TaxCalc Blog

Andy, can you tell customers a bit more about how your relationship with TaxCalc developed and how the partnership came about?

Andy: I’ve run my own accounting firm for almost 20 years. We didn’t have any accounts production software in place when we first started but soon realised the error of our ways. We adopted TaxCalc and found it very user-friendly – the interface was so clear – and we’ve been big fans ever since. That was actually a key reason behind the acquisition as I was already such an advocate for the product.

How did you feel about the chance to work with TaxCalc?

Andy: It’s always been an ambition of mine to work with TaxCalc. We’d approached them before to see if they’d partner with Engager, but at the time we were at a very early stage of our journey and probably not proven in the market. Fast forward to today, we’ve got over 1,600 firms using Engager and we’re accelerating growth at every opportunity.

I also feel there’s a natural affinity with existing TaxCalc firms who hopefully share my view. As accountants, we’re always looking for greater efficiencies. And from a business owner’s perspective, you want oversight, transparency, and confidence that the quality you’re delivering to clients is the very best. TaxCalc has always helped with that.

How’s the new partnership been going?

Andy: It was about three months ago at Accountex in London that we officially announced the partnership. The response has been fantastic. Many firms were already using both platforms, so they were delighted to see us coming together.

Since then, combining the teams has been really rewarding. We’ve seen a big acceleration since Paul Evans joined as the new TaxCalc CEO – he’s brought real energy and helped to bond the teams together.

What can you tell us about the project to integrate the two platforms?

We’re working tirelessly on integration and, if all goes to plan, a two-way integration will be in place later this year.

At the moment, if client details change – for example, a registered office update from Companies House – the information is pulled into Engager but has to be manually updated in TaxCalc. That creates duplicate work and wasted admin time.

With the new integration:

•    Client data will flow both ways between the two systems
•    Updates in one platform will be reflected in the other

This means admin will become simpler, quicker, and far more efficient – saving firms valuable time and reducing the risk of errors. 

What can customers look forward to when the integration is complete?

Andy: The most exciting part is bringing the best of both products together. Customers will soon see real, tangible benefits – and that’s what we’re most excited about. With the integration, customers will be able to:

•    Seamlessly connect workflows – save accounts and tax returns in TaxCalc and instantly pull them into Engager emails, complete with placeholders, ready to send to clients.
•    Deliver professional, consistent, and timely communications without the extra effort.
•    Scale with quality – enabling firms to grow without compromising client experience.
•    Choose the best of both worlds – firms can decide which tools suit them best.
•    Simplify their app stack – bringing multiple processes into one place.

Ultimately, it’s about making life easier for firms while improving the service they can deliver to their clients.

What about the future roadmap?
Andy: Looking to the future, we want to make workflows even smoother. The roadmap will include the ability to save files directly into portals when you create accounts and tax returns in TaxCalc.

Currently, you’d need to download a PDF, upload it, and make sure file names are consistent. In the future, we’ll remove that friction. Emails with templates, including tax liabilities and placeholders from TaxCalc, will add even more value to both products.

We already have two-way integrations with bookkeeping software’s, Xero, QuickBooks and FreeAgent that can spot errors in data alignment and let you choose the source of truth with a single click. That’s exactly the kind of functionality we’re bringing into this integration too.

What is also exciting is that both TaxCalc and Engager both have new releases independent of each other, such as Charity Accounts production by TaxCalc - which is now live. Engager will imminently release the Xenon integration and the long-awaited proposals, complemented by the recent integration with payment solution Adfin.

In summary, we fully expect the two platforms will continue to enhance each other, which is exciting to see.

Want to hear more about it?

We’ll be sharing more about Engager’s roadmap and the TaxCalc integration in our upcoming webinar with 20:20 in September.