Interview with Franck Parker in le monde
Franck Parker, Managing Director of the Exco accounting and auditing network, agreed to answer Le Monde du Chiffre's questions.
He expresses his views on the Group's strategy and on other issues at the heart of the concerns of accountancy professionals: consulting, digital, the emerging economy...
What, in your opinion, makes the Exco Group unique and distinctive from the competition?
The Exco brand has a long history, going back over 35 years. We are one of the major players on the national accounting and auditing scene.
Exco is a network of firms run by entrepreneurs who own their own structures. Each region is made up of a major player with a number of satellites, or firms operating in the surrounding area.
The Exco network corresponds to an inverted holding system on the model of Leclerc centers, for example. The brand identity is therefore extremely strong, and goes hand in hand with a determination to make its mark on the territory. Exco has a real territorial characteristic. For example, we have no Paris-Province disproportion, unlike other networks such as the Big Four.
Our signature "Exco, Fertiliseurs d'Entreprises" is undoubtedly the network's strong identity. This brand is based on the emotional, the human, to move - and this is our leitmotiv - from a business based on figures to a business based on links. The ideas of proximity, human ties and territory are at the heart of our brand.
Exco is currently communicating on a new strategic positioning of the network to better meet the expectations of business owners. What does this change involve?
We're looking to change our relationship with business leaders. Historically, these relationships were based on expertise and numbers. We want to move towards a more human relationship, based on support and understanding of our customers' needs and expectations.
This does not mean that we are abandoning the "numbers" part of our business. But we are living in a world of rapid digitalization, and our businesses are primarily concerned when they deal with flows, which are increasingly digitalized. All accounting processes are being automated to enable increasingly intelligent reporting to our customers. The relationship is therefore becoming much more predictive and closer to management. This represents a real positioning for Exco in relation to the world we live in, a strong positioning based on a more human relationship.
The other focus of the network is regional fertilization, through involvement in the local economic fabric with the companies that make up the economy of our regions. Once again, this territorial aspect is absolutely essential at Exco.
The Ordre des Experts-Comptables is putting the spotlight on consulting. How is Exco positioned in this respect?
The theme of consultancy, as promoted by the Ordre, is fairly cyclical. Over the past twenty years, this theme has regularly come to the fore, either as a result of current issues, or of major changes affecting the profession.
There's no doubt that our businesses are now being affected by digitalization. The Exco Group has been addressing this issue for two years now. Digitization means the replacement of a number of services by automation, but also the emergence of new players on the market, notably pure players in online accounting.
Whenever the profession feels concerned by or vulnerable to economic or structural change, it brings out the enchanting spectre of the consulting business.
And it's right to do so, as consulting is undeniably seen as a rewarding positioning and an attractive growth driver for accounting firms. The Exco Group is not excluded from this position, of course. Consulting activities are part of our core business. The digital transformation we embarked upon two years ago has obviously prompted us to reflect on the evolution of our business. As soon as this major digital variable was introduced, we asked ourselves what intelligence we should be putting behind it to be able to support the network's customer entrepreneurs. In other words, how can we make better use of our staff's time, now that certain tasks have been automated?
Aren't you concerned that the rise of digital technology - which the Exco network seems to have anticipated and embraced perfectly - could jeopardize another aspect of your positioning, namely your emphasis on human contact with business owners? In other words, how do you reconcile digital technology with the development of human relationships?
This reconciliation is achieved through the very formalization of Exco's offering to our customers. This offer is structured around three inseparable concepts: firstly, a complete digital solution, accompanied by a close, local link with the chartered accountant - we claim to be able to be less than an hour away from any customer throughout the country, and to be there when they need us - and finally, the third pillar: the chartered accountant has an ecosystem (bankers, financiers, lawyers, etc.) around him, which he can pass on to his customer.
EXCO claims to be an active participant in the emerging economy. What does this mean in concrete terms?
All accountancy firms claim to be able to support start-ups. But in addition, we have developed an approach to third places (incubators, gas pedals, villages, etc.) that goes beyond simple partnerships and is based on three elements.
Firstly, immersion: our employees are immersed in the incubator's premises, enabling startups to have a chartered accountant on hand in the third location. Secondly, entertainment: we offer events within the incubators, recurring presentations on themes linked to business creation and development. And lastly, a specific offer for each third-party location: offers are thus adapted to the contribution capacity of the companies hosted. We've taken this approach with the WeWork workspace network, for example.
Interview by Hugues Robert
