How to Choose a Business Valuer in Australia | IBV™

Ask who will undertake the analysis, who will sign the report and who will explain the conclusion. A firm's profile is useful background, but you also need to understand the competence of the person responsible for your engagement. Request details of valuation training, professional credentials and relevant experience. Verify claimed credentials with the issuing professional body where verification is available; do not rely solely on a badge in a proposal.

A qualification is evidence to investigate, not an automatic guarantee of suitability for every matter. Ask how the valuer keeps their knowledge current and how they handle questions beyond their expertise. Business valuation, real-property valuation and specialist asset work should not be treated as interchangeable just because they all produce monetary values. If you are deciding whether your accountant or an independent specialist should value the business, read Business valuation accountant or independent valuer?.

At IBV™, Dr Patrick Hillenbrand is an AVI Certified Business Valuer, a designation issued by the Australian Valuers Institute, with more than 25 years of commercial experience. He scopes the engagement, assesses the evidence and signs the report. See About IBV™ for the practice's approach and credentials, and confirm the proposed scope against your particular purpose before proceeding.

Ask about existing advisory relationships, ownership interests, referral arrangements and any financial interest in a sale or concluded value. Disclose your own relationships and the parties involved so potential conflicts can be considered before instructions are accepted. Familiarity with the business and independence are separate questions: someone who knows the accounts well may still need to explain how their role fits the required engagement.

A business broker may help with a transaction, and an accountant may help prepare or interpret records. Those roles do not, by themselves, establish that a proposed report meets the independence and scope requirements of your matter. Ask your adviser whether an independent valuation opinion is needed and what relationships should be documented.

The IBV™ Independence Guarantee means we do not buy, sell or broker businesses, earn commissions or link our fee to the concluded value. That explains our commercial position; it does not replace a matter-specific conflict assessment or guarantee acceptance by a recipient.

Ask the provider which professional framework they apply and how it affects the engagement and report. APES 225 Valuation Services is a relevant reference when discussing voluntary alignment in valuation engagements. Read the applicable standard and discuss its relevance with your adviser rather than treating a standards reference as a promise of a particular outcome.

IBV™ voluntarily aligns its valuation processes and reporting with relevant principles of APES 225 Valuation Services. APES 225 imposes mandatory obligations on members of the professional accounting bodies that have adopted the standard; IBV’s alignment does not represent a claim of membership-based obligations or universal compliance with every requirement. These bodies include CPA Australia, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, and the Institute of Public Accountants. Professional credentials, the framework followed and the actual scope of work are distinct matters worth checking.

The engagement should identify the subject, purpose, valuation date, intended users, work to be performed and limits on reliance. Ask which records are needed, how missing information will be addressed, which assumptions may be necessary and whether separate specialists are included. Confirm what happens if the instructions change or additional work becomes necessary.

Compare the proposed analysis and report, not just the headline price. Does the scope include financial reconciliation, explanation of the selected methodology and consideration of relevant risks? Is follow-up clarification included, and what would require a separate agreement? Ask for exclusions in writing so a lower initial fee does not conceal a materially narrower task.

IBV™ agrees a Fixed Professional Fee before work begins. Review the fee and engagement guidance and request a written scope for your situation. The fee is not linked to the value concluded. A fixed fee alone does not establish independence or valuation quality; assess conflicts, competence and the actual work proposed.

Use these questions in your initial conversation and check the answers against the written proposal:

Prepare a short outline of the business, ownership interest, purpose and required date, together with any deadline. For legal, tax or regulatory use, ask your adviser to review the proposed scope before you commit. A brief preparation discussion can identify whether more information or another specialist is needed.

Discuss your engagement with IBV™ or request a Free Valuation Call. Calculated Value and Limited Scope delivery is generally 5–7 business days after complete information, required clarifications, signed engagement documents and payment are received. Complex engagements may take longer. Full Conclusion timing is agreed at engagement; timing is confirmed before work begins.