional services, so when we need to get external audit advice for major tenders, we have been able to get that from Kelly+Partners.

certainly find that everything we need, we get from Kelly+Partners. wouldn’t dream of going somewhere else. We have a great relationship.

We own one Subway. We have had a couple of Subways in the past. Scott helped us out quite a lot with strategic planning about which ones we should buy, how many we should have. So, we’re just acquiring some more at the moment and Kelly+Partners are intrinsically involved with deciding which ones we should be buying and financing those.

Since we had the Subways, we have had Kelly+Partners help us out strategically a lot more and think we would have gained a lot more if we had had them strategically involved sooner. So, bit of a learning curve for us. We saw our accountants not being operationally focused and we just told them what we wanted them to do and it wasn’t until we got involved with Kelly+Partners that we understood the value of having them being strategically involved with us. So, that has helped us a lot. We certainly found Kelly+Partners to be quite good and they are very proactive in helping us with that high level planning and they show quite a lot of initiative in coming to us to offer us advice about things that we haven’t thought about at all, so yeah very, very good.

would certainly recommend Kelly+Partners to other people in our circumstances – with small and medium businesses definitely. We found that it wasn’t until we met them that we realised the value of strategic level planning. So, we found that, once we saw the value in doing that, we use them a lot now, whereas we hadn’t done that in the past. So, would certainly recommend other businesses to use Kelly+Partners for that level of help.

PremiAir originally started off about 15 years ago. It started off originally as a service company, just myself and my wife. About 5 years ago, was probably the biggest growth spurt where we really started pushing the high side of our business and you know we have grown from one branch to four branches. Our relationship with Kelly+Partners started off just accounting, then basically they became like a business mentor, business coach.

There are two factors that have probably helped my business grow: number one would be my wife and number two would be my accountant. If you really want your business to succeed and grow, then they really are the people to have on board.

“Our relationship with Kelly+Partners originally started off just accounting, then basically they have become like a business mentor, business coach.”

PETER XIBERRAS – PREMAIR

PETER XIBERRAS PREMIAIR

ROSS SAMUELSON SUBWAY

JASON VARKER-MILES

“If you really want your business to succeed and grow, then they really are the people to have on board.”

Incorp is a strategic interior design practice, workplace consultancy. We specialise across all facets of the interior design world if you like, but specialising in strategic planning from master planning of business organisation vision, taking it from there through to the planning and sourcing of buildings and space. think like most organisations, you are looking for partnerships rather than just a consultant to do what they are told – you can find the latter anywhere. had a colleague in a related professional business and he recommended Brett and Craig specifically. He was dealing with Craig out of Kelly+Partners and he sung his praises and said that they are very proactive as a partner and I said it is exactly the sort of thing we are looking for.

Our process in choosing the accountancy firm was very much like any other consultancy firm. We would look to an organisation that is looking to partner long-term and looking to provide strategic advice long-term. That’s certainly what Kelly + Partners offered us and that’s what differentiated them amongst a sea of accountants who do the books.

What like about them is it’s a two-way street. As a business partnership, they look to help our business not just on the financial side, but they promote our business actively and we feel comfortable promoting their business. Obviously they wouldn’t provide us that if they didn’t feel that we were good. We are very good and we promote their business because they are very good.

My name is Stephen Whelan. am a Sales Manager at Leadership Management. First I had, I guess, a professional relationship with Brett when he enrolled one of his Client Directors into one of our leadership programs. So, that in a professional sense was the start of our relationship. have known Brett for a number of years on a personal level and I have always been impressed with his professionalism, his vision and certainly his leadership. Certainly from our perspective, leadership is all about action and am impressed looking at Kelly+Partners from afar over the last couple of years just in reference to the development of the company, the rapid progression from quite a small organisation to where it’s developed today. have been impressed with their vision for the future and importantly they have been able to take the necessary steps to lead them to becoming the successful organisation they are.

The work that we do at Leadership Management, Australia or LMA as its more commonly known, really touches a broad range of industries and our clients are always looking for good people to work with and certainly I recommend Kelly+Partners to a number of my clients being aware of the services that Kelly+Partners provide. There are not too many organisations that can’t do without their services.

We started our relationship with Kelly+Partners three years ago when we opened up our family business. We came across Kelly+Partners before we started our business and saw them as the perfect partner to bring on board.

Kelly+Partners were a good option for us from the start because they were able to handle our business at the starting phase where there is not too much activity. We want to be in a position where we are starting to build personal wealth and that needs advice and to make sure that we do it in an appropriate way, so we have long term sustainability and that our risks are assessed. Kelly+Partners are able to make sure that we take appropriate risks and that those are aligned with our long term goals.

Kelly+Partners look out for us. think that’s the advantage of having the resources behind them that are growing with their business. We are at three years now with our business and we can see that the next three years are going to be significant for us.

We know that we can always rely on Kelly+Partners advice to make sure that we make the right decisions.

“What I like about them is it’s a two-way street. As a business partnership, they look to help our business not just on the financial side, but they promote our business actively and we feel comfortable promoting their business.”

PERRY GRAY – INCORP

PERRY GRAY INCORP STEPHAN WHELAN LEADERSHIP MANAGEMENT PETER CLARKE KWIK KOPY CENTER

SUPPLIER COMMENTS

As strategic brand consultants, my firm Reno Design has worked with Kelly+Partners Chartered Accountants since their foundation. They have been an enormously interesting business – always wanting to do good things for their clients and continually looking at potential services and innovative support materials.

