Member Article

Leavitt Walmsley Associates Lands Deal with Major Business Software Provider IRIS

After working closely with IRIS over the last few years providing technical accountancy support, Leavitt Walmsley Associates’ (LWA) Audit and Technical Partner, Steve Collings, has landed an exclusive technical accountancy services deal with the market leading provider of business critical software.

Steve is recognised globally for his technical knowledge and has been helping IRIS to interpret a number of the requirements related to the new accounting rules issued by the Financial Reporting Council, considered “the most significant change in financial reporting in a generation”. Specifically, Steve has worked with the IRIS development team, helping to ensure their software is continuously performing to the highest standard in conjunction with the new accounting standards. Not only aiding the IRIS team in understanding the new rules, Steve has also carried out a series of courses across the UK designed to help IRIS customers handle the move from the old rules to the new. This is an essential understanding, with the new rules, which are based on international accounting standards, affecting a number of elements in financial statements including companies’ balance sheet values, forward exchange contracts and tax.

Steve has been a Partner at LWA for eight years, and being regionally based, the accountancy firm have proven their capability and resource to deal with a leading, global provider as well as regular clients, highlighting the high standard of knowledge and service LWA provide to a diverse range of businesses.

As a result of Steve’s continued support and efforts, IRIS Product Director, Steve Cox, recently approached him with the request of exclusively providing technical advice to the IRIS Software Group, including implementing a number of technical online and face-to-face courses. In addition, Steve will be contributing to their development processes to ensure that the technical requirements of the new accounting rules are correctly incorporated within the software, ultimately ensuring that any customers producing accounts are in line with any new requirements.

Commenting on the newly formed deal and his partnership with Steve Collings and LWA, Steve Cox said:

“After working with LWA and Steve for a number of years, it was when looking externally for sources of information that I came across Steve’s many books, and realised that he was in fact one of our existing customers, making him an obvious choice. Working with Steve and LWA has made our lives a lot easier, as well as speeding up the process significantly, due to Steve’s strong understanding of what it is we want to achieve, as he actually uses our software as a customer. From the word go, Steve has been ever helpful, and absolutely invaluable to the development of our software, he is an unlimited fountain of FRS knowledge, and I would certainly attribute part of our success with FRS down to Steve’s input.”

This exclusive deal has also resulted in Steve being a keynote speaker at the IRIS World Event in September this year, a truly prestigious occasion within the industry. Not only this, but this newly formed partnership between LWA and IRIS will be featured on IRIS’ newly launched FRS microsite, providing comprehensive information on FRS. Speaking of the triumph with such a globally recognised business, Steve comments:

“This deal with IRIS adds another layer to our reputation as a competent practice at LWA, being able to provide a high level of service, whilst all importantly ‘moving with the times’. IRIS is the leading software provider for accountancy firms in the UK, so being approached by their Board to offer exclusive services to their customers and development team is quite an achievement for myself and the firm.”

Adding significant weight to the notion that you don’t have to be a large, national accountancy firm to deal with significant complexities brought about by legislative changes, Leavitt Walmsley Associates are most certainly paving the way for smaller accountancy firms in 2016 and beyond.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Olivia Parkes .