by on August 5, 2024 with No Comments

What role does the tax team really play within the company?

To assess the real place of your tax team within the company, consider at what point in the development of a new project it is consulted for its expertise.

There are three possible scenarios:

  • Your team is involved from the inception of the project: it is called upon by the project manager to determine VAT requirements and work effectively with the sales and legal departments to fine-tune the terms of the contract if necessary. The early involvement of your team in the project demonstrates its fundamental importance to the business.
  • Your team is consulted at the last minute or during the course of the project : this situation is not optimal because it forces the team to react quickly and make hasty decisions, which is not advisable. This sometimes happens when the project manager suddenly realizes that a tax issue could compromise the deal. This attitude shows how little consideration your team has within the company.
  • The team has not been involved at all: They only discover the new task when they receive the first invoices and then have to use their creativity to mitigate the possible impact of an erroneous assessment of VAT in the contract. This attitude shows a total lack of consideration for your team within the company.

Judging the importance of a tax team in a company can be complex, but the fact that it is regularly consulted in emergency situations or ignored when major decisions are being made can reveal its undervaluation.

Let's take an example

Let's take the example of a company undertaking the transition to a new ERP system, involving various teams such as IT, logistics and external consultants. If the tax team is neglected and only called in at the end of the process to approve the accounting and tax aspects, this indicates a lack of recognition of its added value.

Similarly, if a company concludes a major contract with a new customer without informing the tax team until the first invoices arrive, this highlights an underestimation of its role.

 

How can you become a strategic player within your company?

It is essential to emphasize the strategic role of your tax department in order to raise its profile within the company.

Drawing on its experience, our firm can help you enhance your team's position by focusing on three main areas:

  • Financial performance: our first task will be to improve your team's overall financial performance by fine-tuning VAT procedures. We will evaluate the recovery of eligible VAT in Europe and optimise the frequency of your refunds, with the aim of increasing the company's cash flow.
  • Compliance with regulatory standards: we will continue to ensure that your team complies rigorously with European VAT legislation, minimising the risk of non-compliance and tax disputes abroad.
  • Strengthening team skills and expertise: we intend to strengthen the skills and expertise of your tax team. This would include a better understanding of tax legislation, greater ability to plan and execute tax strategies, and improved collaboration with other departments within the company.

 

The VAT expert's eye

Let's build your reputation together. Our firm is committed to enhancing the image of your tax team, highlighting its vital importance to the success of your business.

Interested?  We offer a free videoconference to assess your situation and propose a tailor-made solution