Their growing office network across Sydney and regional areas of New South Wales means that there are ongoing creative challenges. By working closely with CEO Brett Kelly, his marketing team and Senior Client Directors, we have been able to develop the many necessary client service documents and associated marketing collateral, as well as primary brand and sub-brand applications.

Over a couple of decades, we’ve had relationships with many large and small businesses and many organisations with diverse interests, but Kelly+Partners is probably the most dynamic client with which we’ve worked.

have worked with Brett and his team since starting my strata website www.stratalive.com.au three years ago.

Brett was one of the first to commit to coming on board and he is now one of the major sponsors of our website and magazine. Brett contributes 100 percent to everything he does and does as he says. His commitment to the strata industry is well recognised by his contribution hosting his Strata in Conversation quarterly lunches which are well attended by heads of the industry.

Kelly+Partners is the undisputed leader in strata accountancy in Australia. If you live in an apartment and you have your strata plan audited, most likely it will be Kelly+Partners who do that for you.

Not just in business, but life in general, Brett displays huge passion, commitment and drive in everything he does.

With Brett, every new day is not just a good day but the best day. His positivity is infectious and his huge spectrum of knowledge on any subject can only be envied.

If you need the perfect model to grace the billboard of success, professionalism, health, wellbeing and balance, Brett’s your man.

I’ve had the pleasure of dealing directly with Brett and his team whilst leasing an office to them in Bathurst. From the word go, I worked out Brett and his team were a dynamic group of people who do what they say they are going to do. have spent some time with Brett and his team and got to know them personally and love their “Can do attitude” with none of the bullshit that I’ve experienced with other firms. I’ve appreciated listening to Brett speak and love his idea on recruiting good people and also his ideas on property investment which got a lot of value out of. Also stories of his adventures over a beer at one of Bathurst’s finest watering holes.

I’m looking forward to continuing a relationship with Brett and his team and wish them all the best with his expansion in regional NSW.

STEVE ELLERY

BATHURST REAL ESTATE

CINDY MARTIN STRATA LIVE

GRAHAM RENDOTH CREATIVE DIRECTOR, RENO DESIGN

“Kelly+Partners is probably the most dynamic client with which we’ve worked.”

“From the word go, I worked out Brett and his team were a dynamic group of people who do what they say they are going to do.”

TEAM COMMENTS

I’ve worked in the industry for a number of years and I’ve worked with firms and organisations that had promised career progression and movement to partnership. They hadn’t always lived up to those promises, then on meeting Brett he committed to it and said that it would happen, and it has happened.

Now I’m a Partner at Kelly+Partners (Norwest) and enjoying being able to assist clients, develop myself and also develop the business.

I’m really enjoying it. It’s fantastic to be able to make the step to that next level, be out there facing clients and helping them with their day-to-day needs.

It’s a very exciting place to work. That sounds a bit strange at an accountancy practice but we’re constantly growing and new things are happening every day. It’s a very dynamic place to work. We have wonderful people and a way of accelerating their career because we care about the people who work at Kelly+Partners. It’s just a very pleasant place to work.

had been a partner at Pritchard Adam since 1980. had to start doing some succession planning and Brett Kelly had heard on the grapevine that was considering leaving the practice with my client base. He approached me, we discussed it over two days and a weekend then shook hands on the Monday.

I’ve been able to take an overseas trip every year plus a few little ones on the side. Brett Kelly encourages that amongst his principals that they do have proper holidays and vacations every year.

love working at Kelly+Partners because there are always new areas can work in.

You want to work with an employer that can give you career progression.

Kelly+Partners can definitely offer that just purely because we are such a growing firm.

After 32 years as Macarthur’s leading Accounting practice and business services provider, we joined Kelly+Partners in July 2011. It is an extremely dynamic business. There is always a pursuit of innovation and change, all with one focus and that is improving the service delivery to clients.

Overall what Kelly+Partners has offered us, and our people which is more important, is a far better offering to our clients as far as services are concerned.

felt that in my experience with other Accounting firms that Kelly+Partners has a very systematic and structured approach to the way they do things.

Kelly+Partners is a dynamic and exciting place to work, we are constantly growing and changing. When the Penrith office that I worked at joined the group there were only two other offices and now we have seven. The addition of each new office and staff to the group has created a great opportunity for my own career development. was originally in an administration/ human resource role and was studying to move into a full-time human resource role, which I’ve now been able to do. I love the work that I am now involved in, the contact with prospective candidates, new and existing staff, and the opportunity that I’ve had to implement systems to manage our people.

We work hard but at the same time we are relaxed and it’s a fun place to work.

I’m 30 and at an age where don’t see many other people my age having the opportunity to be a partner of their firm.

had worked in a number of companies prior to joining Kelly+Partners some 10 years ago, some of which were quite large organisations, but in my opinion all appear to fall short of the culture nurtured here at Kelly+Partners. From the junior accountants right through to the Directors here, all seem to genuinely care about their fellow colleagues and in turn, their clients. This appears to be reflected in other teams across the group also. Care for colleagues both professionally through study and career progression but also personally through exhibiting and encouraging a good level of work/life balance. Kelly+Partners is a great environment to work in and highly recommend it to any potential employee or client.

