The head of FNDL Consulting, an accounting firm, spoke to Konyvelok.hu about their clients’ growing demand for advisory services. We talked with Zsolt Fandl.
We understand there were turning points in your career that led you here.
The first major milestone came back in 2013, when I was a second-year mechanical engineering student. I realized that machining technology and materials science didn’t really excite me — unlike many of my classmates. That’s when I first discovered the world of finance and accounting, which immediately caught my interest. I applied to the Finance and Accounting program at what was then BGF (now BGE), followed by a degree in Business Informatics from Gábor Dénes University, and finally an MBA from the University of Miskolc.
I completed all these programs while working full-time and gaining professional experience — including in financial sales and advisory roles. This diverse academic and professional background has greatly contributed to my ability to understand not just accounting, but also broader business processes.
So you had some experience to build on. How did your business start, and where does it stand today?
We founded our company in March 2023, initially handling the accounting of a few businesses close to us. We launched our first structured client acquisition campaign in November 2024, and since then, we’ve been working with more than 55 different companies, providing accounting, payroll, and consulting services.
Currently, there are two of us managing all operations, but given the growing client base, we’re already planning to hire a third colleague. Our goal is to further strengthen the personal, flexible, and highly professional service quality that has been our foundation from the start.
Before launching your business, you must have looked at your competitors. Have you developed any services that make your firm stand out among accounting offices?
With clients who are open to it, we strive to go beyond the traditional role of an accountant and actively participate in their business as advisors. This collaboration can take many forms — some clients involve us on an ad hoc basis when making specific decisions, while others work with us as full-fledged consultants on management, financial, or strategic matters.
The advantage of this approach is that, as accountants, we already have access to a large amount of relevant data about the company, allowing us to provide advice more quickly and accurately than an external consultant who lacks immediate access to such information. We believe this mindset helps us support our clients’ decisions as true partners and build long-term, trust-based relationships.
Do you have future plans or goals for the firm, or do you prefer to let new ideas find you naturally?
Planning has a particularly high priority for us. I believe it would be difficult to credibly help our clients with their own planning processes if we skipped that step ourselves. I also firmly believe that if you don’t see the goal, you’ll never get there.
At the same time, I find it important to remain flexible in today’s rapidly changing environment. We need to be able to regularly review and, if necessary, adjust our goals to fit new circumstances. This conscious yet open-minded approach allows us to grow steadily over the long term while maintaining our adaptability.
How do you see the role of artificial intelligence in simplifying and automating accounting processes?
It’s already clear that AI can take over a significant portion of traditional data entry tasks. In fact, even for moderately complex tasks and questions, AI now produces surprisingly strong results. It also excels at identifying patterns in data and preparing reports and analyses — often faster and more accurately than human work.
There’s no doubt that AI will raise efficiency to previously unimaginable levels — in the future, an accountant will be able to handle many times their current workload, as most repetitive, manual tasks become automated.
However, complex accounting and taxation issues will still require human expertise and responsible judgment. I believe that in the future, accountants will increasingly focus on verifying and validating the work performed by AI, while maintaining responsibility for the outcomes.
It’s also important not to forget the human side of accounting, which will remain — and perhaps even become — more valuable. Many clients still appreciate having someone they can talk to via email, phone, or in person — someone they can trust and who acts as a true partner in their business.
So, while technology offers immense opportunities, human expertise, personal connection, and ethical responsibilitywill remain indispensable.
FNDL Consulting Kft. has been a member of Könyvelők.hu since 2024.