What should you prepare for your first consultation?

Your first conversation is not a test of your technical vocabulary. Its purpose is to make your question understandable and identify what a more detailed discussion needs.

1. What question do you need to clarify?

Write one sentence describing the issue or decision. Instead of “we have a tax problem”, try “we need to understand what information is needed to review a particular transaction”. This is an example of framing a question, not an assessment of that transaction.

2. What context matters?

Describe the business activity, the issue and the relevant period. An initial enquiry does not need identity numbers or document attachments. A general description is enough to start the conversation.

3. What stage has the matter reached?

Are you gathering information, trying to understand correspondence or following an internal discussion? Explain the current position and flag any deadline stated in correspondence for discussion with the specialist. Do not invent a deadline yourself.

4. What information is available?

Prepare a list of documents or reports, each version’s status and the person who can explain it. This helps identify what might be needed later. Sending every file should not be the first step.

5. What would make the conversation useful?

You might need to understand requirements, discuss an advisory scope or agree a broader review. Ask what an engagement includes and excludes, what the deliverables and fees are, and how communication will work.

6. Who will follow up?

Agree who will collect questions and coordinate information within your team. After the conversation, record the requested information, its owner and the next step. This is a workflow suggestion, not a statutory requirements list.