It is a pleasure and a privilege to work for Kelly+Partners. was one of the first employees of Kelly+Partners in 2006 and have seen this company grow. The company strives to improve constantly in all aspects.

love coming to work everyday, the atmosphere and people are fantastic to work with and we have some of the best clients.

wouldn’t work for anyone else! Keep up the good work!

What have had the opportunity to experience during my time at Kelly+Partners is definitely not characteristic of your typical accounting firm. It has been great to be involved in a range of projects as diverse as launching a best-selling book to opening and fitting out a brand new office.

The pace at which the firm is growing and also the range of projects we are involved in is a testament to the dynamic nature of the entire Kelly+Partners team!

I work in a specialised role of servicing the Strata Industry as a Senior Strata Auditor with over 10 years experience, the last 5 years having been with Kelly+Partners.

It is fantastic to be part of Kelly+Partners as have the opportunity to work in a dynamic and specialised industry with a highly experienced and wonderful team. The people I work with make working at Kelly+Partners a great experience.

Kelly+Partners is a progressive firm with a strong focus on servicing and helping clients and at the same time wanting the best for their employees.

KIM FORWOOD

PEOPLE + CULTURE COORDINATOR KELLY+PARTNERS

CHARBEL GEAGEA CLIENT DIRECTOR KELLY+PARTNERS

JUDY MCDONALD ADMINISTRATION MANAGER KELLY+PARTNERS

PAULINE KALUZA SENIOR ACCOUNTANT KELLY+PARTNERS

MANAGEMENT TRAINEE KELLY+PARTNERS

“It is a pleasure and a privilege to work for Kelly+Partners. I was one of the first employees of Kelly+Partners in 2006 and have seen this company grow. The company strives to improve constantly in all aspects.”

PAULINE KALUZA – SENIOR ACCOUNTANT

2012/2013 YEAR IN RE VIEW

NORW EST

OFFICE LAUNCH WITH RAY HADLEY

On Tuesday 26 June 2012, Broadcaster and commentator Ray Hadley of the Macquarie Radio Network officially launched the opening of the Kelly+Partners office at Norwest Business Park.

Kelly+Partners was awarded BRW’s Fastest Growing Accounting firm award in 2011, and the Norwest office marked the 5th office for the company. The event was attended by current clients, The Mayor, Members of The Hills Chamber of Commerce and local business owners who enjoyed some pearls of wisdom shared by Mr Hadley on succeeding in the highly competitive world of radio over drinks, canapés and live music.

Mr Hadley shared his personal story of a boy from housing commission to taxi driver to horse caller to leading talk show host. Ray reflected upon how his family, hard work, perseverance and to a small degree, luck, shaped his career and the person that he is today. All in attendance enjoyed the experience, good company and location to mark this memorable event in the history of Kelly+Partners.

END OF FINANCIAL YEAR

AWARDS

DINNER

Every year we hold an event to celebrate the great efforts of our people in serving clients. This year’s function was a black-tie dinner held at The Observatory Hotel in Sydney on Friday 29 June 2012.

The inaugural Golden Calculator was awarded to our General Manager of Administration, Sandy Merrick. The award recognises Sandy’s exceptional work ethic and commitment to Kelly+Partners over her seven years of service with us. As the inaugural prize winner, Sandy won a trip to Disneyland and she chose to visit Euro Disney in Paris as both her children, Rupert and Claire, now live in London.

Awards were also given to an outstanding member of the Kelly+Partners team from each of our individual offices:

+ North Sydney – Joel Russell

+ South West Sydney – Karina Rauch

+ Western Sydney – Denise Gumley and Carol Turton

+ Norwest – Catherine Shenouda

+ Central Coast – Pauline Kaluza

A special mention was also made for the Strata team who had had a particularly great year!

Great food, dancing and how could anyone forget the photo booth!

A memorable way to finish a fantastic 2012/2013 financial year.

CHARBEL GEAGEA

We work hard but at the same time we are relaxed and it’s a fun place to work.

CLIENT DIRECTOR

It’s fantastic to be part of Kelly+Partners as I have the opportunity to work in an dynamic and specialised industry with a highly experienced and wonderful team.

BLACK TIE + FANCY DRESS

LANA PRAPORSHCHIKOV MANAGER – STRATA AUDIT

SKI TRIP

In the first week of August 2012 a small group of Kelly+Partners team, friends and family headed down to Lake Crackenback Resort for three action packed days on the slopes. The days were spent enjoying the best that Thredbo can offer with the yellow first timer runs of Friday Flats for anyone on their first trip to the snow to the most difficult black runs for those who can’t get enough of the white powder.

When night fell it was time to kick back and relax at the idyllic Lake Crackenback resort with its picturesque lakeside setting and cosy restaurants and bars before getting a good night’s rest ready for another big day.

The trip had it all from a dislocated shoulder to Craig and the girls needing to be rescued after being stranded after hours at the bottom of the Ski Tube. It was a fun few days with a great group of people.

TOUGH MUDDER

In October 2012 it was proven that the North Sydney office produces the toughest staff in the Kelly+Partners group when Senior Client Directors Craig Bullock and Tony Nunes crossed the finish line in their Kelly+Partners colours in only three and a half hours. Excellent effort considering only 78% of participants successfully complete each challenge.

