I want our clients to know where they’re at and know where they’re going. We want them to be fully aware of their position before they make decisions instead of finding out later that "oops we could have planned that better". We want to prepare and communicate Crystal Clear Accounts.
The idea of Crystal Clear Accounting Ltd was born when I was employed as an accountant and began observing clients reactions when discussing their financial results for the year. It wasn’t long before we noticed a glaze come over our clients eyes. It is too easy to forget that the client doesn’t read and analyse financial accounts everyday like we do. They don’t necessarily know the accounting jargon we’d use. There had to be a better way to communicate… and not just the tax position but to communicate what each page of the accounts actually means, how healthy is the business, how are the efficiencies tracking, what risks are there to the owners if the business runs into financial difficulty or the tax implications following a change in shareholding.
One of the most common complaints from clients on-boarding from other accountants was that they didn’t get the attention they expected from their accountant. So, when Crystal Clear Accounting Ltd was born, I made our response time to client correspondence one of our key performance indicators. We want to be there for our clients when they need us and are proud to feel like a part of their team.
Where it all began
The 1990's
At the age of 22 I was a young mother of three children. I realised that these guys weren’t only going to need the love of good parents but financial security so I began a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Canterbury while working part-time in office management roles in the building and manufacturing industries. My circumstances led me to become the queen of budgeting and I made sure that our happiness was not dependent on how much disposable cash we had. Times were tough but I had a plan, I stuck to it and I surprised myself with just how much was possible when I remained positive and focused on the future.
The 2000's
I gained experience employed on the other side of the books as an accountant in Chartered Accountancy Practice. I loved learning more and more about business and accounting and I especially enjoyed management reporting and learning new accounting software applications. I loved helping people and this led me to become very empathetic towards my clients, imagining myself in their shoes and identifying what changes I could make to improve the accountant-client relationship.
The 2010's
I gained my Public Practice Certificate and Crystal Clear Accounting was born. I became a huge fan of xero and its single ledger concept. Crystal Clear Accounting is focused on finding solutions for clients and has partnered with Xero, Spotlight Reporting, Tax Management NZ and Audit Shield to ensure clients are in good hands.
Claire Barber
Director | B.Com, CA, CPP
Claire incorporated Crystal Clear Accounting Limited in 2011 after spending many years working in a local CA firm and in the building and manufacturing industries prior.
Simar Kaur
Accountant | M.Com (GNDU, India), CA Intermediate (India), Dip Acc (Ara, NZ)
Simar arrived in NZ in October 2019 after completing her Masters in Commerce (Finance and Accounting) at the Guru Nanak Dev University in India and completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Management and Accounting at Ara Institute of Canterbury. Simar has gained over 10 years of valuable experience in various accounting roles, including 5 years working in a CA firm in India, prior to joining Crystal Clear Accounting in November 2023.
Penny Krebs
Administrator | B.A (Sociology and Anthropology), National Certificate (Travel & Tourism)
Penny joined Crystal Clear Accounting Ltd in 2019 . Her previous work experience has been in customer service and office management. Penny is a great addition to our team. She is currently working as administrative support and training in the technical side of accountancy services.