Accountancy and umbrella company provider Brookson, has appointed new IS Manager Robin Candy, Support Manager Gerrard Singleton and Project Manager Craig Russell.

These appointments are central to the implementation of a number of new initiatives currently being undertaken by Brookson, including the recent introduction of Microsoft Dynamics CRM system, which allows the virtualisation of 24 servers down to 6 and upgrading software business wide. The changes are all intended to improve the current service offering to their 9000 customers working through their own limited company, as a sole trader or as an employee of Brookson’s umbrella company.

Robin Candy recently joined Brookson from Morgan Stanley’s UK residential mortgage business wehere he held the position of IT director and was responsible for support, development and testing. Robin was also part of an award winning team who developed an online mortgage approval and underwriting solution that processed over £3 Billion of mortgages in the first 12 months. Robin said: “Moving to Brookson was an easy choice, due their focus on technology and aspirations to constantly improve their services.”

Gerrard Singleton has arrived after previously working for Cegedim Rx in Leyland and brings with him of 15 years experience in IT Support. “Working for a progressive company who continue to use cutting edge technology is always attractive to anyone working in IT,” said Gerrard. “I’m looking forward to developing not only Brookson’s service offering but also the skills and capabilities of the team in general.”

Craig Russell has been working in Programme Management for over a decade and has worked for a number of large projects including implementing SAP in 38 entities across 7 European Countries. Craig sees his role at Brookson as being ‘to provide the necessary controls and infrastructure that are vital for projects to succeed.’

Brookson’s service is ideally suited for individuals looking to set up in business, either as a sole trader or through a limited company. Small business owners often require more support from their accountant than just the completion of year-end accounts and tax returns. Brookson provide a variety of online tools, such as financial statements, that keeps the business owner in financial control of their business and working compliantly.

Brookson recognise technology has an essential role to play in delivering next generation accountancy services to the self-employed. They believe that the skills required by a modern accountancy business go well beyond accountancy skills alone; the modern accountancy business requires the expertise of individuals that are able to build and support an IT infrstature for both operational service delivery as well as online customer facing service delivery. These latest appointments significantly strengthen Brookson’s Information Systems skill base.

Via EPR Network
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Brookson, a specialist accountancy and support services provider has chosen Liveperson as a strategic partner to provide live web chat capabilities for Brookson’s website.

The software allows Brookson’s new business consultants to interact with prospective customers as they browse Brookson’s website. Prospective customers invariably have questions on a wide variety of issues that need to be answered before making a decision about whether self employed working is for them. Self employed working may not be the best option; working through Brookson’s umbrella company is a popular option. Liveperson allows consultants to expand on the guidance provided online so visitors can make an informed choice about the way of working that suits their individual needs.

With Liveperson Brookson’s consultants are able to engage with prospective customers as they read the website page by page. Brookson want to make life simpler and easier for Limited Company and sole trader professionals therefore they are looking to engage in a way that best suits the individual. Some individuals prefer to chat online because it may be impractical to have a conversation at that time or it may be that online chat is their preferred method of contact.

Head of New Business, Andrew Sloan commented: “In today’s climate, self employedprofessionals browse the internet to find accountancy services. By utilising this contact method, discussing the content as they read through the website, we are able to provide prospective customers with a clear understanding of why Brookson is so different to the services offered by a traditional high street accountant.”

This latest service improvement is another in a long line of technological enhancements to the Brookson service in recent months. Brookson’s stated strategy is to “revolutionise the small business accountancy market” and the web plays a significant part in this strategy both in terms of winning new customers and servicing the needs of existing customers.

Brookson’s service is ideally suited for individuals looking to set up in business, either as a sole trader or through a limited company. Business owners often require more support from their accountant than just the completion of year-end accounts and tax returns. Brookson provide a variety of online tools, such as financial statements, that keep the business owner in financial control of their business and working compliantly. Online chat complements a service that relies on clever use of the web.

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Brookson has installed a new Opal Telecom telephone system, including Mitel hardware and software, across its whole business.

Brookson, a leading accountancy and umbrella company services provider, has introduced this new system to improve their customer services offering.

The new Mitel 5000 CP system allows Brookson to route calls more efficiently to the relevant experts and ensure callers receive a hassle free experience when contacting different areas within the business. The software also provides more reporting capabilities including monitoring calls and call volumes.

The move will also ensure self employed specialist accountants Brookson maximise their call efficiencies as the new software will allow simultaneous running of both PCs and the telephone system on one network.

Head of Customer Services, Peter Metcalf commented: “The introduction of this new technology is a massive step forward in terms of our service offering, allowing the business to manage increased call volumes more efficiently, ultimately leading to an even more professional service.”

Brookson’s service is ideally suited for individuals looking to set up in business, either as a sole trader or limited company, who often require more support from their accountant than just the completion of year-end accounts and tax returns. Brookson’s revolutionary approach to accountancy reduces the administrative burden of day to day bookkeeping and the time consuming administration for our customers. Brookson do the accounting so their customers do not have to. Key to its successful ‘day to day’ service is a dedicated Customer Service Team that speak to customers on a regular basis providing specialist accountancy advice. As a result, Brookson has considerable call volumes to manage on a daily basis.

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Brookson, a leading accountancy, tax and support services provider to the self employed, has selected Experian as the ideal partner for its Identification Software. Experian’s Authenticate Pro and Validator Plus products will be used to verify the new customers and will dramatically reduce the time it takes Brookson to complete their customer take on process.

Brookson’s umbrella company customers work with a wide range of recruitment businesses. The Experian partnership enables Brookson to continue to be a compliant service provider while meeting the speed of set up required by both its contractor customers and the recruitment businesses. If contractors are delayed in taking up opportunities it costs the contractor and the agency money.

Authenticate Pro accurately verifies the identity of new customers by referencing applicant details against Experian’s data sources to obtain a ‘pass’, ‘fail’ or ‘refer’ with regards to their identity. Where a ‘fail’ or ‘refer’ is signalled, a supporting tool called Validate Plus performs a remote check on information contained in official documents, such as a passport number, without the customer having to part with these.

Andrew Sloan, Head of New Business at Brookson, explained: “Introducing new and innovative solutions is something Brookson continue to demonstrate across both its limited company and umbrella company service lines. This latest addition will further streamline our joining process, in many cases allowing customers to join on the same day, provided relevant checks are passed.”

Stuart Johnston, Managing Director at Experian QAS added: “The authentication process plays a crucial part in improving business efficiencies in the financial services market: it affects the customer experience, the staff workload and the compliance levels of the company. It’s great that Brookson is integrating our product range so effectively, combining Validate Plus and Authenticate Pro to offer efficient and rapid validation of customer details and make the customer acquisition process less of a headache.”

With more initiatives in the wings, Brookson is looking to significantly increase its customer base across all services lines and continue to improve the quality of service it provides to limited company, sole trader and umbrella company customers. The new Experian software will make the joining process more efficient while delivering a better joining experience for the customer.

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