TOUGH MUDDER IS A 20 KM OBSTACLE COURSES DESIGNED BY BRITISH SPECIAL FORCES TO TEST YOUR ALL-ROUND STRENGTH, STAMINA, MENTAL GRIT & CAMARADERIE.

Craig and Tony handled all the obstacles the course threw at them. There were electric shocks and burning bales of hay to avoid, tunnels to squeeze through, hills to conquer, walls to scale and logs to lug. All covered in mud . lots of mud!

A great display of teamwork and a lot of laughs while everyone is standing around waiting to be hosed down. Bring on next year!

When do you spend nearly 9 hours on the world’s smallest seat? When each of you have raised thousands for charity and your sponsors want a report on your success, that’s when!

So Scotty, Matt, Dylan and Tim donned the Kelly+Partners knicks and joined over 1000 riders travelling over 200 km for a great cause.

Day 1: kicked off early at Homebush as all the riders gathered for a quick briefing before charging off toward Parramatta. They wound through streets, parks and eventually down the M7 to their final destination, the beautiful rural township of Camden. Now rumour has it one rider lives in Camden and may have snuck home for a massage and a good night’s sleep!

Day 2: the saddle was a bit tender for all the boys but the adrenalin was pumping for the return trip to Homebush. There really is something to be said when you’re part of a team having successfully completed a challenge, not to mention riding side-by-side into the home of the Sydney Olympics across the finish line!

BUSINESS OWNERS’ WISDOM

LAUNCH AT ARIA

GUEST INTERVIEWEE

MIKE CANNON-BROOKES

What a day to get family and friends together to launch the huge effort that was Business Owners’ Wisdom! On Monday 19 November 2012, the official book launch took place at ARIA restaurant from midday onwards. A great time was had by all with spectacular harbour views, fine wine and the food, of course, was very special!

It was such a privilege to have a number of interviewees from the book present at the launch to sign copies of the book and mingle with guests of Kelly+Partners. In attendance was Matt Moran himself, Imelda Roche, Andrew Simmons, John Cutler, Nicola Cerrone, James Stevens, Peter Stutchbury and Mike Cannon-Brookes who participated in a live interview with Brett Kelly during the afternoon.

Business Owners’ Wisdom is a rare collection of insights from some of Australia’s most inspirational business minds. Brett asked each person about their life and business. What wisdom did they gain from years of hard work, and how did it shape their lives? How do people achieve such extraordinary feats in business?

The result is a captivating set of candid interviews that reveal the mind-set of some of Australia’s most successful business owners. Each person and every story is unique, and in many cases completely unexpected. As Brett uncovers, the life of a business owner rarely goes to plan but it’s always exciting.

By Christmas more than 12,000 copies had been sold and book signings have been held in many Dymocks stores around Sydney.

I have one meal a day. It starts at 8 am, finishes at midnight. I just continue grazing. I love my food, I love eating out. I love, I love everything about it.

SPECIAL GUESTS FROM THE BOOK

MATT MORAN

IMELDA ROCHE

ANDREW SIMMONS

JOHN CUTLER

NICOLA CERRONE

JAMES STEVENS

PETER STUTCHBURY

MIKE CANNON-BROOKES

MATT MORAN ARIA

BUSINESS OWNERS’ WISDOM QUOTES

I’ve learned a lot of lessons by watching other people stop work. It’s not a nice sight and while ever you can keep your brain functioning, if you want to work, think you should work . In fairness to yourself.

Follow your instinct no matter what anyone says

COLLETTE DINNIGAN

If it is to be, it’s up to me.

I want to be a brand that lasts forever. want to be like Coca-Cola® and want the goodwill of this business to be the most valuable thing on its balance sheet – always. Because you can’t buy trust, respect.

My professional and personal goals are pretty much the same: want to continue to inspire and encourage women all over the world to live a more active life.

You’ve got to be passionate about whatever you’re doing, and you’ve got to be prepared to do stuff that other people won’t do.

I think it’s a common story, but you simply believe in what you’re doing and you do it as well as you possibly can. You work very hard. You have some degree of talent, you persevere

Getting results, that’s what retention’s all about. You actually build a great culture and help people get great results so they stay around. We form the culture inside the gym.

If it’s worth doing, do it well, do the best you can. If you can do it, you ought to do it.

only like to be involved when there are problems. When there are problems, come with an instant solution –and it’s always wrong, but it doesn’t matter. get all the people around me and make them all think at once with me and I promise you, our solution is always the best.

the thing is just go on, just go and do it. I think it’s amazing when you decide that you’re going to do something, somehow it happens. It just happens if you decide and you’re determined.

The best thing about the business is the opportunity to get to know and understand and relate to a whole raft of people you’d never meet otherwise.

I hated school. The school hated me so it was kind of perfect synergy. dropped out when I was 15. didn’t really know what I wanted to do whether it was motor mechanic, painter, pastry chef at one stage, butcher had no real interest in food. had no real background of food. My parents were not foodies.

Open company, no bullshit.

I still sit down with special people who want to get something really special made, and that is the beauty about this business. It is the creative side, to make something which wasn’t there yesterday.

When you’ve got an online business you also have other things that you can give your customers You’re not just stuck being an online wagering business. If you want to be, you can be far more. That’s the exciting thing.

