Our Insights

Bill Mattingly’s path into accounting was not a straight line. It emerged through a series of decisions, and opportunities that ultimately built the qualities clients value most: judgement, steadiness and the ability to solve problems with clarity. Today, as a Partner at Thornton’s, Bill brings more than three decades of public practice experience to clients across Western Australia, particularly those operating in regional centres and industries where trust, continuity and practical advice matter just as much as technical capability.

Regional Accounting Experience That Started in Country Western Australia

Bill’s entry in the profession began far from the city. Raised in Kalgoorlie, he first entered university intending to study engineering before a recalibration of priorities pulled him in a different direction. After time in the workforce, he returned to study, completed a commerce degree and stepped into public practice during a period when jobs were scarce and graduates took the opportunities they could secure. That first role with  took him to Merredin and into the heart of regional client work. It proved to be formative. Rather than being sheltered behind layers of hierarchy, Bill was meeting clients early, travelling to farms, working through books at kitchen tables and learning what it meant to be accountable in front of the people whose livelihoods were tied to the quality of his work.

Primary Producers and Regional Business Clients Demand Practical Advice

That early exposure to farming clients would become one of the defining threads of Bill’s career. Regional businesses vary greatly. They often carry long family histories, complicated asset structures and decisions that affect profitability, succession, land, relationships and legacy. Working with those businesses taught Bill the value of practical advice delivered in a way that clients can use. It also strengthened his appetite for the part of the profession he still enjoys most. “Helping clients, giving them advice, helping them through their problems… solving their problems was what I enjoyed and still enjoy,” he says. That emphasis remains central to the Thorntons’ approach today.

Thorntons’ Business Advisory Services Grew Beyond Compliance Accounting

When Bill joined Thorntons in 1998, the firm was already well established, though its operating model looked different from the one clients recognise now. In his view, it was a strong practice with a compliance foundation, yet over time the business evolved into something broader and more valuable to its clients. “We’ve turned the business from what was probably very much in compliance mode,” he says, into a firm that places greater emphasis on advisory, succession planning, business value, estate planning and the kind of commercial support that helps clients make better decisions before problems develop. That transition did not happen by accident. It reflected a deliberate effort to build a more responsive, higher-touch service model, one that would go to clients rather than wait for clients to come in.

Client Relationships in Accounting Are Built Through Consistency and Presence

For Bill, the strongest professional relationships are not transactional. They are built over years, sometimes decades, and often through periods of change that extend well beyond the numbers. He speaks about clients with the familiarity of someone who has seen businesses move through growth, hardship, structural decisions and personal upheaval. On one recent meeting, intended to last an hour but stretching close to three, he found himself helping a long-standing client navigate a far more complex set of circumstances than a standard appointment might suggest. That kind of conversation reflects the firm’s enduring philosophy. Clients are not treated as files in a queue. They are people trying to steer businesses, families and futures through increasingly complex conditions.

Tax Planning and Technical Accounting Expertise That Clients Can Rely On

Within the Thornton’s team, Bill is widely recognised for his depth of technical knowledge. He describes himself, with characteristic understatement, as the “accounting tax geek”, though others would likely frame it more generously. His strength lies in retaining and applying tax knowledge in a way that helps both clients and colleagues move with confidence through changing rules and obligations. “I’m the training session on legs,” he says. In an environment where legislation shifts, interpretation matters and complexity rarely recedes, that capability has real value. It supports compliance, better planning around structure, timing, tax exposure and long-term asset protection.

Accounting Support That Balances Technical Precision with Human Understanding

Technical capability alone, however, is not what defines Bill’s contribution. What stands out just as strongly is the way he thinks about support. When asked how he ensures clients feel looked after, his answer is not framed in abstract service language. It centres on responsiveness, problem-solving and a clear sense of responsibility. Thornton’s, he says, tries to “take it from a personal” perspective because clients are not simply dealing with rules; they are dealing with businesses, lives and the pressures that come with both. That understanding is especially important for business owners carrying the weight of staff, debt, succession issues or changing commercial conditions. Good advice may be technical in content, but its impact is often personal.

Succession Planning and Business Continuity Depend on Strong People

Like many professional services firms, Thornton’s has evolved in tandem with the people inside it. Bill’s own journey from senior accountant to Partner happened within three years of joining, supported by experience, client-facing capability and a succession pathway that allowed one generation to step back while another stepped forward. Since then, he has seen first-hand how critical people are to the health of the business. Team retention, development and succession remain some of the profession’s most pressing challenges. Bill is candid about that. Building the right team behind the client-facing work has often been one of the greatest strengths of the firm, while also being one of its hardest ongoing tasks. It takes skill to deliver trusted advice. It takes culture, leadership and consistency to build the team that makes that possible.

Western Australia Business Clients Value Relationships That Last

Thornton’s long history with family businesses, primary producers and regional enterprises has reinforced a simple truth: clients stay where they feel known and respected. Bill’s own relationships with clients often stretch across decades, which means the work is rarely confined to a single transaction or financial year. Advice unfolds across stages of life and business, through structural decisions, generational change and moments of uncertainty that require both experience and perspective. That continuity is particularly valuable in Western Australia, where geography, industry and family ownership often intersect in ways that require a more grounded kind of professional support.

Thornton’s Accountants and Advisors Support WA Businesses with Depth and Care

Bill Mattingly’s story reflects much of what distinguishes Thorntons as a firm. Deeply embedded in Western Australia, experienced with regional and metropolitan clients alike, and trusted by primary producers, manufacturers and family-owned businesses, Thorntons offers far more than compliance accounting. The firm supports clients with tax planning and compliance, business structuring, succession planning, asset protection and broader advisory services designed to help businesses move forward with confidence. For clients looking for a relationship-led accounting firm with technical depth, commercial understanding and a genuine commitment to long-term outcomes, Thorntons remains a compelling choice.

———

Thorntons is an accounting and advisory practice to mid-size, family-owned businesses in Western Australia. We offer a fully integrated portfolio of financial, tax, succession, and estate planning services and have the experience to guide you through the complexity so that you can enjoy stability, peace of mind and certainty.

To discuss your individual business needs and find out if we might be a fit for you, please contact Thorntons on (08) 9421 1722.