Q&A with Alan Woods

Next up in our series of speaker Q&As we speak to Alan Woods, founder of Woods Squared. He’ll be speaking in a panel session at the show along with Amanda C. Watts, founder of TwentyTwo Agency, about how to use the power of connections and partnerships across business for growth and success.

Accountex Summit North is for me the must attend event in the industry, it’s a great chance to meet up with current suppliers, peers in the industry, influencers in the industry and learn best practice, along with more than a few shortcuts to success…”

Tell us a bit about your background and how you came to found Woods Squared.

I began my accountancy career in 1995 and after qualifying in 2002 and becoming a partner in a local firm in 2004 my wife (also an accountant) and I decided to take the plunge in 2007 and started Woods Squared.
We started Woods Squared with the aim of disrupting the accounting industry by closing the gap between accountants and business coaches, we did this by focusing on the future and helping businesses to use their accounting information to make better informed business decisions.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of your job?

Helping people, it’s that simple. We want our business clients to end up in a better position after working with us than they were in at the beginning. Better might mean more cash, more profits or more time off – it’s what’s important to the business owner that we identify and help them to achieve.

And the most challenging?

Apart from filling in Q&As about myself………

For me I think this can be switching off, I love what I do and I love helping others and sometimes it can be challenging to let go of that… the responsibility of being part of a client’s team is huge and very rewarding but can also be challenging to keep the balance here.

What one tip would you give to accountants to help them succeed?

Be clear on the service that you want to offer and therefore the businesses that you want to work with, don’t be swayed by what others tell you this should be… be true to yourself and your clients.

What do you want visitors to take away from your session at Accountex Summit North 2019?

For them to see the value in working with others and using the power of connection to build a stronger business and to help their clients get even better results

How important is Accountex Summit North to the industry?

Accountex Summit North is for me the must attend event in the industry, it’s a great chance to meet up with current suppliers, peers in the industry, influencers in the industry and learn best practice, along with more than a few shortcuts to success

What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given?

Not necessarily advice I’ve been given but it would be the quote from Zig Ziglar that goes ‘You don’t have to be great at something to start, but you have to start to be great at something.’

This was particularly true for accountants (myself included) as we sometimes wait for everything to be perfect before we start… it’s ok to just give some things a go and then refine the process etc along the way.

Tell us a fun fact about yourself that most people don’t know.

I was thrown off a donkey in Tenerife when I was little and nearly fell over the side of the mountain… not sure where the fun part in that is but it’s definitely something most people don’t know!