ANDREW SIMMONS

BRETT BLUNDY

JAMES STEVENS

JOHN CUTLER

LORNA JANE CLARKSON

MATT MORAN

MIKE CANNON-BROOKES

MARK CARNEGIE

NICOLA CERRONE

PETER STUCHBURY

TOM WATERHOUSE

BILL BRIGES

JAMES ERSKINE

IMELDA ROCHE

HARRY TRIGUBOFF

BUSINESS OWNERS’ WISDOM

LAUNCH AT CERRONE

I still sit down with special people who want to get something really special made, and that is the beauty about this business. It is the creativity side, to make something which wasn’t there yesterday.

NICOLA

What hospitality and what an event – food, wine and fun – an interview with Nicola Cerrone and 200 people to enjoy the night. That sums up the second launch of Business Owners’ Wisdom at the magnificent House of Cerrone boutique jewellery store in Leichardt on 30 November 2012.

Guests thoroughly enjoyed admiring two floors of exquisite hand-crafted jewellery and were also given the exclusive privilege of a behind-the-scenes guided tour of the Cerrone workshop. This is where dedicated artisans, including diamond setters, jewellers, model makers, polishers and designers ensure every precious gem is an individual earth form creation and design each piece around its qualities.

CERRONE CERRONE

The customer is number one, but what you really shouldn’t forget is your responsibility to who you are; you should never forget your roots. You should never forget what it is you are capable of doing or can afford or manage.

The thing I enjoy about the business is that you can always do it a little bit better, and you can always do it a lot more precisely than what you are doing . . And that’s what excites me.

NICOLA CERRONE CERRONE

NICOLA CERRONE CERRONE

MEL BOU RNE CUP

The race that stops the nation! That is the only way to describe Australia’s iconic Melbourne Cup. With 100 clients, friends & associates of Kelly+Partners in attendance – what an event it was!

The day started early with private Kelly+Partners access to the Mounting Yards at 8 am. Here everyone was given the opportunity to don the white glove pose for a photo holding the cup itself before all coming together for the group shot. What an experience that was, to hold the prize for one of the world’s richest turf races, which would be run in just a few short hours.

Following the photos it was off to The Lounge within the legendary Melbourne Cup Birdcage. Gourmet food and canapés were enjoyed all day as was the Mumm Champagne which began flowing at breakfast!

Within The Lounge a party atmosphere was felt all day as guests mingled with new and interesting people and even did a bit of celebrity spotting! The Lounge and outside terrace were perfectly situated to view a wide variety of fashions coming in and out of The Birdcage.

Hours of music and dancing meant the vibe of The Lounge was felt throughout The Birdcage as many passers-by wanted to get in on the action inside. Evidently we were celebrating the 152nd Melbourne Cup in style!

The ladies were very lucky to enjoy their very own personal stylists within The Lounge. ‘Australian Hairdresser of the year’ for the last 3 years running, Joey Scandizzo, did a fantastic job styling the ladies hair and together with Dean Nixon, director and founder of Master Makeup, everyone was looking phenomenal. The electric atmosphere escalated when it came time for the Melbourne Cup to be run as guests either watched trackside or from the big-screen inside The Lounge. Festivities continued following the race until guests were provided with transport to The Long Room in Collins Street for the after party. Huge thanks to Craig Lovett and the wonderful team at Incognitus who made it all possible.

Although there were both winners and losers when Green Moon and jockey Brett Pebble crossed in first position to secure their maiden Melbourne Cup victory, it can be assured that a great day was had by all. Bring on next year!

I had worked in a number of companies prior to joining Kelly+Partners, some of which were quite large organisations, but in my opinion all appear to fall short of the culture nurtured here at Kelly+Partners.

JUDY MCDONALD ADMINISTRATION MANAGER

FUN ON THE FIELD

What I love about the Kelly+Partners culture is the attitude of leading with generosity and helping people out. Brett and his team have lined me up speaking gigs, introduced me to amazing people, spoken at our events, mentored us with business advice, shared his know-how via his best selling books. And of course the Melbourne Cup day will go down in the history books! Thank you!

ADAM FRANKLIN BLUEWIRE MEDIA

CHRISTMAS

What better way to finish off an extremely busy and successful year than with a Kelly+Partners crazy hat themed Christmas Party! On Friday 14 December, all five Kelly+Partners offices spent the afternoon at Eschol House in Campbelltown for fun, games and great food and drinks to toast to a fantastic year.

Brett congratulated the whole team on a job well done throughout a busy year before Tim Bryan and Craig Bullock handled the all important announcement of Kelly+Partners’ craziest hat! The competition was fierce with the team serving up a very diverse range of hats including sombreros, Rastafarian dreadlocks, army helmets, jesters cap ’n’ bells and everything in between. North Sydney manager Siem Tam took out the coveted title with his khaki-coloured army helmet.

In the true Christmas spirit, an amazing buffet lunch was served and the Kelly+Partners ‘Secret Santa’ tradition made sure that no-one left empty handed. After lunch it was out into the immaculate gardens for an afternoon of cricket, touch footy and of course laughs all round.

THE BATTERS

I love the work I am now involved in, the contact with prospective candidates, new and existing staff, and the opportunity that I’ve had to implement systems to manage our people.

