Jessica Powell

Client

• Being a trusted and honest advisor
• Producing timely, high-quality work , which meets client needs and is easy to understand
• Upskilling and empowering clients, so they can achieve their goals and run successful businesses
• Meeting with new or potential clients, understanding their needs and preparing service proposals
• Providing relevant and reliable advice to assist clients with decision making, ensuring communication is clear and regular

Team

• Leading and managing a high performing team
• Managing workflow and resource allocation for a large portfolio of clients, ensuring tasks are always completed within the required timeframes and client exceptions are met or exceeded
• Fostering a positive team and company culture, built on mutual trust, recognition and respect
• Coaching and mentoring senior accountants, including understanding their career aspirations and providing learning and development opportunities which support their growth
• Training and supporting junior accountants, including being a registered mentor for Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand
• Completion of formal appraisals for staff
• Review all compliance and advisory work completed by the team
• Collaborating with other divisions, including overseas offices when required, to ensure clients are receiving the best advice and support

Technical

• Liaison with Inland Revenue on complex tax issues, including risk reviews, audits, and voluntary disclosures. Ensuring positive outcomes for clients and monitoring ongoing compliance
• Reviewing and reporting to clients on complex tax issues, including fringe benefits tax and goods and services tax. Assisting clients with implementing changes and correcting historical positions
• Providing GST and income tax advice regarding property and asset sales and purchases, including changes in use
• Attending Board Meetings, including providing analysis and financial insights, guiding strategy and understanding future needs
• Comprehensive tax planning, including use of tax pooling and finance, IRD payment arrangements, debt write offs and remission requests
• Comprehensive group structuring, including loss offsets, shareholding changes, dividends, loan restructures, and bank re-financing
• Coaching clients through insolvency, cashflow and debt-equity issues, setting goals and monitoring performance and progress over time

Network

• Lecturing at the University of Canterbury to accounting students
• Being a business mentor for Kaiapoi High School Young Enterprise Scheme
• Presenting to business owners at Enterprise North Canterbury events
• Maintaining strong relationships with other business professionals, including commercial bankers and lawyers

Client

• Helping clients to identify revenue enhancement and cost reduction opportunities
• Recommending best practices and ensuring businesses are compliant with all regulatory bodies
• Providing effective and efficient taxation advice to clients
• Preparing accurate and reliable financial information
• Analysing business performance and providing timely, honest and supportive feedback

Team

• Review of compliance work completed by the team
• Coaching and mentoring of junior staff

Technical

• Preparation of NZ IFRS RDR financial reports for New Zealand companies in forestry, manufacturing and construction industries
• Incorporation of new companies and providing step-by-step support for new business owners
• Solvent wind ups and amalgamations
• Assisting with external audits
• Preparation of Controlled Foreign Company disclosures
• Preparation of valuations for SME’s
• Significant focus on the construction and property development sector, including capitalization of projects, reviewing chattel splits, calculating cost of sales for multi-dwelling developments, revenue in advance, WIP and retentions

Client Secondment

• Completed 13-month secondment as the management accountant for a large multi-entity New Zealand organisation. Key duties included; managing accounts payable and receivables, making payments, managing cashflow, calculating OPEX on commercial property rentals, completing 2-monthly GST and management reports, and providing advice to Directors.
• Conducted a review of the group's information systems and accounting processes. This resulted in a change in accounting software, implementing invoicing and property management add-ons to create efficiencies, and updating internal processes to be paperless
• Preparation of Job Description, and training of new management accountants for the group

Team

• Trained new employees on accounting principles and company procedures
• Collaborated with team on technical pieces of work

Technical

• Completed Xero Advisor Certification
• Proficiency in various accounting software and add-ons including; Xero, MYOB, Webaccounting, Profitz, Plusfactor, XPA, Infusion, TaxLab, Hubdoc, APS
• Completed Graduate Diploma and became a member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand
• Preparation of special purpose financial reports for New Zealand companies, partnerships, incorporated societies, trusts and sole traders
• Preparation of Inland Revenue returns, including Income Tax, Goods & Services Tax, Fringe Benefits Tax, Resident Withholding Tax and Dividend Withholding Tax
• Preparation of annual budgets and comprehensive cashflow forecasting

Network

• Facilitating Xero Masterclass Training for BDO employess and clients
• Private tutor at University of Canterbury, primarily in statistics and finance
• Covid-19 BDO National Response Team; including writing articles and FAQ pages for the BDO website, assisting with enquiries from the public