Simon Brown

Principal - Margaret River & Busselton

Simon Brown is a Principal of the Business Advisory division in Margaret River and Busselton, and is one of RSM's leading WA tourism and hospitality specialists.

An experienced chartered accountant, backed with a wealth of industry expertise, Simon not only specialises in the tourism and hospitality space but brings experience across the agribusiness, and property and construction sectors throughout regional Western Australia.

Providing leading strategic advisory on taxation, cloud accounting and business matters, Simon manages a diverse range of business assignments and is responsible for providing clients with high level strategic and business advice. He works closely with his clients to deliver results and outcomes that make a real difference to their business and personal goals, from assisting with compliance to analysing financial performances.

"What drives me is the motivation to simply provide great solutions for my clients. Assisting someone else to achieve their goals, whatever they may be, gives me the greatest satisfaction."

Simon often finds that small to medium enterprise (SME) operators regularly lack the time and knowledge to plan for their business properly, and therefore provides the strategic advice necessary to improve a business operator’s structure and overall performance.

As an acknowledged early adopter of cloud-based accounting such as Xero, Simon is always looking for ways that technology can be used to better provide more cost effective business solutions. He is also a regular presenter of Make Xero Count workshops throughout the South West, RSM's leading free and interactive Xero workshop program designed for new and potential Xero users.

Prior to joining RSM, Simon's background was in farming as a mechanic, truck driver and agricultural contractor, before deciding to study business at university. Growing up on the family farm has equipped Simon with first-hand knowledge of how a family succession plan should not be managed.

Perhaps Simon's farming background is the reason he is an early riser and can often be found out on the road driving to clients before 6am.

In his spare time, Simon is busy looking after his livestock, spending time with family and friends and going four wheel driving across the South West. Motorcycle riding is his sport, and although he no longer hits the track at Barbagallo or Phillip Island for road racing, he now instead rides on the dirt with his young daughters.

SOLUTIONS SIMON BROWN PROVIDES

•    Business planning and enterprise resource planning
•    Business strategy and development
•    Cloud accounting
•    Industry-specific cloud accounting add-ons
•    Employment taxes
•    Financial management
•    Financial reporting and advice
•    GST consulting and compliance
•    Income tax consulting
•    International tax
•    Profit and growth improvement
•    R&D tax
•    Self-managed superannuation funds
•    Structuring advice
•    Succession and estate planning
•    Tax compliance

SIGNIFICANT PROJECTS

•    Simon typically works with SME family business groups to assist with the operation and management of their business.
•    Identifying technological solutions through cloud accounting, managing profitability, cashflow, taxation and succession planning.
•    Simon is a regular contributor for the Tourism Council WA and Margaret River Busselton Tourism Association, writing on trending industry article topics and hosting seminars and workshops.

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

•    Member, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand

COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONS

•    (2013 - 2018) Finance director, Busselton Chamber of Commerce Inc.
•    (2013 - 2018) Vasse Zone President, WA Farmers
•    (2012 - Present) Volunteer Firefighter, Acton Park Fire Brigade

QUALIFICATIONS

•    GradDipCA (Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand)
•    Bachelor of Business (Edith Cowan University)
•    Xero certified advisor and payroll specialist
•    Figured certified advisor
•    Intuit Quickbooks Certified ProAdvisor