It very much depends apon who my client is whether I provide management reports. The vast majority are very small sole traders and limited companies who just want the basic compliance work and for me to save them on their annual tax bill. In these instances, the "CIMA difference" is helping them to really undertstand what their financial statements mean, and that producing annual accounts shouldn't just be a statutory process but the opportunity to reflect on the previous year. In particular ensuring they are able to reconcile their perception of the year with the figures. For example, sales might have been record-breaking, they might be boasting that they've never been busier do they don't understand why there is no cash in the bank. I would then have to point out their new line of products makes very little gross margin or their debtors are unacceptably high. You'd be surprised how many accountants don't even want to meet at year end to review the annual accounts that they have produced for them. In their view, their job is to count the beans and shove some accounts in the post.

I have just taken on a new client, for whom I am acting as an outsourced Financial Controller. He does require the traditional management reports for their investors. This feels more like my natural stomping ground, but this is the only client that I currently have that would, in my opinion benefit from monthly management accounts in the traditional sense.

You do make a very valid point, and I believe my first ever sales campaign was aimed at the larger end of the SME market, selling the benefits of my management accounting support package. The take up was very poor and I suspect that many SME owners don't feel that potential benefits outweigh the potential costs. I would be interested to hear from anyone-else who had managed to target this market successfully.