Sample: New client onboarding — the first 10 daysSample

Everything between "they signed" and "we can actually do the work" — ID checks, ledger access, and the internal handover.

1. Create the client record before anything else

Client manager · 5 min · Tools: SPM

Every new client starts as a record in Clients Management — not a folder, not an email thread. If it is not in SPM, it does not exist as far as the firm is concerned.

Use the legal entity name exactly as it appears on the ASIC extract, then add the trading name as an alias.

• Legal entity name matches ASIC
• Entity type set (company / trust / partnership / sole trader)
• ABN and TFN recorded
• Primary contact has a real email and mobile

2. Run ID and beneficial-ownership checks

Client manager · 20 min · Tools: SPM, ASIC

We do not touch a ledger before KYC clears. Collect photo ID for every director and anyone holding 25% or more, and record the verification date against each person.

Warning: If anything looks off — a nominee director, an offshore trustee, a reluctance to provide ID — stop and escalate to a partner before continuing. Do not "sort it out later".

• Photo ID for all directors
• Beneficial owners at 25%+ identified
• Trust deed sighted (trusts only)
• Risk rating set

3. Send the engagement letter and wait for it to come back

Client manager · 10 min · Tools: SPM Proposals

Build the engagement from the proposal that was accepted, so scope and price match what the client actually agreed to. Do not re-type the scope from memory.

Work does not start until it is signed. There are no exceptions to this one.

4. Get ledger and portal access

Bookkeeper · 15 min · Tools: Xero, ATO Online

Request adviser access to the ledger and add the client to our ATO agent list. Both usually take a day or two, so start them the moment the engagement is signed rather than the day you need them.

• Ledger adviser access accepted
• Added to ATO agent list
• Bank feeds connected
• Prior-year files received from the outgoing accountant

5. Do the opening-balance sanity check

Senior accountant · 45 min · Tools: Xero

Compare the opening balances against the last lodged return before you trust a single number in the file. Roughly one in three new clients arrives with a ledger that does not tie.

Warning: Never quietly fix a prior-year discrepancy. Document it, tell the client in writing, and let a partner decide whether it needs an amendment.

6. Hand over internally

Client manager · 15 min

A 15-minute handover call with whoever is doing the work, plus a written summary on the client record. The person doing the work should never have to reconstruct the deal from the proposal.

• Recurring jobs created with real due dates
• Named owner for the client
• Client told who to contact and how