Through long experience of preparing and delivering seminars for the following organisations: 2020 Group, Mercia, Sterling Group, ABG, ACCA and ICAEW Town Groups and District Societies, we have devised three different types of seminar.

a. The 90 Minute Standard Lecture. The short after work general overview seminar, typical starting at 6pm and finishing at 7.30pm. This will cover the basic rudiments of valuations of practices and key points in buying and selling, as well as passing comment on other current events, such as acquisitions by Consolidators. This is in a format of a stand up lecture, working to acetates on an overhead projector. There is some audience participation but it is generally a delivered prepared lecture with notes handed out of the key elements. This has proved popular with small ICAEW Town Groups and ACCA Regional Groups.

• ICAEW Town Groups : Manchester, Bolton, Bury, Altrincham, Hereford, Liverpool , Reading, Southend, Leicester, Harpenden and Brighton.
• ACCA Regional Groups : Leeds and Hull

b. The 90 Minute Lecture on Specific Topics. These are lectures of a similar 90 minutes but devoted to a different aspect of accountancy practice M&A work, such as Consolidators, the Structure of Accountancy Practices and Larger Practice M&A, or the Work of a Broker, such as given to ABG, Sterling Group, the Mercia Group and 200 Group Large Firms and 2020 Group.

These seminars tend to be specially prepared to fit in with other participants covering of a wider range of topics, so that a specific aspect of M&A work is emphasised or to act as counter point to other items in full seminar. Jobtel’s part may be 45 or 90 minutes in a half, or full, days seminar. The topics that Jobtel covers can be varied to accommodate the organiser’s requirements but generally speaking there is the same basic core of buying, selling, valuing and negotiating. So if the organisation has a particular requirement, we can gear our response to that need. A list of the topics that we cover is shown on the next page.

c. The 2-3 Hour Interactive Seminar. The topic of M&A of accountancy practices is indeed eminently suitable to encompass in a role playing format and although Jobtel have used bits of a case study at some presentations, particularly to the ACCA Regional Groups, this has not yet been developed to its fullest potential. The case study can consist of a multiple number of buyers and sellers formed by two or three members of the audience who are given a specific one page brief of their own position and some information about the other party being the buyer or seller. The seminar then takes the format of obtaining bids and evaluating these and then discussing how the negotiations might proceed and the type of essential features that would have to be included in any legal agreement. This is not suitable for an evening seminar, as it might take 20 minutes into the information and this would not leave enough time for later discussions.

The whole format has not thus so far been attempted and would require an audience of a minimum of around 20. This format would be ideal for a Regional Group Annual Conference which had two or three separate streams of topics in parallel. At one such seminar for the Thames Valley Group (although for a shorter period than 2 hours) Jobtel were confirmed as the best lecturer of the day. We can provide seminars for individual large practices, perhaps relating to Consolidators.

JOBTEL CAN PROVIDE FLEXIBLE FORMATS TO MEET THE MARKET NEEDS

As part of the missionary work that Jobtel undertake, Jobtel is willing to visit any part of the UK at the request of the Regional or District groups of the Accountancy Institutes or other Training bodies and deliver seminars FREE OF LECTURE CHARGES but at the cost of reimbursing motor expenses and any overnight accommodation that may be required.

So, if YOU are a practitioner and are keen to hear what Jobtel has to say on the M&A of accountancy practices and to gain first hand knowledge of deals, hear about tips on a successful sale and acquisition, then simply call your local Institute and suggest that Jobtel be invited to the next round of seminars.

Jobtel have a unique experience, since we not only carry out a large number of deals every year but also were involved in the start up of one of the Consolidators and have developed our knowledge of the market because of that contact.

The sort of interesting topics which could be covered in Seminars are as follows :

• Presenting your practice for sale
• Working out your buying tactic
• Valuing the practice from a buyer’s and seller’s prospective
• Negotiating a deal
• The ins and outs of a legal contract
• Merging or selling?
• Is the Consolidator format workable into the future?
• Local Group Consolidation for smaller practices – will it ever work?

We hope to make the lectures or seminars of interest – laced as they are with remarkable cases actually seen by the presenter. As buyer or seller you can thus acquire years of experience which might help you save/make a small fortune.

Alternatively if, like most accountants you are better at reading rather than listening, why not buy the Books instead?