Hi

For a long time, technical knowledge was the accountant’s moat. You paid for access to what they knew about tax, accounts and regulation.

The internet cracked the first part of that. AI will crack the rest.

We’re moving into a world where:

• The rules are encoded in software
• Best practice is baked into templates and agents
• Playbooks for common scenarios are widely shared

In other words, knowledge is becoming commoditised.

That doesn’t mean expertise disappears. It means:

• A smaller firm can access playbooks developed by bigger firms
• A younger accountant can lean on systems that embed senior judgement
• Clients anywhere can benefit from what has worked elsewhere

For you as a business owner, that’s mostly good news. It means better technical answers, more quickly, less risk that your results depend purely on who you happened to hire, and more consistent quality across the market.

So what still differentiates one adviser from another? Three things.

• How well they understand you. Your goals, risk appetite, constraints, values.
• How well they apply the shared knowledge to your situation. Choosing, adapting and sequencing the right moves.
• How well they communicate. Turning abstract possibilities into a concrete plan you’ll actually follow.

In that world, “we know tax” stops being a selling point. Everyone is expected to know tax. The interesting questions become:

• “Who do you serve?”
• “What outcomes do you specialise in?”
• “Can you show me how you’ve helped businesses like mine?”

You should expect your accountant to have:

• Documented processes
• Standard analysis they run for your type of business
• Clear reasoning for their recommendations

They may also start offering knowledge as products such as playbooks, templates, self-service dashboards and training for your team.

Don’t be put off by that. It’s a sign they are codifying what works. In 2026, facts and rules will be cheap. Implementation and judgement will be priceless.

Choose advisers who understand that difference – and build their whole business around it.

Noel Guilford
 

P.S. If you’d like the benefit of big-firm thinking without big-firm pain, reply to this email and we’ll explore how that could look for your business.