KIM FORWOOD PEOPLE + CULTURE COORDINATOR

THE BOWLERS

In early February, the Kelly+Partners Team from all 5 offices met at the Vibe Hotel North Sydney for our Annual Firmwide Conference. The focus of this year was Delivering Service Excellence and the entire Kelly+Partners Team was truly inspired by the motivating words of guest speaker Phil McCarroll of McCarroll’s Automotive Group.

FIRM WIDE

CONFERENCE + LOOOONG LUNCH

Phil spoke about the importance of customer service as a means for great companies to differentiate themselves in a competitive industry; about starting his career decades ago at a Ford Dealership in Cooma; and that his philosophy of treating every customer as you would a guest in your own home is a direct reflection of the customer focused approach to business in country towns.

It is Phil’s unique approach which has allowed his Lexus of Chatswood dealership to become the premier Lexus dealership in Australia and achieve a score of 98% in their 2012 customer service index. Quite an exceptional achievement in the luxury car industry where such high standards of quality are expected from customers.

By lunchtime, it was time to head down to The Botanist in Kirribilli for our Loooong Lunch. An afternoon of great food, plenty of drinks and full of laughs in Kirribilli’s coolest bar was certainly a fantastic way to end an inspiring day.

client

Client service Communication

Helping our people reach their potential

Want the best for others

We do what we say Every client a raving fan One team, one best way

In early 2013, Kelly+Partners commenced a unique interview series for the strata industry titled ‘Strata In Conversation’ held at Matt Moran’s stunning harbourside restaurant ARIA. The series was initiated to delve into the changes and advances in the strata industry from various perspectives including reforms and predictions, the growth of the industry, finance and insurance, and the next generation.

The first session was held on 8 April and brought together The Hon. Anthony Roberts, Minister of Fair Trading, with 30 leaders of the strata industry on Monday 8th April to discuss the current review of the Strata Act. Brett interviewed the Minster, covering a broad range of topics pertaining specifically to the strata industry. The Minister was questioned on the current status of the proposed strata law reform, currently in the stake holder discussion phase and other particular areas of interest including the increasingly important role strata will play in the new social blueprint of ‘vertical villages’.

Seats for the lunch were sold out within 48 hours with the audience representing the ‘who’s who’ of the NSW strata industry, including the current NSW President of Strata Communities Australia (SCA) Mr David Ferguson and National Director of the SCA, Mr Erik Adriaanse as well as key figures within the leading strata management firms in Australia.

STRATA

IN CONVERSATION AT ARIA RESTAURANT

Very enjoyable and informative event, great opportunity to be amongst industry leaders and peers.

NIKKI HOPKINS MANAGING DIRECTOR LAMB AND WALTERS

Great opportunity to listen to the Minister, and share some excellent food and intelligent conversation – not to be missed by anyone whose future is vested in strata!

STRATA IN CONVERSATION

ADRIAN EMERY

CEO ESQUIRE PROPERTY GROUP

BATHURST OFFICE

LAUNCH

On Thursday 6 June 2013 Kelly+Partners officially opened our 6th office, in a stunning heritage listed building on William Street, Bathurst. Despite the single digit temperatures of a winter’s night in Bathurst, we had a great turnout and the brand new office was packed out and buzzing with activity.

Our special guest for the evening was State Member for Bathurst Paul Toole MP who said some very kind words and expressed his enthusiasm for supporting new businesses opening up in the Bathurst region.

It was fantastic to receive such a warm welcome into the community and meet such a vibrant group of people from a range of industries. Guests on the evening included local business owners, real estate agents, financial planners, doctors, councillors, photographers, artists and builders to name a few!

THE TEAM

SPEAKING EVENTS INCLUDE VISION PT ANNUAL CONFERENCE + STRATA COMMUNITY AUSTRALIA NATIONAL CONVENTION + SERVCORP BUSINESS SHORTS + WESTPAC: LEADERSHIP, BUSINESS WISDOM & THE ECONOMY + THE HILLS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE + ERINA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE + STRATA CHOICE ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Thank you so much for speaking at the Erina Chamber of Commerce April Luncheon. We have had the most wonderful feedback from the members of the Chamber and the word ‘inspiring’ resounds in all communication.

Since our members are primarily private business owners, it was extremely relevant for everyone the way you shared the fascinating stories of some of Australia’s most successful business owners you interviewed for your book. Your talk was extremely informative while at the same time very engaging and entertaining. Thanks once more from the Erina Chamber of Commerce.

Brett is well known for his work in the strata sector. He was the ideal presenter to round out a solid day with a lot of technical content around our theme of driving business growth.

Brett gets his audience to take a step back and think about their goals and how to turn them into reality. His own story is an inspiring one for any small business operator and entrepreneur and he imparts a strong sense of the focus and commitment that are the essential ingredients of success.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your presentation on “Your Money, Your Choice” at our annual Strata Choice Conference 2013 which was held on Friday, 9 August.

We received great feedback from our staff, sponsors and guests who attended the conference.

We invite only a very select few external people and companies to our Conference, the select few we call friends of Strata Choice and to us personally. We hope that the environment we provided enabled you to create solid long lasting business relationships.

I would just like to thank you for speaking at our conference earlier this year. The content of your presentation was right on the mark in terms of helping our owners focus on their financials more consistently and your presentation style was extremely engaging. This made what is often seen as a very dry topic very appealing to everyone who attended. In fact, our owners indicated that it was a highlight of our conference. Most importantly, many of the owners have since indicated that their profitability has improved.

