A recently completed case study on our client Shadowfax Technology Limited.
Introduction
His passion for delivering quality IT support to clients drove Adam Pedder, together with a business partner, to set up his own business in 1990. Shadowfax provides IT support services for small and medium sized businesses. Adam is a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer and the company has achieved MS Gold Certified Partner status; recognition of its expertise in providing successful IT solutions to small businesses. The pair was joined by Vanessa Pedder, now a director, in 2006.
Accounting Difficulties
After several years of successful trading, Adam’s business partner, who had previously undertaken most of the accounting and financial management duties, left the company, and this created a problem. From only being involved part-time in processing invoices, Vanessa was now faced with having to do all the accounting, cash management, payroll, tax, and the like, tasks that – by her own admission – she found daunting. Furthermore, it was clear that Shadowfax needed guidance on their general financial management and accounting due to their growth, as well as longer term strategic direction. As Adam and Vanessa were already acquainted with and impressed by Insight Associates, it seemed an obvious choice to turn to them for help
The Outsourced Solution
Insight’s considerable experience in helping businesses through its own turnkey outsourcing division, The Outsourced Finance Department, meant that it was able to grasp the issues and problems facing Shadowfax immediately. As well as taking care of all the day-to-day accounting, The Outsourced Finance Department can help with strategic input by acting in a virtual Finance Director capacity. The Outsourced Finance Department set to work on taking over the finance function and getting to grips with the bigger picture, as Vanessa explains:
“Insight were fantastic and helped us immensely in the transitional period from doing all the accounting ourselves, to them taking over. In addition to looking after all the routine accounting, they have held our hand all the way through the process of moving across to their platform and even helped to improve the way we do several things.”
The improvements were felt at Shadowfax within a couple of weeks and with a regular contact at the end of the phone to provide help and support, Vanessa was delighted with the progress.
“We are now much better at managing our cashflow, sending out invoices promptly and organising our accounts. Payroll is now managed much better, with holidays recorded and overtime paid correctly. We now feel more confident and able to work towards growing the business for the future. As an additional bonus, Insight Director Garry Mumford introduced a new bank manager who has improved our banking facilities and again made us much more stable as a business.”
As Shadowfax familiarised itself with the new ways of working, the relationship quickly settled down, and Adam and Vanessa can now concentrate on the future of the business. The ongoing relationship remains strong and Vanessa has a Finance Manager at Insight who understands their business and is always available to respond to queries promptly.
“We have monthly meetings with Insight Associates which are never rushed and allow us to clear up queries and mistakes before they hang around too long. In addition they highlight areas where we need to focus and add great value to the business. All in all we consider Insight to be an essential part of our team.”
