The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 11: Spring 2019 | Page 16

FINANCE Digital disruption being a force for good by Ian Lloyd, General Practice Manager at Milsted Langdon Of late we’ve seen many stories about industry disruption due to advances in technology and the challenges companies face to innovate. But innovation doesn’t always have to be a radical change - I’ve seen a number of clients and contacts recently that are making great progress in the modernisation of their systems and processes, which is having a real impact on their bottom line. There are many reasons why owner- managers or directors may choose to make changes – be that for compliance purposes, to get ahead of their competitors, or to provide a better service to their customers and staff. I often advise directors and boards to look at innovation and continuous improvement as a strategic priority, otherwise they won’t be investing the time or resource to improve those processes. A major digital change coming into force in very soon is the introduction of Making Tax Digital (MTD), which is the biggest change to the UK tax system in decades and will have a significant impact for many businesses. Initially, MTD will require businesses with a turnover above the VAT threshold (currently £85,000) to keep digital records for VAT purposes and provide this information to HMRC using compatible software. This will mean that a company can no longer keep manual records and must instead maintain the information it holds digitally, which many companies do already, using a cloud-based accounting package for example, but there are some shocking stats which reveal many companies are not ready for MTD – or even worse they are unaware of what is happening and what they need to do. With our excellent tech capabilities led by our Business Intelligence team, we’ve been busy implementing systems for our clients that provide monthly management information, which will satisfy the MTD requirements, as well as offering other key benefits such as providing performance indicators for business owners to assist their ongoing strategies. This will be particularly important as we see how Brexit will unfold. Talking of Brexit, for many businesses it is important to obtain an EORI (Economic Operator Registration and Identification) number if that business imports or exports Where every event is a landmark occasion 01225 477786 bathvenues.co.uk 16 THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2019 with EU countries. With many uncertainties surrounding Brexit, it is essential to be prepared and register for an EORI number so that you are able to continue trading with the EU after 29 March 2019, whatever the outcome may be. This can be done relatively easily online. Digital innovation was a common theme at one of our recent events in Bath – the inaugural South West Charity Conference. We partnered with some if the region’s largest and most impactful firms to deliver a great event for charities and Not for Profit organisations from across the region. Our guest speakers from local cancer charity Penny Brohn discussed the need to embrace digital technologies, for example how they’ve used chatbots to deliver brand messages, as well as the challenges of income generation and innovation within the charity sector. The event received excellent feedback and we’re already planning the next one. With the rapid pace that digital technology is evolving, I’m sure there’ll be plenty to talk about! Our experienced team offers a full range of accountancy and financial services to help our clients realise their business and personal goals. To find out more please get in touch. [email protected] 01225 904940 For more info: www.milsted-langdon.co.uk