External, internal and joint venture audit services
Management accounts, strategic planning, profit improvement
M&A advisory, selling a business, fundraising, valuations, due diligence
Accounting function, automation, daily reconciliations and dashboards, accounts payable
Payroll, global mobility, employee benefits, employment taxes
Tax planning & compliance, tax residence and domicile, trust planning
Business rescue, liquidations, administrations, insolvency, debt recovery
Bespoke service providing real-time information about your business performance
Corporate tax, customs duty, VAT, R&D, tax investigations, international tax
Full-service people consultancy – human resources, learning and development
Financial planning, cash flow modelling, retirement planning
Business consultancy helping organisations with the challenge of change
Professional services, medical, recruitment and media
Property developers, construction companies, housebuilders, landlords
Renewables, clean energy, energy producers, energy transition, exploration and production
Specialist support for businesses owned/managed by families
Food & drink producers, processors, importers, wholesalers and retailers
Engineering, manufacturing, aerospace, automotive, shipping, distribution
Fashion, entertainment, activity centres, hoteliers
Charities, social housing, higher and further education institutions
Government, non-departmental public bodies, health boards, ALEOS
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Meet the Audit & Assurance team
By working efficiently and going the extra step to provide them with the best service. Being approachable so they know they can email/phone me whenever they need and if I don’t have the answers, I will find someone who does
Variety of clients – charities, not for profits, SME companies mainly within the oil and gas industry
Closely work with tax and BAS, how much I work with each of them will depend on the client and the other services we provide for them, or if I have any technical queries that is better suited to these departments.
I am part of the Family Business team and a few of my own clients are family businesses so it is great being able to combine the knowledge I gain through the team with seeing how family businesses work together in real life when out on site. Being part of this team has also helped me work with people from departments that I wouldn’t normally work with and build my confidence in working with the management and leadership teams.
Emma McCombie is a Manager within our Audit team. Based in Aberdeen, Emma assists the managers with the running of audits, and helps with any questions that may arise, making sure all the work is being done within the set deadlines.
Her role also includes being involved with training the more junior members of the team and members of new offices, and she helps others in the department with understanding and using new software and software updates. Her specialisms include charities and Not for Profit entities.
“I would define the ideal relationship with a client as being able to work with them, and not just for them – with both of us working to the same timescales and with the same main end goal. Being able to speak to the client about non work-related things is also great – being efficient and getting the audit done but also being able to have a chat and laugh with the client, and get to know them a bit as a person, is the ideal.”
“Clients certainly expect the team to get the audit done and their accounts filed to Companies House. But AAB has always been known for its awesome service, so I think clients also expect us to not necessarily know all the answers, but to trust that we’ll know someone in the firm who will have the answers to any queries outside the scope of our audit work or if something new comes up in the audit.”
“For me, the most satisfying part of working with clients is getting to know the people you are working with; finding out about their families and life outside of work, any common interests, or people that you know in common (always surprising how much of a small world it is!). Getting on well with the client on a personal level means that I look forward to the audit coming around the next year and you always want to make even more of a good impression. It’s also beneficial because the more we can get to know each other, the more they know they can trust me.
Similarly, the most satisfying part of working with my colleagues is having people to talk to and lean on when you need it most, being able to have a laugh with one another and get to know one another outside of work, knowing you can always ask questions when you aren’t sure. Being able to learn from my team, and everyone being able to share their knowledge and experiences with one another is absolutely invaluable.”
“I always want to be the best version of myself and produce the best work I can, learning from any mistakes I’ve made and not wanting to make them again. And throughout my studies it’s not always been plain sailing, but I know where I want to get to in my career and I think AAB’s disruptive and feisty reputation has helped push me to make sure that the only person who will stop me getting where I want to be is me. I have quite a “if you get knocked down, get straight back up” mentality when it has come to my exams and work.”
“Working in audit means that a hands-on approach was always the way. The pandemic allowed us to show to ourselves that we could do audits remotely but now being out of the pandemic it has made us realise how much more efficient it is being out at client’s premises to get the work done; and also from a teaching perspective how much more beneficial it is for our team to get out to the client and work together. The virtual approach does still work for some clients and can be more efficient, but I think the general consensus is that virtual will not be our new normal across the board. When we do take a hybrid approach it is always because it’s what is best for the client.”
“Charities can vary in size and how they operate so, like companies, no charity is the same and no charity audit is the same. So, within this specialist area you can still get quite a broad range of audits and differences in how we make sure legislation is being met. We normally respond by finding more out about the charity and the work they do rather than just focusing on the numbers, and also ask other members of our charity team if they have worked with something similar. We are constantly working together to make sure we meet the client needs!
“What excites me most about the future for me at AAB is definitely the range of opportunities that are now being created and taking inspiration from the individual successes of members in our management and leadership team. The growth of the Group and our reputation expanding further and further outside of the Aberdeen area is exciting to see and be a part of.”
“Organisation is one of my greatest strengths as a person so fits in very well with my job role at AAB. I am an approachable person and always willing to help others so for the firm being a teaching firm I think it is a very good strength to have when there are new students joining or new members from other firms who are new to our software’s and processes. I also like to listen to others’ opinions and approaches too so always willing to learn from them.
“I’ve had great feedback from managers and partners on how happy clients have been with how the audit went and working with me. I often take client’s taking an interest in me as a person as a compliment too because then I know that they are not just seeing me as the auditor, but as someone they can trust and turn to if they have any questions about anything on the job. It’s a huge compliment that I can be the first person they come to.”
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