How it started

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Category: Articles Richard Cornelisse
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Surveys are alarming

 

Benchmark surveys
 
  • Senior management and external auditors considering indirect tax, not material and a high priority.
 
  • The low-risk qualification of indirect tax likely results in budget constraints.
 
  • Lack of specific VAT/GST measurable performance goals visible to the CFO.
 
  • Lack of proper prioritization between lower value activities and higher value activities.
 
  • The Indirect Tax function has many competing priorities and insufficient time or resources.
 
  • Historically, the tax function in general focused on other areas, allowing other departments and local offices a free hand to deal with the company's indirect taxes.
 
  • In most companies, Finance and Accounting are accountable for indirect tax.
 
  • It seems that the (indirect) tax department is often the last to know what is going on, is forced to be the showstopper when other parts of the business thought they were are ready to ‘go live’.

If indirect tax risks are truly that high, then shouldn’t it receive more attention from the CFO?

"That’s precisely the reason I started the Global Indirect Tax Management initiative. It’s not that the problem is unknown among the multinationals, but they just don’t share information sufficiently. The Indirect Tax Function knows that it is understaffed and that the budget is too limited to optimally execute its tasks, but they often don’t know how to change this and get it on the agenda of the CFO."
Richard H. Cornelisse

My own road trip

How I started simply by 'sharing my views' and 'take position'

Around the year 2000 at Andersen, I realized that my advice on VAT cash flow optimization had been incorrectly implemented in the ERP system. This mis' implementation resulted in a cash flow disadvantage that persisted for many years. This experience was a significant eye-opener for me and ultimately led me to establish one of the first teams focused on ERP and indirect tax solutions.

From that moment on, my mantra became understanding the root cause and solving the real problem. I also began writing and sharing my perspectives on these issues. Some of my views—when I reflect upon them now—can be debated, but that is precisely why I am sharing these articles: they illustrate my thinking at the time and provide insight into various developments.

After our transition to EY, the team continued the work. In 2002, we branded our service offering as "ISIS" (Indirect Tax Solutions for Information Systems). In hindsight, that name may not have been the best choice. Managing VAT in ERP systems remains a critical process; however, it is just one of the many building blocks necessary for an effective indirect tax function. The launch of this website marks a significant step forward, as it addresses and discusses all.