Michael Fitzpatrick is a Chartered Accountant and member of ACCA. Michael trained in a small firm initially, then worked with Craig Gardner/Price Waterhouse, followed by a number of years in industry. He established Fitzpatrick + Associates Chartered Accountants back in 1995. Over the past 26 years the firm has grown organically. There are many clients from the early days who have grown significantly over this time and the next generation are still clients of the firm today. The firm provides accounting, tax, audit and business advice to the construction, professional, pharmacy, pharma, hospitality and leisure sectors. In addition to the day-to-day compliance work the firm also specialises in providing insolvency services and advice.
How has your work and home life changed since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic?
My work / home life balance did not change much at all. The only difference was that I spent most of last Summer alone in the office every day. We had never worked remotely prior to COVID-19, so yes, while not unexpected, when the lockdown happened in March 2020, it was a shock. We had to quickly adapt to remote working, Teams, Zoom, etc., etc. My comfort zone was having daily interaction with staff in the office. I had to adapt to whatsapp groups, teams meetings, phone calls. While technology is a blessing in so far as we could work and communicate remotely, in my opinion it is no substitute for the physical presence and the convenience of day long interaction that occurs so easily in a small firm like mine. This interaction is essential for the mentoring and training of more junior staff. The main positive was the acceleration of going paperless. Another positive development particularly for clients was the realisation that many meetings can be conducted perfectly well via ZOOM. The days of travelling to clients or clients travelling to our office for routine meetings are over.
What pandemic-related challenges are your clients facing?
Covid-19 has had less impact on some of the sectors (pharma, technology) while sectors like hospitality have been decimated. We have clients in the pub and entertainment industry who have been closed since March 2020. The future is very uncertain for these businesses. It is incredibly difficult to make any sort of projection or forecast of what their businesses will look like over the next 24 months to 5 years. Consumer behaviour may have changed and there is also the concern that employees will have moved away from the sector on account of job uncertainty. I am afraid that the picture will remain blurred until society re-opens and government supports are withdrawn. I think it is inevitable that there will be casualties and business failure. I also realise that many business owners in the worst affected sectors are suffering from severe stress, not just financial stress, but mental health. Lockdowns (while necessary according to health experts) have a severe impact on human health and mental well-being. Like everyone else in the world I am hopeful to see an end to this pandemic.
What has changed for the better in the profession since you started working as a professional?
It is a different world. When I commenced my studies in 1984, The Institute was a small office on Fitzwilliam Square. I did not really know what a Chartered Accountant did before I started my training with McQuillan Kelly on Adelaide Road. The preparation of accounts was a laborious and tedious affair all done manually with extended trial balances, the financial accounts were all typed. When utterly bored we used to have a competition in totting the telephone directory to see who was fastest with a calculator. I remember one guy totted without ever looking at his calculator. The accountant today is tech savvy, he or she can develop skills far more quickly and of course there is a far greater potential to specialise in certain areas. I would conclude by saying that there is far greater mobility and opportunity for today’s professionals.
What is the most rewarding aspect of your role?
I get immense satisfaction from helping my clients with their many challenges of running a business in a complex, risky and fast-moving business environment. The banking and property crash took a heavy toll on a lot of hard-working honest people in this country. It was very rewarding to have the skills and experience to make a real difference for many of them and ensure that they achieved the very best outcome even in fraught circumstances. The most rewarding aspect of all is mentoring staff along their journey to qualification and beyond. The accountancy profession is a people business based on mutual trust and respect. I have been very lucky to develop long lasting and mutually beneficial relationships with many of my peers over the years. There is a camaraderie in our profession which I think in unique.
What tax policy issue would you most wish the Government to tackle in 2021?
There are two policy matters that warrant attention in my opinion. The first is a transition to a fairer and more equitable tax system, which would likely require reform of the current code, and broadening of the tax base generally. Tax contribution must be grounded on the principle of fairness and responsibility to society rather than a concerted effort to find schemes and means of avoiding such a contribution to society. The other matter concerns implementation of policies that ensure that the pursuit of the Green Economy is not disproportionately unfair to the least well off in society.
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