Coffee with…. Aneta Majchrowicz-Bączyk
14 May 2020
We would like to have inspiring discussions with getsix Group staff over a nice cup of coffee (or tea). In this interview, we would like to get to know Aneta a little better, also a little focus on the ‘Tax & Legal’ landscape and how it aligns with getsix® ‘Mission & Values’.
Coffee or tea? When and how?
Coffee! With a little sugar and milk. I get up quite early, because at 6:00am I start the day with a cup of coffee, with the latest news. I like to keep up to date, I am interested in political and economic events in the world.
What does the current ‘Tax & Legal’ world look like?
Today’s world of ‘Tax & Legal’ is a little bit like a rollercoaster; if I may use this comparison, I would say it is a bit like extreme sports. Countless changes in the law in Poland require specialisation, as it is impossible to keep track of all the changes. Once, out of curiosity, I did such a comparison analysis of the changing laws, and it turned out that the changes in laws in Poland are written on 20,000 pages per year, while in Germany it is only 4,500 pages. This requires constant training, but I like it :-).
It has also been calculated that an entrepreneur in Poland would have to spend four hours per day familiarising themselves with the latest legal provisions, which is not feasible. And this is where the role of a consultant begins, which in my opinion consists of identifying the entrepreneur’s main problems and, above all, finding solutions. The role of a consultant is to provide the client with comfort and a sense of security in the event of a clash with the office, the court and the legal regulations. A good example at present is the solutions of the anti-crisis protection shield – without the support of the consultant, clients lose orientation when it comes to the number of applications, criteria and formal requirements.
With increasing age, clients gain experience and competence in risk assessment, which is very helpful in the maze of complicated laws. In the past, people used to say that grey hair is worth its weight in gold in this profession, and I think I am just beginning to really understand the meaning of this saying!
What key changes do you see now after COVID-19 and into 2021?
The current socio-economic situation caused by the pandemic is unprecedented and will clearly change the way we have been doing business to date. As a result of the pandemic, the world of new technologies has arrived in our homes faster than we had expected. Often we did not even want it to. Online shopping and online education are our everyday lives, whether we want them to or not. The use of modern technology and equipment is a matter of habit – the more often we do it, the less we consider it special. These changes have to be accepted as soon as possible and adapted to the new situation. We are lucky that the services we offer can be provided from anywhere in the world. All we need is a laptop and a good internet connection. I believe that after the pandemic the world will not look the same as before when it comes to technology. One example is the latest amendment to the Code of Civil Procedure, where one of the proposals is the possibility of an online court hearing, which was unthinkable until 10 years ago. The pandemic is a time of change, with many companies being replaced by others that also need accounting, tax and IT support. Let us take this as an opportunity to develop and thank our IT specialists for their support. Thanks to them we can now work from a distance.
Why did you select getsix® for the next stage of your career?
Why getsix®? Because from the first conversation I had the feeling that we fit together. At the beginning I had my first contact with the partners of getsix®, who immediately put their trust in me. I did not have the chance to thank them for it, so I do it now. I think that nothing happens by chance, our paths should just cross. Before that, I worked for almost 15 years in another, larger international consulting firm, where I was a partner responsible for tax and legal advice. I mainly advised clients from the German speaking countries. It may sound strange, but I love the German language, and I already knew in secondary school that I would one day work with the German language as a lawyer. Working in a large company drew my attention to taxes, with which foreign entrepreneurs always had the most problems. At getsix® I can professionally do what I like. I feel independent and I have the opportunity to develop the business in the field of tax consulting. What more do you want? I believe that tax consultancy cannot live without accounting and vice versa. I think that the first months of co-operation have shown that it was a good decision and I believe in the success of this venture!
If I can ask you? What are your aims to achieve at getsix®?
Above all, I would like to expand the range of services in the field of tax consultancy for our clients. So far, our tax and legal solutions have been mainly limited to advising our clients. I intend to increase the number of employees and raise the level of our services. Everything indicates that this will be the case from 1 June 2020. I hope that I will then have more time to market our services, to build up international contacts within the HLB network and of course to advise getsix® companies. It is a great challenge, which is very exciting for me and which gives me a lot of pleasure.
If you could be someone else for the day, who would it be? And why?
That’s a difficult question, because I like my job. But if I had that kind of opportunity, I think I could be an interior designer. I like beautiful interiors, watch programmes about interior design in my spare time, buy newspapers and albums on the subject. In architecture I prefer a modern, rather minimalist style, I am disturbed by the excess of unnecessary objects in my environment. From my travels I usually bring pictures, posters and graphics with me. They are still waiting to be framed, for which I unfortunately have no time at the moment. One day I will frame them – I promise!
