What is the intersection of tax and compliance? Why does a Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) or compliance professional need to sit down with the corporate head of tax? How does a corporate tax function fit into a best practices compliance program? It turns out there is quite a bit a compliance professional can learn from a tax professional. Moreover, there are many aspects of tax which should be considered by a CCO and compliance professional from an overall risk management perspective. Unfortunately, these questions are rarely explored in the compliance community. In this episode, we explore the question of why tax needs a seat at the table.
Tax and the Table
The table refers to the front end of when an organization is trying to define what it wants to do, where it wants to do it, and how it’s going to perform. A corporation’s ultimate objective is to generate net income or distributable profit, something tax professionals are well-suited to assist with because they are experts in damage control and risk mitigation. Tracy points out, “Tax can provide an umbrella to achieve corporate objectives if they’re involved in the front end.”
Tax’s Relationship with Other Stakeholders
In a company, a functional lead will often pose the question: ‘Why do we need tax here?’ According to Tracy, “A good tax guy has to be proactive and provide examples to get the tax men at the table.”
Educating Corporate Functions Outside of Tax
Tracy’s advice is to build a relationship with the functional experts, and “create the situation where you’re a trusted business advisor”. He recommends one-on-one interactions above all. However, it is important to remember that in a global organization, the outcome may not always be successful. For this approach to yield positive results, he comments, “there has to be some buy-in, compliance, and a willingness to talk tax.”
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Tracy Howell | Email | LinkedIn
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