SUE LIPTROTT EXECUTIVE OFFICER ERINA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

MARK LEVER CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER STRATA COMMUNITY AUSTRALIA LTD

DANIEL LINDERS GROUP MANAGING DIRECTOR STRATA CHOICE PTY LTD ANDREW SIMMONS VISION PERSONAL TRAINING

In October 2013, the leading Wollongong accounting firm AJBartlettCachia Chartered Accountants officially became Kelly+Partners.

The addition of Kelly+Partners Wollongong has brought with it a larger base of experts and services available to clients of the Illawarra region, specifically in the areas of tax, superannuation, audit and business advisory services. In addition Kelly+Partners welcomed Ben Twyford and Ryan McCabe who joined Bill Bartlett, Albert Cachia, Anthony Pickham, Troy Marsh Apps and Brett Kelly as Client Directors of the firm.

To celebrate, a cocktail party was held on Tuesday evening, 29 October, to officially welcome the existing clients into the new business. We had a fantastic turn out with well over one hundred clients attending. It was really great to see the support from such a diverse range of clients with some having only recently come on board and others whose relationship with the team spanned over twenty years.

Bill, Albert and Brett welcomed the guests and let them know how much Kelly+Partners was looking forward to helping the businesses of Wollongong grow and adapt to the current economic climate.

Welcome Wollongong!

COCKTAIL PARTY

FOUNDATION

Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service is a community owned and operated aeromedical search and rescue service. It serves the Hunter, Central Coast, Mid North Coast, New England and North West regions of New South Wales. Each year the Helicopter Service performs over 1200 missions, rescuing people from accident scenes and transporting critically ill patients from small, rural hospitals to large tertiary hospitals, primarily the John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle and the Base Hospital in Tamworth.

SUPPORTED BY KELLY+PARTNERS CENTRAL COAST

Australian Women and Children’s Research Foundation is a Medical Research Foundation based in Western Sydney. OZWAC was established to provide for medical research into the health of women and children, which draws upon community support to raise funds and also raise community awareness of important health issues. The Foundation, since its inception has supported research at Nepean and Westmead Hospitals and other research centres in NSW.

SUPPORTED BY KELLY+PARTNERS WESTERN SYDNEY

Mater Dei is an organisation that provides early intervention therapy services, education and residential programs for babies, children and young people with an intellectual disability or developmental delay. Much of their work is focused on providing opportunities and experiences that will help their students develop the skills and confidence to be fully included as members of their community.

SUPPORTED BY KELLY+PARTNERS SOUTH WEST SYDNEY

As part of Kelly+Partners founding mission the business has been determined to find ways to contribute to the communities within which it works – the Kelly+Partners Foundation is one part of our determination to help where we can make a difference.

Kids of Macarthur Health Foundation is dedicated to improving health care provision for every child living in the Macarthur region.

To do this the Foundation aims to raise, stimulate and advocate for funding of children and adolescent health services and research delivered within the boundaries of the Macarthur region and engaging the Macarthur community in supporting these priorities.

Kids of Macarthur Health Foundation is a local children’s health charity established to raise funds to purchase paediatric medical equipment to enhance the level of health care offered to local children being treated at Campbelltown and Camden Hospitals. Funds also support numerous children’s community health programs.

SUPPORTED BY KELLY+PARTNERS SOUTH WEST SYDNEY

FOUNDATION

Operation Open Heart is an initiative of Sydney Adventist Hospital. The program provides urgently needed cardiac surgery for patients in developing countries (generally children) who do not have access to this care in their own country, and cannot afford to receive this life saving treatment overseas. In addition to life-saving surgery, the program promotes skills-transfer, providing ongoing education and training for local medical, nursing and allied health staff. All Operation Open Heart team members are volunteers that come from all over Australia

The ongoing work of Operation Open Heart has transformed over 2800 lives all over the world both of the patients themselves and their families.

SUPPORTED BY KELLY+PARTNERS NORTH SYDNEY

As a member of the Nepean Medical Research Foundation’s Council since 2001, John Bateman experienced first hand that raising money for a good cause had become increasingly difficult in recent years. In 2006 he decided that there had to be an easier way to raise money for a good local cause. He decided to aim high – to approach those people who had been really successful in the city of Penrith. There were no ball or dinner tables to be bought, no auction items to bid for, no raffle tickets to be purchased – just an opportunity to be part of a significant group of people in Penrith, who believed in making a commitment to give to a very important local organisation. Through the generosity of many great locals this has been achieved and the number of philanthropists has now increased to 60.

SUPPORTED BY KELLY+PARTNERS WESTERN SYDNEY

MonSTaR is a registered Foundation with a charter to raise funds to improve the quality of life for others who are among those who most need it.

MON (Motor Neurone Disease), was chosen as a founding beneficiary, following the all too early onset of Motor Neurone Disease suffered by Fiona the late wife of Founding Director Hamish Pearce.

THE STaR ASSOCIATION provides special needs teachers to educate intellectually disabled pre school age children. Today STaR enables these small children to attend regular pre schools, and thereby commence a transition to society,

Since its inception in 2006, MonSTaR has raised funds in the order of $1,000,000.

