EFFICIENT. PROCESS ORIENTED. CREATE ADDED VALUE.

PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS ADVISORY IN BERLIN AND LEIPZIG –
WHERE AUDITING MEETS COMPREHENSIVE BUSINESS ADVISORY

Auditors practice a freelance profession. Only those who are publicly appointed according to § 15 WPO may act as auditors. The prerequisite for the appointment is proof of personal and professional suitability, which is determined in the admissions process and through an examination. Only auditors and audit firms are authorized to carry out statutory audits (conditional task). The skills and knowledge that the auditor has for this reserved task predestine him at the same time to perform numerous other auditing and consulting tasks - and this is where the field of business consulting comes into play. Our experts from addVALUE audit&tax create the connection between auditing services and management and business advisory.

OUR MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS AND EXPERTS

For us as an audit firm, management consulting or business advisory is a core competence. Unlike the usual consulting firms, our management and business consulting includes both the operational and strategic level. Our most important "tool" is our methodological competence and the multidimensional training of our experts in the field of business advisory. This competence is supplemented by experience from auditing activities and many years of industry knowledge.

As a rule, our advisory areas are also important for the auditor. We have insight into different companies, business models and industries. We are familiar with internal control and other systems for risk management and control as well as business processes. We have not inconsiderable knowledge of IT systems and data analysis. The results of our advice are also appreciated by the respective recipient in the light of the special public trust that the final examination is placed in.

DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS?

OUR OFFER - YOUR ADDED VALUE.

THE TENSION BETWEEN AUDITING AND BUSINESS ADVISORY

In many cases, the independence rules for auditors do not allow the parallel provision of auditing and advisory services to a client. Conversely, in many cases companies cannot turn to their auditor when they need advice. In our role as a business adviser, we can fill precisely this gap and, against the background of these restrictions, we are happy to help you to work out your concerns and create a well-founded consulting offer.

OUR FIELDS OF ACTIVITY IN THE FIELD OF BUSINESS ADVISORY

The WP handbook from the Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer e. V. (IDW) names the following as important advisory fields:

IT consulting
transaction advice
company valuation
Restructuring and reorganization advice
Forensic/Fraud investigations
sustainability and climate risks
tax and legal advice

In the following, we would like to explain to you in more detail the areas of advisory which, based on our experience, are likely to be of interest to a large number of companies and which at the same time correspond to our methodological competence.

LEGAL ADVICE AS PART OF BUSINESS ADVICE

Public auditors have only limited authority to provide legal advice. In matters in which we are professionally involved as an economic consultant or consulting company, we may also take on the legal processing, insofar as this is an ancillary service of our professional or field of activity.

OUR MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS WILL HELP YOUR COMPANY IN THE CRISIS

Unrecognized crises can be life-threatening for companies. Transparency is important for management and investors in order to be able to make well-founded risk assessments and make decisions about further measures. Otherwise there is a risk of sensitive liability and criminal law consequences. The establishment of a monitoring system for the early detection of risks is an obligation under Section 91 (2) of the German Stock Corporation Act and results from the requirement for conscientious and orderly management. This topic has gained in importance, especially for companies in the legal form of a GmbH, at the latest since the so-called StaRUG (Corporate Stabilization and Restructuring Act) came into force.

INTEGRATED BUSINESS PLANNING

With the entry into force of the StaRUG on January 1, 2021, all legal entities are addressed according to §1 StaRUG. This expands the group of companies that have to introduce an early warning system for crises and follow the additional regulations under StaRUG, in particular to include limited liability companies (GmbH). Previously, a monitoring system was only required by law for stock corporations in accordance with Section 91 AktG. In particular, the StaRUG obliges the management to initiate suitable countermeasures that ensure the continued existence of the company. In addition, it is important for managing directors that a reporting obligation to the bodies responsible for monitoring the management is prescribed. In our experience, this will in many cases include an obligation to report to the shareholders' meeting. In practice, it could be observed that a large number of companies only plan their earnings on the basis of P&L schemes. In our experience, (too) little importance has been attached to the perspective of liquidity flows. With the StaRUG and the obligation to recognize crises early on, there are good reasons for integrated corporate planning. What is integrated business planning? As a rule, this means the interaction of three individual plans. These are: In our experience, (too) little importance has been attached to the perspective of liquidity flows. With the StaRUG and the obligation to recognize crises early on, there are good reasons for integrated corporate planning. What is integrated business planning? As a rule, this means the interaction of three individual plans. These are: In our experience, (too) little importance has been attached to the perspective of liquidity flows. With the StaRUG and the obligation to recognize crises early on, there are good reasons for integrated corporate planning. What is integrated business planning? As a rule, this means the interaction of three individual plans. These are:

income statement based planning
liquidity planning
wealth planning

Income statement based planning is usually carried out according to the scheme of the profit and loss account. Liquidity planning includes all inflows and outflows of liquidity in the period under review.

Excerpt from StaRUG:

"§ 1 Early crisis detection and crisis management for limited liability companies The members of the executive body of a legal entity (managers) responsible for managing the company continuously monitor developments that could endanger the continued existence of the legal entity. If they recognize such developments, they take suitable countermeasures and report immediately to the organs appointed to monitor the management (monitoring organs). If the measures to be taken affect the responsibilities of other bodies, the managers will immediately work towards their involvement.”

PROACTIVELY THINKING BROADGET.

ADDVALUE AUDIT&TAX - MORE THAN JUST AN ADVISORY FIRM

In practice, wealth planning is often referred to as balance sheet planning. It is important that these three partial plans mesh with one another. Thus, a planned turnover is primarily an income. However, whether the bank balances increase immediately in asset planning or whether the trade receivables increase for a certain period of time naturally depends on the payment term granted. With payment, the turnover is also included in the liquidity planning. Another example: In an integrated plan, payments for investments in property, plant and equipment lead to an increase in the balance sheet values for fixed assets and, as a rule, to an increase in trade payables. A cash outflow is only shown in the liquidity planning at the time of the actual payment for the investment. In contrast, the income planning includes non-cash expenses for depreciation for wear and tear. These small examples already show the complexity and the divergence of business transactions in the sub-plans. How do you set up an integrated plan? Of course, you can use a spreadsheet program to create an integrated plan yourself or have it created. We would be happy to advise you on the advantages and disadvantages of such a solution for your company. In the meantime, there are also a large number of programs on the market that support you here. Do you use an ERP or your own financial accounting software? It is possible that these existing software solutions already offer integrated planning modules or offer expansion options for this. With our experience, we would like to support you with your questions about integrated planning.

BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT ADVISORY IN COMMUNICATION WITH BANKS AND CREDIT INSTITUTIONS

In practice, we often observe misunderstandings and problems in company-bank communication. The reasons can often be found in the different perspectives of the parties. Companies are mostly operationally oriented to the business model and decisions are usually determined by very specific business goals. Banks are very formal in terms of regulation and public oversight. Many misunderstandings can be cleared up quickly and easily. A translation of the "banking language" or an explanation of the perspective of the other side is often sufficient. In other cases, banks need information from business accounting that has been prepared and confirmed by an auditor in order to process the application. addVALUE's auditors and tax advisers have relevant experience from their own work in banks or from auditing banks. We are familiar with the technical terms and business processes of banks and regard this know-how as a core competence and a unique selling point. We look forward to getting in touch with you about this.