London UK – With tax law getting ever more complex, general accountancy practices run the gauntlet of negligence claims if they do not seek professional advice before advising on the more complex areas of taxation. Therefore, twenty independent tax specialists have been brought together online to create a sizeable, virtual tax firm, giving access to advice across the complete tax spectrum without a large firm’s overheads. www.TaxAdviceNetwork.co.uk launches on Thursday 22nd November 2007.
The founder members of the network have over 450 years’ experience between them, and their expertise covers more than 20 areas of tax, including the more complex issues in Inheritance Tax, tax investigations, customs duties, employment status and VAT.
The site includes customisable discussion forums exclusively for tax specialists to exchange views about tax and business issues of their choosing. In addition to actively marketing their services, the Tax Advice Network will also provide an online networking and support facility for its tax specialist members.
This innovative network is the brainchild of Mark Lee, a former Chairman of the ICAEW Tax Faculty. Drawing on his many years of experience of providing tax support to smaller firms of accountants, he identified a gap in the market. Not all accountancy practices can afford the fees of specialist tax advisers from the larger firms, so Mark has invested in gathering together this team of highly qualified freelance tax advisers and marketing their services online.www.TaxAdviceNetwork.co.uk is targeting growth to 200 specialist tax advisers located throughout the UK within two years. By 2009, Mark‘s vision is that international tax advice will also be available.
Mark is a renowned networker and contributes articles, comments and content to several sites such as AccountingWeb, LinkedIn and Ecademy, where he is a Blackstar member. Ecademy Blackstars are interested in accelerating the growth of their own businesses and that of others, using a ‘give to gain’ philosophy. Mark’s team of advisers for building the business are all Ecademy Blackstars with successful businesses of their own.
Marks says ‘This is the equivalent of a ‘Linked-In’ employment website for accountants who have client-led, tax support requirements rather than contract or permanent employment needs.’ The website acts as a broker, marrying supply and demand. It enables accountants to search and find advisers by location and by area of expertise. There is no charge for using the site and it contains full profiles for each specialist and will soon include testimonials and ratings. www.TaxAdviceNetwork.co.uk will be an easy-to-use online referral and recommendation scheme, which is purported to be one of the best ways for helping small businesses to grow.
Registered users of the site will receive a topical weekly email tax update – written specifically for non-tax specialists. Users can also freely access articles and news items
written by members of The Tax Advice Network.
Mark adds: ‘The Tax Advice Network will be very different to the existing online directories and websites containing tax news, and those aimed at the members of only one professional body. Our aim is to help our primary target audience – accountants seeking specialist tax support and advice for their clients.’ To find out more or to register as an expert tax adviser, visit www.TaxAdviceNetwork.co.uk or call Mark Lee on 0845 003 8780.
-ends-
Word count 536
For further information, jpegs & interviews, contact
Rhona Jack
Blue Click PR Ltd.
rhona@blueclickpr.com
www.blueclickpr.com
+44 (0) 1793 441414
+44 (0) 7866 546221
Mark Lee
Managing Director
www.TaxAdviceNetwork.co.uk
Mark.Lee@TaxAdviceNetwork.co.uk
+44 (0) 845 003 8780.
Notes for Editors:
Mark Lee FCA CTA (Fellow) was Chairman of the ICAEW Tax Faculty from 2003-2005 and remains involved in a number of their committees. He has been a partner in two large firms of accountants and was Director of the Tax Support for Professionals team at Chiltern plc from 2001-2004. He sits on the Editorial Board of Taxation and regularly speaks at conferences and seminars for accountants all over the UK.
MARKET INFORMATION
Chiltern plc was, until very recently, the largest independent provider of tax support services to accountants. Last month it was acquired by top ten accountancy firm, BDO Stoy Hayward, and this has led to speculation as to whether it will continue to be as committed to providing support to smaller firms of accountants – and whether they will want to refer their tax work to a subsidiary of a large accountancy firm. The timely launch of the Tax Advice Network is purely coincidental, since Mark Lee has been working on its launch for over six months.
|