SUPPORTED BY KELLY+PARTNERS NORWEST

Hope Bears Charity was founded in 2003 by Frances Robinson and provides cancer patients across Australia with handmade knitted gifts. The charity now has over 7000 volunteers who hand knit beanies, socks, scarfs, gloves, mittens, chemo caps, Hope bears and knee rugs. These gifts of hope are given away free of charge to Cancer Patients in Hospitals, Oncology Clinics and Ronald McDonald Houses.

People receiving the Hope Bears give their new friend a name, their teddy is always at their bedside, giving them comfort, joy and love.

Through their motto of “Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible and achieves the impossible”, the volunteers at Hope Bears are helping show these wonderful cancer patients that someone cares, even though they don’t know them.

SUPPORTED BY KELLY+PARTNERS CENTRAL TABLELANDS

IN THE PRESS

The merger of accounting firm Kelly+Partners with the principal partner of Pritchard Adams is a salutary lesson for all young partners.

Its (Pritchard Adams) five partners have gone their separate ways to other firms, with the longest serving, Rex Hoeben, joining the fledgling Kelly+Partners.

“We look at senior practitioners and know they have deep knowledge. They may not run as fast. They don’t have to because they already know the way.” said Brett Kelly of Kelly+Partners.

One of the founders of an award-winning small practice with ambitious growth aspirations makes a point of asking most people he meets if they have a “great” accountant.

And he’s usually not surprised with the result. “Most laugh” says Brett Kelly of Kelly+Partners.

Accountants preach succession planning but Kelly+Partners is applying the discipline to itself in a bid to grow faster.

The Sydney firm added $2.5 million to its income stream when Griffith Forest Greer joined the firm late last year.

Kelly+Partners will put its growth strategy on hold to bed down recent mergers. “The priority now is organic growth,” says Brett Kelly of Kelly+Partners.

“Men are men and won’t do anything about it until they die.” That’s the opinion of accountant Brett Kelly towards men’s health.

He and three colleagues are ‘growing the mo’ for Movember to raise awareness about men’s health issues as well as raise some funds.

Brett Kelly said he decided to get involved because of the serious issues around men with prostate cancer and mental health.

Accounting practices are failing to support their small business clients, The Accountants Benchmarking Report for 2010 says.

Brett Kelly, a senior client director of Kelly+Partners takes the view that a practice should address its inability to make money out of compliance first before holding itself out as a business advisor.

“If you can’t run your business exceptionally well, on what basis can you hold yourself out to advise someone else?” he asks.

The bigger accounting firms have turned their fortunes around, with many banking on attracting or buying the expertise to help their clients clear the mist from the windscreen.

This year’s fastest growing firm Kelly+Partners Senior Client director Brett Kelly says that post-GFC not surprisingly many more clients wanted advice on how to get the best funding mix and a lot more advice on what’s ahead rather than examining what’s already happened.

Six years ago, an ex-PWC employee decided to start his own business on the fringes of Sydney. Brett Kelly’s strategy was fairly simple: copy the example of retailing giant Walmart.

“We like to go where other people don’t go,” Brett Kelly says. “We wanted to avoid head-on competition with more established firms in established markets.”

Kelly has achieved this rapid growth by moving out into Sydney’s suburbs where private businesses are located.

With tax time just around the corner, Bathurst is spoilt for choice when it comes to professional advice as new kid on the block Kelly+Partners enters the market.

“Brett is very excited to be bringing the expertise of Kelly+Partners to the Bathurst region. It’s a very professional organisation with a depth of resources which is second to none,” Anna Lewis, Bathurst Client Director.

AWARDS

KELLY+PARTNERS

NORTH SYDNEY

Level 4, 73 Walker Street

North Sydney NSW 2060 Australia

T 9923 0800

F 9923 0888

E info@kellypartners.com.au

CONTACT

KELLY+PARTNERS

NORWEST

Atlas Norwest, Suite 205

Level 2, 2-8 Brookhollow Avenue

Norwest Business Park

Baulkham Hills NSW 2153 Australia

T 8852 5400

F 8852 5454

E info@kellypartners.com.au

KELLY+PARTNERS

SOUTH WEST SYDNEY

Suites 1-8, Kellicar Lane

Macarthur Square, 200 Gilchrist Drive

Campbelltown NSW 2560 Australia

T 4625 7711

F 4628 4364

E info@kellypartners.com.au

KELLY+PARTNERS

WESTERN SYDNEY

Level 1, 36 Woodriff Street

Penrith NSW 2750 Australia

T 4721 7433

F 4721 7434

E info@kellypartners.com.au

Central Tablelands

Western Sydney

Norwest

Central Coast

WWW.KELLYPARTNERS.COM.AU

KELLY+PARTNERS

CENTRAL TABLELANDS

102 William Street

Bathurst NSW 2795 Australia

T 6331 7500

F 6331 8358

E info@kellypartners.com.au

KELLY+PARTNERS

CENTRAL COAST

Suite 2.06, Level 2

Platinum Building

4 Ilya Avenue

Erina NSW 2250 Australia

T 4367 6630

F 4367 6632

E info@kellypartners.com.au

KELLY+PARTNERS

WOLLONGONG

276 Keira Street

Wollongong NSW 2500 Australia

T 4226 1000

F 4228 0907

E info@kellypartners.com.au

North Sydney South West Sydney

Wollongong

thank you to all of our clients, staΩ & suppliers