One year on in her role as Franchise Development Manager for TaxAssist Accountants, Sam Skyring discusses how her experience in practice, and her knowledge of the network has helped franchisees in the day to day running of their practices.
Before taking on this role, Sam spent three years at TaxAssist gaining an in-depth knowledge of the network, delivering training, technical assistance and undertaking due diligence visits alongside her colleagues at the TaxAssist Support Centre in Norwich.
“This allowed me to build up a real understanding of areas that franchisees need to focus on to enable them to grow and develop their businesses effectively,” adds Sam, who is ACCA qualified and for whom leaving the comfort of her 9-5 desk job has been an enriching experience. “I love the challenge of going to work in a different office every day, whether it is Cardiff or Cambridge, Belfast or Edinburgh. Each franchisee is unique, each has strengths and weaknesses and it’s a great feeling when you can see you’ve made a real difference to someone and their business. “I focus on looking at the big picture for the franchisee. How are they and their staff spending their time? What systems are in place? What is the franchisee charging? When running a business, the focus must be on maximising efficiency and profitability. “I know that the biggest area for franchisees to work on is the actual operating of the franchise. There is a real tendency for franchisees to work in the business rather than on the business.
“At the end of my visit I would hope that my approach enables franchisees to take more of a bird’s eye view of their practice. At TaxAssist, we provide excellent training for our network, but it’s only when a franchisee is up and running, that they get to experience practical issues with staffing and technology – which is where I can help.” This is reflected in the praise from franchisees, with David Nayar, who operates from Bolton and Preston, saying: “Sam provides fantastic support for our franchise and her expertise has been invaluable in getting our office working efficiently and effectively. I cannot thank her enough for the help and support she provides.” Over in the east, fellow franchisee Simon Hunt, who operates from King’s Lynn, concurs: “Sam has been incredibly supportive and helpful to me and my business. She has supported to me throughout my journey with TaxAssist and I know that if I encounter any challenges, I have someone who I can speak to.”
If you are interested in finding out more about joining TaxAssist, please contact Nikki Haythorne by e-mailing [email protected] or by phoning 0800 0188297.