Field note · October 2026

The firm next to the client sees it first

By the time a business owner goes looking for a lender, a restructuring adviser or a buyer for the company, someone else has usually known for months. Most often it’s the accountant.

Accountants see the ATO statement before anyone else does. They see the overdraft creeping up, the margin that won’t hold, and the founder who is tired and asking about succession in a roundabout way. They see the problem early, and they are the person the client already trusts.

The earliest buying signal in most businesses sits in someone else’s inbox.

What most accountants lack is a short list of specialists they would put their name behind. A referral is a reputation decision. One bad one costs more than the fee it might have earned, so many refer nobody, and the client works it out alone, late.

That is the gap I work in. I find the specialist who has done the exact job before, check them, and introduce them to the adviser who sits beside the client. The adviser keeps the relationship and controls the timing. The specialist gets a warm conversation. The client gets help while there are still options.

Most firms chase the end client directly. The firm next to the client is usually the better place to start.

Minh, Mutual Door. Routing between businesses at a turning point and the specialists who handle what comes next.